Nama demissa – “Purple Mat”

Also Known As: Desert Mat
Family: Waterleaf (Hydrophyllaceae)
Bloom Period: Spring
Form: Annual herb forming a mat
Habitat: Sandy or clayey soils
Leaves: Linear to spatulate; opposite
Translation: “Nama” is Greek for “stream” and refers to the usual habitat of this genus; “demissum” is Latin for “humble” or “lowly” and is an apt description of this low-growing plant.
Notes: In wet years, will spread out over large areas of the ground but in dry years (such as the one when this photograph was taken), will remain small and produce only a few flowers, or even just one. Tiny seeds escape the attention of ants and other insect gatherers by quickly sinking into the soil where they can wait for years for the optimum conditions for germination, which is rain following cool weather.
Native American Uses: The Kawaiisu pounded the seeds in a bedrock mortar and then boiled them into a porridge.