Myosotis alpestris

Alpine Forget- me-not (Myosotis alpestris )

The Alpine Forget- me-not (Myosotis alpestris ) is a species of the family of the borage family ( Boraginaceae ).

Description

The Alpine Forget- Me-Not is a 10 to 15 cm high perennial herbaceous plant. The basal leaves are in rosettes. The flowers are up to 9 mm wide and pale to intense blue with yellow throat scales.

The Alpine Forget- me-not is often confused with the sky herald the blooms around the same time. Difference: the sky herald comes available only from altitudes of 2,000 m and has numerous very small rosettes of leaves that provide a cushion- shaped impression.

Ecology

Bloom time is mainly June to August. The short corolla tube also granted kurzrüsseligen insects access to the nectar. Pollinators are Fly, bees and butterflies.

The flowers are blooming in the lilac, sky blue later. This color change is typical of the family Boraginaceae. This is thus concluded that the flower anthocyanin dye reacts similar to litmus: In the initially acidic cell sap it colors the flowers reddish, later in the alkaline cell sap he proposes to blue.

Occurrence

In mountains of Europe, Asia and North America. As the site wet surfaces, grass, debris or block corridors between 1300-3000 m above sea level are preferred. The Alpine Forget- me-not grows on both siliceous and calcareous soils.

From this clan numerous garden forms have emerged that grow wild very easily.