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Trichostema dichotomum L.
Forked Bluecurls
Blue Curls
Florida native
Trichostema dichotomum is a small plant of sandhills, flatwoods and open hammocks. Forked bluecurls is found in nearly every county in Florida and most eastern states from Texas to Maine.
Another species of the same genus is narrowleaf bluecurls. T. setaceum is less common in Florida and also not as widespread nationally.
These herbaceous plants are somewhat shrubby and woody at the base, growing up to 61cm (2 ft.) tall with pubescent stems. Leaves are opposite, entire, elliptic, 4-20mm (1/6 to 3/4 in.) wide and less than five times longer than wide. The showy flowers are delicate and last less than a day, blooming in the morning and dropping the petals and stamens in the afternoon. The five lobed petals are bluish to purplish with two lips, the lower lip mostly white with purplish dots except for the solid purple tip. The four stamens are erect and arching over the lower lip along with the style.
Trichostema dichotomum is a member of the Lamiaceae - Mint family.
Other species of the Trichostema genus in the Wild Florida Photo database:
Trichostema setaceum - NARROWLEAF BLUECURLS
Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants (Institute for Systemic Botany) profile for this species
iNaturalist profile for this species
USDA Plant Profile for this species
Date record last modified: Dec 13, 2023
