Penstemon cyaneus / blue penstemon
- two-toned totally tubular flower (blue and pink-ish)
- early spring to at least mid-summer
- widespread in low disturbance habitats – even when rocky and “bare”
Also known as: beardstongue, dark-blue penstemon
There are a number of Penstemon spp. in the area but a “real botanist” identified this one for me initially. The IDFG lists about 47 species in the state. Overall, there are about 250 species of Penstemon worldwide, mostly in the north. As for its family designation, the lumpers seem to have the upper hand right now, having moved it from the Scrophulariaceae to what wikipedia describes as the “vastly expanded” Plantaginaceae. In any case, the genus is correct.
It is difficult to take a hike in the Valley without seeing this plant, and it is not uncommon in somewhat landscaped areas along bike paths. Despite this, it can hardly be described as “common” (in the pejorative sense)… it is both very showy and attractive. Penstemon flowers appear in early spring, not long after snow melt, and continue to appear somewhere (i.e. in some habitat), even into September. It grows in fields that have not been recently disturbed, as well as on mountain slopes and even rocky areas.
As might be expected with a flower as showy as this, there are now many horticultural varieties and even an American Penstemon Society. None of the non-native varieties seem to have escaped and become invasive, at least not in The Valley.
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