Blue Blossom               se-a-NO-thus thurs-i-FLO-rus

• Broadleaf evergreen shrub, 4-12 ft (1.2-4 m), stiff, upright.  Leaves alternate, simple, glossy green, to 5 cm long, three prominent veins on the underside, tip obtuse to acute, margin sometimes gland-toothed.  Flowers may range from blue to white, in 7.5 cm spike-like clusters.  Fruit about 3 mm, glandular-sticky, slightly lobed.
• Sun, may freeze out in winter in Corvallis some years, needs good drainage, does best in alkaline soil.  Easy to grow.  Used for screen and background plantings in large spaces and on slopes.
• Hardy to USDA Zone (7)8      Found in the Coast Range foothills from Santa Barbara County, Calif. to Oregon.  Both white (e.g., 'Snow Flurry') and blue flowered cultivars available.
• thyrse: a type of inflorescence, a compact panicle-like inflorescence whose distal end is indeterminate and lateral branches determinate, e.g., lilac.
• Oregon State Univ. campus: behind Withycombe, along service road.