Aliciella latifolia – “Broad Leafed Gilia”

Other Botanical Names: Gilia latifolia
Family: Phlox (Polemoniaceae)
Bloom Period: Mar-May
Form: Annual
Habitat: Gravelly or rocky soil, washes
Leaves: Round or ovate with toothed margins that can be tinged red; mostly basal
Translation: “Aliciella” is named for Alice Eastwood (1859-1953). Writes Charter: “self taught botanist and botanical curator for the California Academy of Sciences, indisputably one of the most significant figures in California botany who in a damaged and burning building after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake saved 1,500 priceless type specimens representing 53 years of collecting. During this time she neglected the safety of her own home which burned to the ground”; “latifolia” is Latin for “broad leaf”; “Gilia” is named for Felippo Luigo Gilii (1756-1821), Italian naturalist, astronomer and author.
Notes: Reputedly a foul-smelling plant.