FoI
Forest Alpine Bluebell
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Forest Alpine Bluebell
ative Photo: Alok Mahendroo
Common name: Forest Alpine Bluebell
Botanical name: Pseudomertensia nemorosa    Family: Boraginaceae (Forget-me-not family)
Synonyms: Mertensia moltkioides var. thomsoni, Mertensia nemorosa

Forest Alpine Bluebell is a wildflower found in the forests and shrubberies of the Himalayas, from Afghanistan to Kashmir, at altitudes of 1500-3000 m. Flowers are blue, in a lax cluster, with flower-tube at least twice as long as the hairy, linear sepals. Petals do not really fully spread into a flat flower - they are only half-spread, obovate. Leaves are mostly at the base, elliptic, 3-4 cm long, carried on an equally long leaf-stalk. Flowering stems are 10-12 cm long, with several narrow leaves and bracts. Flowering: April-May.

Identification credit: Alok Mahendroo Photographed in Kalatope-Khajjiar Wildlife Sanctuary, Chamba, Himachal Pradesh.

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