Plant of the day is: Gentiana andrewsii or closed gentian

Plant of the day is: Gentiana andrewsii or closed gentian

So this plant is a native of Missouri which the USDA map shows as being kind of scattered across the counties in a pretty random fashion.  It is supposedly one of the more common Gentians and grows easily in moist woods and prefers full/part sun.

It is the type genus for the family Gentianaceae.  The family is named after King Gentius of ancient Illyria who allegedly discovered the medicinal value of the plant.

They have very striking dark purple/blue flowers clustered at the tips of stems.  The flowers themselves are very tightly closed, leading to the closed (bottle) gentian common name.  If what I read is to believed, only very strong bees can squeeze inside the corolla.

The leaves tend to be opposite farther down the stem but can be more whorled near the flowers.  The plant also has a very stout taproot so plant in a deep container if growing from seed.  The appreciate plenty of moisture and do not like their roots disturbed.  They can develop very slowing, taking between 2 to 7 years to reach flowering size (ouch).

Lastly, I'll mention that it is a late bloomer.  Blooms late summer into early fall so it can really add a nice shot of an unlikely color for the season in your garden.  My thoughts tend towards situating it with some goldenrod so you get the yellow/purple combo.

Looks like I'm not the only one with that thought.

Habit.