Collinsia (parviflora)

Dave Skinner PMC Farm Manager USDA NRCS - Pullman Plant Materials Center Room 211A Hulbert Hall WSU Pullman, Washington 99164-6211 509-335-9689 509-335-2940 (fax) abbie@wsu.edu http://plant-materials.nrcs.usda.gov/wapmc

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Family Scientific Name:	Scrophulariaceae
Family Common Name:	Figwort
Scientific Name:	Collinsia parviflora Lindl.
Common Name:	Blue-eyed Mary
Species Code:	COPA3
Ecotype:	Paradise Creek drainage, Pullman, WA
General Distribution:	British Columbia and western US east to North Dakota and south to Nebraska and New Mexico. Prefers areas that are moist in spring. It is tolerant of some shade and frequently grows in small openings next to taller plants in the early spring. Usually found in areas which receive 16-50 inches mean annual precipitation (USDA NRCS 2004).
Propagation Goal:	seeds
Propagation Method:	seed
ProductType:	Propagules (seeds, cuttings, poles, etc.)
Time To Grow:	7 Months
Propagule Collection:	Flowers are borne in the leaf axils and plants flower and ripen seed indeterminantly. Collecting the tiny capsules by hand is tedious. Plants are cut or pulled up and dried in paper bags at room temperature until cleaned. Seed is reddish brown when ripe and shatters readily. Seed usually ripens in late May. We determined 350,000 seeds/lb.
Propagule Processing:	Much of the seed will shattered in the bags. Capsules can be crushed to recover unshattered seed. Coarse trash is separated with a hand screen and the seed is cleaned with an air column separator. Clean seed is stored in controlled conditions at 40 degrees Fahrenheit and 40% relative humidity.
Pre-Planting Treatments:	None required. This is a winter annual species and must be seeded in the fall. Spring germination will occur under exceptional climatic circumstances, but plants are less vigorous and seed yield is much lower than fall seeded plants.
Growing Area Preparation/ Annual Practices for Perennial Crops:	In the fall, seed is sown at a rate of 30-40 seeds/linear foot. Seedings should be made in a firm, weed-free seedbed. A firm seed bed holds moisture near the surface of the soil and assures accurate seed placement. Seed should be placed so that it is barely covered by soil.
Establishment Phase:	Seedlings will emerge when fall rains begin and may develop 2-4 true leaves before winter.
Active Growth Phase:	Plants resume growth in late winter or early spring and may flower as soon as late March, depending on weather conditions.
Length of Active Growth Phase:	2 months
Harvesting, Storage and Shipping:	Plants are harvested by cutting or pulling them up when the capsules toward the middle of the plant are drying but not splitting. Capsules on the lower stem will already have split and shattered their seed by this time. Harvester must use judgement in determining when the greatest amount of seed will be obtained from the plants.
Other Comments:	No insect or disease problems have been noted. In direct seeding trials at the PMC, spring sown seed germinated only in one year, following an extended cool and wet period. The plants were smaller, later, and produced much less seed than plants sown in the fall. No spring germination has occurred in other years.
References:	Craighead, John J., Frank C. Craighead, and Ray J. Davis. 1963. A Field Guide to Rocky Mountain Wildflowers. Houghton Mifflin Co. Boston,MA. 277 pp. Faust, Ralph and Peggy Faust. 1999. Wildflowers of the Inland Northwest. Museum of North Idaho. Coeur d'Alene, ID. 141 pp. Hitchcock, C. Leo, and Arthur Cronquist. 1973. Flora of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press. Seattle, WA. 730 pp. Larrison, Earl J., Grace W. Patrick, William H. Baker, and James A. Yaich. 1974. Washington Wildflowers. The Seattle Audubon Society. Seattle, WA. 376 pp. Lyons, C.P. 1956. Trees, Shrubs and Flowers to Know in Washington. J.M. Dent & Sons (Canada) Limited. Vancouver, BC. 211 pp. Parish, Roberta, Ray Coupe, and Dennis Lloyd (eds.). 1996. Plants of Southern Interior British Columbia. Lone Pine Publishing, Vancouver, BC, Canada. 463 pp. Piper, C.V., and R.K. Beattie. 1914. The Flora of Southeastern Washington and Adjacent Idaho. Lancaster, PA. Press of the New Era Printing Company. 296 p. Rickett, Harold W. 1973. Wildflowers of the United States: The Central Mountains and Plains. Vol. 6. (3 parts). McGraw Hill, New York. St. John, Harold. 1963. Flora of Southeastern Washington and of Adjacent Idaho. 3rd edition. Outdoor Pictures. Escondido, CA. 583 pp. USDA, NRCS. 2004. The PLANTS Database, Version 3.5 (http://plants.usda.gov). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA. Winegar, David. 1982. Desert Wildflowers: Drylands of North America. Beautiful America Publ. Co. Beaverton, OR. 144 pp.

Citation:

Skinner, David M,. 2005. Propagation protocol for production of Propagules (seeds, cuttings, poles, etc.) Collinsia parviflora Lindl. seeds USDA NRCS - Pullman Plant Materials Center Pullman, Washington. In: Native Plant Network. URL: https://NativePlantNetwork.org (accessed 2024/07/01). US Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Center for Reforestation, Nurseries, and Genetic Resources.