Primulaceae

Dodecatheon pulchellum

Few-Flowered Shooting Star

Erect stem, upright spreading leaves. Plant hairless. Leaves oval to egg-shaped, often with some fine teeth, 2–10 in. long, entire, narrowing gradually to petiole. Flowers 2–15 atop stem. Flower with 5 of all parts; petals 1/4–1/2 in. long Few-flowered shooting star, pretty shooting star, magenta to lavender with large white spot near base, dark ring at base; tube yellow where joined, purple-black near tip. Grows along streambanks, waterfalls, wet meadows, seeps, sometimes in salt water near coast, at low to high elevations. Subsp. pulchellum is hairless throughout. Subsp. cusickii has fine, slightly sticky glands on surfaces of stems and leaves.

• Rarity: Common
• Flowering Time: Mid Spring
• Life Cycle: Perennial
• Height: 6--20 inches
• Habitat: Meadow, Vernal Wet, Subalpine, Coastal, Bog/Fen/Wetland, Alpine
• Found In: Steens, West Gorge, Wallowas, N Cascades Np
• Native: Yes