Campanula rapunculoides L.

Creeping Bellflower

Campanula_rapunculoides_plant.jpg
STATS

Introduced
CC = *
CW = 5
MOC = 11

© DETenaglia

Family - Campanulaceae

Habit - Robust perennial forb, colonial from long-creeping rhizomes, with fleshy roots.

Stems - Strongly ascending to erect, to 1 m, usually unbranched, glabrous or sparsely hairy toward the tip, often purplish below.

Campanula_rapunculoides_stem.jpg Stem.

© DETenaglia

Campanula_rapunculoides_stem2.jpg Mid-lower stem.

© SRTurner

Leaves - Basal leaves with a long, slender petiole to 10 cm long, the blade 2-7 cm long, 1.5-3.5 cm wide, broadly ovate, rounded or cordate at the base, angled to a sharply pointed tip, the margins somewhat unevenly, relatively coarsely, and sharply toothed, the surfaces minutely roughened, especially at and near the margins. Stem leaves alternate, gradually reduced from near the stem base to the tip, short-petiolate to sessile, the blade 2-5 cm long, those of the lower leaves ovate to ovate-triangular, those of the upper leaves narrowly lanceolate, otherwise similar to the basal leaves.

Campanula_rapunculoides_leaves1.jpg Stem and leaves.

© SRTurner

Campanula_rapunculoides_leaf1.jpg Leaf adaxial.

© SRTurner

Campanula_rapunculoides_leaf1a.jpg Leaf adaxial surface.

© SRTurner

Campanula_rapunculoides_leaf2.jpg Leaf abaxial.

© SRTurner

Campanula_rapunculoides_leaf2a.jpg Leaf abaxial surface.

© SRTurner

Campanula_rapunculoides_leaves.jpg Pressed basal leaves.

© DETenaglia

Inflorescence - Relatively dense racemes, the flowers mostly oriented toward 1 side, solitary at each node and usually nodding, the lowermost bracts more or less leaflike but most of the bracts reduced. Pedicels to 1 cm long in flower, elongating in fruit to 6 cm, typically glabrous.

Campanula_rapunculoides_inflorescence.jpg Inflorescence.

© SRTurner

Flowers - Calyx tube 4-5 mm long at flowering, elongating as fruit matures, the lobes 5-7 mm long, 1.5-2.0 mm wide, lanceolate. Corollas bell-shaped, the tube 9-13 mm long, sparsely pubescent internally, glabrous externally, the lobes 7-10 mm long, glabrous at the tip, blue to purple. Style 18-20 mm long, included within or barely exserted from the corolla, straight or nearly so in open flowers, the stigma 3-lobed. Stamens 5. Filaments abruptly broadened and flattened at base, white, to 4 mm long, pubescent at broadened base. Anthers yellow, curled, 5-6 mm long. Ovary inferior, 3-locular, ovules many, placentation axile.

Campanula_rapunculoides_flowers.jpg Flowers.

© DETenaglia

Campanula_rapunculoides_flowers2.jpg Flowers.

© SRTurner

Campanula_rapunculoides_calyces.jpg Calyces.

© SRTurner

Campanula_rapunculoides_corollas.jpg Corollas.

© SRTurner

Campanula_rapunculoides_corolla.jpg Corolla.

© SRTurner

Fruits - Capsules 5-8 mm long, 5-6 mm in diameter, nearly spherical, 3-locular, nodding, dehiscing by 3 round pores near the base; seeds 0.8-1.2 mm long, 0.8- 1.0 mm wide, flattened, usually with a thickened margin.

Flowering - June - October.

Habitat - Old homesites, crop fields, roadsides, railroads.

Origin - Native to Eurasia.

Lookalikes - Distantly, Campanula americana.

Other info. - This plant is quite striking, with inflorescences that can be half the length of the entire plant. It is relatively uncommon in Missouri, and is found mostly in the northwestern quadrant of the state. Its North American distribution is scattered across the northern half of the U.S. and into Canada. Although the plant is widely cultivated for its beautiful inflorescences, its long-creeping rhizomes contribute a degree of aggressiveness which may be unwelcome in some situations.

Missouri plants have been called var. rapunculoides.

Photographs taken in Marquette, MI., 7-21-02 (DETenaglia); also in Nederland, Boulder County, CO, 8-5-2017, and near Goodrich, Genesee County, MI, 7-4-2022 (SRTurner).