CATERPILLAR PHACELIA
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The pale lavender flowers of the Caterpillar Phacelia can be seen growing on chapparal and dry hillsides, such as the blossoms here found blending in with their surroundings in the Santa Clarita Valley.
They are often found on dry, somewhat rocky areas that have been burned or somehow disturbed and they commonly grow in elevations of 3,500 to 8,000 feet. The delicate flowers are closely clustered and blue to violet in color, with a white throat. They bloom annually from May to July, popping out among tightly coiled stems laden with fuzzy, stiff hairs and the appearance of “fiddleheads,” the neck of old-fashioned violins.
Their hairy stems are about four inches long, from which emerge connected petals and sepals varying from bell or funnel-shaped to nearly flat. Their leaves are fern-like.
About 270 species of the Phacelia exist, with the greatest variety found on the West Coast from San Diego to Oregon. Related species are found to above the timber line.
A member of the waterleaf family, the Phacelia’s name is derived from the Greek word for cluster. The first species of the plant was found almost 200 years ago in the Straits of Magellan. Phacelias are often confused with members of the phlox and borage families.
