PlantWatch

Bluets (Houstonia caerulea)

Photo by Nova Scotia PlantWatch

French name: houstonie bleue
Bloom time: May to June
Report for: NS

General: Bluets are tiny herbs (10 cm high) that grow in dense patches, covering an open meadow in what looks like a pale blue blanket.

Leaves & Twigs: Plants arise from thread-like, creeping roots from which unbranched stems sprout.

Flowers & Fruit: Each stem produces a single, pale lavender flower. The flowers have a bright yellow centre to guide bees to the pollen, found in the tubular flower neck

Habitat: Bluets prefer moist grassy fields.

Sampling: elect a typical patch of plants, if the plants are very abundant, mark off a 1-metre-square section to observe.

To Observe:

• First bloom: when the first flowers are open in the observed plants.
• Mid bloom: when 50% of the flowers are open in the observed plants.