Gentiana hugelii - Deep-Blue Himalayan Gentian

Deep-Blue Himalayan Gentian is a beautiful deep blue gentian named after Baron Karl von Hügel, 19th century Austrian naturalist. It is an annual herb up to 8 cm tall, branched above. Lower leaves are elliptic to oblong, 2-3 cm long, with cartilaginous margin. Stem leaves are smaller, fused at base, obovate, tip rounded, slightly mucronate and recurved, margin cartilaginous. Flowers are blue, 1-1.5 cm across, congested in cluster at branch ends. Sepal tube is up to 1.2 cm long some what transparent especially portion below the sinus of sepals, sepals 3-4 mm long, oblong, blunt. Flowers are 0.8-1.8 cm long, tube almost twice as long as spreading petals. Throat has several threadlike objects, inside of tube is whitish. Petals are oblong-obovate, rounded at tip, plicae, slightly shorter and narrower than lobes, irregularly split at tip. Capsule is obovoid, slightly exserted with many seeds. Deep-Blue Himalayan Gentian is found in Afghanistan to Tibet and W. Himalaya.