Mountain Harebell

Campanula lasiocarpa
Campanulaceae/Bluebell Family

Mountain Harebell grows in rocky, alpine areas. It grows 2-4" and the leaves form a basal rosette with oval, pointed leaves with shallow teeth. The leaves creeping up the stem are small and alternate. The violet-blue flowers are upright, bell-shaped and usually occur singly. It can be distinguished from its relative Bluebells of Scotland by its hairy sepals, small sharp teeth on the leaf and sepal margins, and the single flowers. Mountain Harebell is a brave plant, bearing disproportionately large flowers, in extreme and exposed alpine sites.

Campanula is the diminutive of the Latin campana, "bell" which refers to the shape of the flowers.