An annual from coastal Mediterranean areas, one of my unsung garden heroes for several reasons:
--has blue bracts snuggling around the purple-blue flowers There can never be too much blue in the garden.
--grows and blooms on little water--winter rain may be enough, though you get better and longer performance with some irrigation;
--reseeds, but is easily identifiable, has a small root system, and grows for quite a while before it blooms, so you have time to pull it before it gets out of hand;
--the hummingbirds love the flowers. The common name is "Honeywort"; the nectar must be honey-sweet because the hummers don't leave it alone, if they can find their way to it.
Easy from seed--toss some around as the winter rains begin if you are in Southern California. It makes a nice companion to the California Golden Poppy--the foliage has the same gray-green color as poppies, but with a different texture, and the blue-purple flowers complement the golden poppy blooms.
One of my favorite annuals. Love the colors.
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