Minnesota Wildflowers


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Androsace occidentalis (Western Rock Jasmine)

Plant Info
Also known as: Western androsace
Genus:Androsace
Family:Primulaceae (Primrose)
Life cycle:annual
Origin:native
Habitat:sun; dry sandy soil, grassy meadows, open fields
Bloom season:April - May
Plant height:.5 to 3 inches
County distribution (click map to enlarge):Minnesota county distribution map

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Detailed Information

Flower: Flower shape: 5-petals

[photo of flowers] 3 to 15 tiny white flowers on slender stalks radiate from the end of the stems. At the base of the cluster is a whorl of small leaf-like bracts. The flowers are very tiny, less than 1/8 inch, have 5 fused petals with distinct lobes that may be erect or spreading. The green tubular calyx holding the flower is minutely hairy, has 5 sharply pointed erect lobes and is longer than the flower. Flower stalks are unequal in length.

Leaves and stems: Leaf attachment: basal Leaf type: simple

[photo of leaves] Leaves are in a tight basal rosette, oblong or lance shaped, up to 2/3 inch long, toothless or with shallow teeth, minutely hairy, tapered to a point at both ends on an obscure, minute stalk. A plant typically has multiple stems from the base but is unbranched; stems are minutely hairy.

Notes:

If American lotus (Nelumbo lutea) is noted as Minnesota's largest native wildflower, Western Rock Jasmine certainly vies for its smallest. It can have very dense populations but it takes a discerning and determined eye to pick it out of the landscape, and is only of interest to those who celebrate the diversity of nature.

Where to buy native seed and plants

Help support this site by buying seeds & plants from these vendors. Tell them we sent you!

  • Out Back Nursery and Landscaping - Where Ecology and Horticulture Unite
  • Shooting Star Native Seeds - Native Prairie Grass and Wildflower Seeds
  • Landscape Alternatives - Distinctive Native Plants since 1986!
  • Prairie Restorations - Bringing people together with the land
  • Shop for native seeds and plants at PrairieMoon.com!

Map of native plant purveyors in the upper midwest

More photos

Photos courtesy Peter M. Dziuk taken at Hastings Sand Coulee SNA in Dakota county and a grass-free patch of lawn in Lino Lakes, Anoka county.

Comments

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