WATERLEAF FAMILY 



(Hydrophyllaceci) 



Herbs or sometimes shrubs, with regular 5-parted flowers 

 generally in coiled spikes or racemes, the stamens borne on the 

 lower part of the corolla tube. Styles 2 or twice cleft. 



BABY-BLUE-EYES (Nemdphila insignis, Dougl.). Flowers 

 pure blue with a white centre, ^ to an inch or so in diameter, 

 solitary on terminal or lateral stalks. Leaves divided into 

 7 to 9 divisions, these often more or less lobed again. A low, 

 rather hairy annual, spreading by stems of tender texture; 

 blooming from February to May in more or less shaded places 

 throughout California. 



Baby-blue-eyes is one of those ethereal creations in the plant 

 world, of which it is hard to speak except in terms of poetry it 

 appeals so directly to the heart. If David Douglas had done 

 nothing more than discover this "lovely harbinger of the 

 California spring," as he called it, he would have deserved the 

 gratitude of the world; for through him it was introduced to 

 the gardens of Europe, where it has long been a favorite. 



ICC 



