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It’s Forget-me-not Week on the 2016 Critter Calendar! Get out in the field and search for the huge Boraginaceae family of plants, also known as borages or forget-me-nots. There are over 2,000 known species of these plants, and they range widely throughout tropical, subtropical, and temperate regions around the world, so there should be some near you!
With such a diverse family there are many variants among the Boraginaceae. Plus the family has been recently expanded to include the formerly separate waterleaf family, Hydrophyllaceae! But here are several borage traits you can look for. If the plant has all or most of these traits, it’s likely a borage.
Some well-known members of the Boraginaceae are the forget-me-nots (Myosotis sp.), flddlenecks (Amsinckia sp.), scorpionweeds (Phacelia sp.), viper’s bugloss (Echium vulgare), Geiger tree (Cordia sebestena), and heliotropes (Heliotropium sp.). Borage (Borago officinalis) has edible leaves and is sometimes cultivated for food.
If you think you see any of these this week, share your observations with us. We’ll be keeping track here. Happy forget-me-not hunting!
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As it happens I've just added a Large Blue Alkanet (Anchusa azurea). Here in Crete, Greece it is called αγόγλωσσος (agoglossus) and the locals eat the tender stems boiled, steamed or fried.
Lots of borages among the Sonoran desert spring ephemerals - Cryptanthas, Pectocaryas, Phacelias, Eucryptas, Amsinckias, Plagiobothrys, and a Pholistoma. Many are shared with the Mojave desert in California as well.
Just in time for my trip to the Mojave! Phacelia spp coming soon
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