Much branched annual 5-15 cm, the stems glabrous; basal lvs ovate to elliptic, 5-10 mm, tapering to a short petiole, scaberulous on the margin; upper lvs narrower, subsessile; fls short-styled, solitary, terminal or also from the upper axils, on peduncles 1-3 cm; sep narrowly oblong to lance-ovate, 1.2-3 mm, half to fully as long as the cor-tube; cor blue or purple with a reddish eye, salverform, the tube 2.5-5 mm, glabrous within, the limb 4-8 mm wide; fr and seeds of no. 7 [Hedyotis caerulea (L.) Hook.]; 2n=16. Dry soil; coastal plain from se. Va. to Tex.; inland from Ill. to Nebr., s. to Tenn. and Tex. Apr. (Houstonia minima; Houstonia patens; Houstonia pusilla)
Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.