About Downingia bella Hoover
Like all species in the Downingia genus, Downingia bella Hoover has a stem that ranges from decumbent to erect. Its leaves grow along the stem, and they often fall off before the plant begins to flower. The flowers are not sessile, arranged in a spike inflorescence, and each individual flower has a corolla 10 to 12 mm long. The corolla is glabrous and has two distinct lips: the upper lip has two lobes, and the lower lip has three lobes. The upper lobes are narrowly triangular or elliptic in shape, while the lower lobes are obtuse and abruptly toothed. The corolla is blue, and the lower lip has a central white field, which holds two yellow spots in its middle that may be joined together. At the corolla throat, D. bella has two raised nipples that typically bear three alternating purple spots. The five fused stamens have anthers that are enclosed within the corolla tube, and angled less than 45 degrees relative to the filaments. The inferior ovary is shaped like a pedicel and has two chambers. The fruits of D. bella are 16 to 18 mm long, with tough lateral walls. They dehisce tardily, and lack noticeable translucent lines. The seeds inside the fruit are longitudinally striate. In some areas of northern Sutter County, D. bella specimens have a minute corolla horn, similar to that of D. ornatissima.
