Lithospermum incisum Lehm., narrowleaf puccoon. Perennial herb, taprooted, 1—several(—many)–stemmed at base, with ascending branches, in range to 28 cm tall; shoots with only cauline leaves, leaves overlapping, conspicuously hirsute, the stiff hairs with blisterlike bases (pustulate).
Stems cylindric, to 3 mm diameter, internodes to 10 mm long, with 2 faint decurrent ridges from leaf.
Leaves helically alternate, entire and sessile, without stipules; petiole indistinct from blade (lower leaves); blade oblong or oblanceolate–linear to linear or linear–oblong, < 25—110 × 3—11 mm, entire or when water–stressed somewhat inrolled to lower side, acute and callous at tip, 1–veined with midrib sunken on upper surface and raised on lower surface.
Inflorescence leafy, unexpanded cyme, terminal, initially with showy open (chasmogamous) flowers in early spring and several weeks later with small closed (cleistogamous) flowers, bracteate, hirsute; bract and bractlet subtending flower leaflike, < 30 mm long; pedicel to 2.5 mm long, densely hirsute.
Chasmogamous flower structurally bisexual, radial, 14—20 mm across; homostylous; calyx 5–lobed, green, hirsute on exposed surfaces; tube cup–shaped, < 0.5 mm long; lobes ascending, unequal, 3 long, 1 somewhat shorter, 1 ca. 3 mm shorter, linear, ca. 5—8.5 mm long on each flower, 1–veined; corolla 5–lobed, trumpet–shaped (salverform); tube–lower throat cylindric, 23—38 × 2—2.5 mm, slightly wider around ovary, whitish at base to pale greenish yellow at stamens, exposed surfaces ± hirsute with ascending hairs; upper throat wide–flaring, 4—5 mm long, bright yellow, with some hairs on lower surface; appendages opposite lobes at orifice, shallowly 2–lobed or not, ca. 0.5 × 0.8 mm, dark yellow, glandular and short–papillate; lobes widely spreading, obovate and wavy on margins, 4—6.5 mm long, light yellow, overlapping at base, coarsely fringed on margins, variously curved and folded, upper surface short–papillate; stamens 5, fused to tube below spreading bright yellow throat at somewhat different heights on lower throat of corolla (3—5.5 mm below corolla appendages); filaments < 0.4 mm long, white; anthers initially positioned below level of stigma, dorsifixed, dithecal, 1.7—2.1 mm long, pale yellow, longitudinally dehiscent; pollen pale yellow; nectary disc surrounding base of ovary, ca. 0.2 mm long, light green, nectar–producing; pistil 1; ovary superior, deeply 4–lobed, lobes obtuse–ovoid, ca. 0.6 mm long, light green, glabrous, each lobe with 1 ovule; style arising from center of ovary lobes, straight and slender, ± 20(—25) mm long, white, glabrous, compressed approaching stigma lobes; stigma lobes 2, spheroid, exserted at least 1 mm when tube still elongating becoming included as tube > pistil.
Cleistogamous flower bisexual, radial, ca. 2 mm across; homostylous; calyx 5–lobed, green, hirsute on exposed surfaces; tube cup–shaped, < 0.5 mm long; lobes unequal, 3 long, 1—2 shorter, linear, ca. 5—8 mm long, 1–veined; corolla 5–lobed, 5 mm long; tube ca. 2 mm diameter and whitish around ovary, throat cylindric, ca.1.5 mm diameter, and ± yellow above ovary, hirsute above midpoint; corolla lobes touching (not spreading), < 0.5 mm long; stamens 5, attached to top of corolla tube, ca. 2 mm long; filaments short, white; anthers above level of stigma, dorsifixed, dithecal, ca. 1 mm long, pale yellow, longitudinally dehiscent; pollen pale yellow; nectary disc surrounding base of ovary not functional; pistil 1, 2 mm long, included and never exposed to pollinators; ovary superior, deeply 4–lobed, lobes obtuse–ovoid, ca. 0.6 mm long, light green, glabrous, each lobe with 1 ovule; style arising from center of ovary lobes, straight and slender, ca. 2 mm long, white, glabrous; stigma spheroid, white.
Fruits nutlets, of chasmogamous flower (2—)3—4, of cleistogamous flower 1(—4), ovoid, 3.5—4 × 2—2.2 mm, glossy pale green drying whitish, broadly attached above nectary, with ridgelike edge on inner side, obtuse at tip, having widely spaced, deep pits; of chasmogamous flower persistent gynobasic style 20—25 mm long, of cleistogamous flower persistent gynobasic style ca. 2 mm long = midpoint of nutlet; persistent calyx with lobes 5—8.5 mm long, surfaces hirsute.
A. C. Gibson