Flower profile

Prairie bluebells

Mertensia lanceolata

Prairie bluebells (Mertensia lanceolata) is a flowering plant in the Boraginaceae family, native in the lower 48 states, blooming mostly April–June across the U.S.

Native in the lower 48

Prairie bluebells is a wildflower that USDA PLANTS lists as native in the lower 48 states. It's on our flower lists for 2 states, and across the U.S. it's most often seen in bloom in April–June.

8states where USDA records it

2Bloomipedia state lists include it

2,210U.S. sightings*

*iNaturalist research-grade observations, as of October 17, 2026.

On our lists for: Colorado, South Dakota

Quick look

Mertensia lanceolata, known as prairie bluebells, lance-leaved bluebells, lance-leaved lungwort, and narrow-leaved languid ladies is a species of flowering plant native to the Rocky Mountains and areas of the northern Great Plains in western North America. A herbaceous perennial it has blue-green leaves alternately arranged on its smooth flowering stalk. Its flower buds are pink-purple and become blue as they open.
From Wikipedia's article Mertensia lanceolata, CC BY-SA 4.0.

It belongs to the Boraginaceae family. ^iNaturalist
USDA PLANTS describes it as an herb (forb) with a perennial life cycle. ^{USDA PLANTS}
USDA PLANTS lists it as native in the lower 48 states and records it in 8 states. ^{USDA PLANTS}
NatureServe lists it as native to Colorado and South Dakota. ^NatureServe
In Colorado, most iNaturalist sightings of it in flower come in April–June. ^iNaturalist
iNaturalist has 1,941 research-grade sightings of it in Colorado, ranking #84 among the 160 flowers on our Colorado list. ^iNaturalist
iNaturalist has 155 research-grade sightings of it in South Dakota, ranking #96 among the 126 flowers on our South Dakota list. ^iNaturalist

When does it bloom?

Flowering records by month across the U.S. (iNaturalist research-grade observations marked “Flowering”) (212 records)

Bloom time in the 2 states whose Bloomipedia list includes it

State	Type	Peak bloom	Sightings*
Colorado	Native	April–June	1,941
South Dakota	Native	few records (17)	155

Conservation status

Federal (U.S. ESA): Not listed No U.S. Endangered Species Act listing in the USFWS ECOS database. ^{USFWS ECOS}
NatureServe global: G5 Secure worldwide. ^NatureServe
Colorado: No list Colorado has no state law listing endangered or threatened plants, so we show NatureServe's Colorado ranks instead. NatureServe: S4, apparently secure in Colorado.
South Dakota: No list South Dakota's endangered and threatened list (ARSD 41:10:02) covers animals only, so we show NatureServe's South Dakota ranks for plants. NatureServe: SNR, not yet ranked in South Dakota.
Rare elsewhere: Other states where NatureServe ranks it rare or missing: NE (S2). (S1 critically imperiled, S2 imperiled, SH possibly extirpated, SX presumed extirpated.)

Checked October 17, 2026. Rankings and lists can change, so follow the links for the latest.

Can you eat it?

For peopleNot well documented

None of the sources we checked (NC State Extension (no page for this plant), USDA PLANTS) say whether it's edible or poisonous for people.

For petsNot well documented

It isn't on the ASPCA plant list.

🌿 Never eat a wild plant unless you're certain of its ID; this isn't medical advice. Worried about a person? Call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Worried about a pet? Call your vet.

Where does it grow?

USDA PLANTS records prairie bluebells in 8 states.

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recorded by USDA PLANTS on our state lists not recorded

See the full list of states

Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming.

Colorado counties with USDA records: Alamosa, Arapahoe, Boulder, Chaffee, Clear Creek, Costilla, Custer, Denver, Dolores, Douglas, Eagle, El Paso, Elbert, Garfield, Gilpin, Grand, Gunnison, Hinsdale, Huerfano, Jackson, Jefferson, La Plata, Lake, Larimer, Las Animas, Mineral, Montezuma, Park, Pitkin, Rio Grande, Routt, Saguache, San Juan, Summit, Teller.

South Dakota counties with USDA records: Brule, Clay, Corson, Custer, Fall River, Haakon, Harding, Jackson, Lawrence, Meade, Pennington, Stanley.

Names, range and relatives

Native status by region (USDA PLANTS): Canada: Native; Lower 48 states: Native.

County records: USDA PLANTS lists it in 111 counties across 8 states; the most are in Colorado (35), North Dakota (18), Wyoming (15).

Other Mertensia on Bloomipedia (4): Virginia bluebells, Mountain bluebells, Tall bluebell, Oysterplant.

More from the Boraginaceae family (42 on Bloomipedia; most observed first): Virginia waterleaf, Pacific hound's tongue, Distant phacelia, Alkali heliotrope, Virginia stickseed, Wild comfrey, Menzies' baby blue eyes, California yerba santa.

More Colorado flowers

Silky phacelia

Phacelia sericea

Native

🌼 Blooms in CO: June–July

Hound's-tongue

Cynoglossum officinale

Introduced

🌼 Blooms in CO: May–June

Miner's candle

Oreocarya virgata

Native

🌼 Blooms in CO: May–July

Sources

USDA, NRCS. PLANTS Database, profile MELA3.
iNaturalist, Mertensia lanceolata: taxonomy, research-grade observation counts and “Flowering” annotations, retrieved October 17, 2026.
Wikipedia, Mertensia lanceolata (lead quoted under CC BY-SA 4.0).
Colorado: Colorado noxious weed lists A, B and C (8 CCR 1206-2, eff. May 15, 2025).
South Dakota: South Dakota statewide noxious weeds (ARSD 12:62:03:01.06).
USFWS, ECOS species database (ESA listing check), October 17, 2026.
NatureServe Explorer, Mertensia lanceolata (global and state ranks).
Edibility and toxicity: no source found (marked "not well documented").
Photo: natepow via iNaturalist · CC0 · resized.