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Campanulaceae family

Mt. Hamilton Bellflower Campanula sharsmithiae

Native Specialist-bee host

Mt. Hamilton Bellflower is an annual wildflower native to the lower 48 states. A host for pollen-specialist native bees.

More about this plant

Ravenella sharsmithiae is a rare species of bellflower known by the common names Mt. Hamilton bellflower and Sharsmith's harebell. It is endemic to California, where it is known from just a few occurrences in the higher mountain peaks just south of the San Francisco Bay Area, including Mt. Hamilton and Mount Boardman in the Diablo Range. It is a small, hairy annual herb producing an erect stem up to 25 centimeters tall. The fleshy, toothed leaves are a centimeter long or less. The flower is funnel- or bell-shaped and purple in color. The plant is named for late local botanist Helen Sharsmith. Wikipedia →

Growing & care

USDA PLANTS · TRY
Conditions
Sources · Conditions
Cold hardiness (derived) — Hardiness
Hardiness
≥ zone 11 derived from its U.S. range
Size & form
Sources · Size & form
USDA PLANTS — Lifespan
Lifespan
Annual
In the garden
Herb layer — Sits in the herb of a layered food forest or polyculture.Open guide →
derived roles
Species characteristics from USDA PLANTS (public domain) + TRY (CC BY) — general guidance, not a guarantee for your exact site. Deer "browsing" is documented palatability, not a deer-proof claim.

Wildlife & pollinators

How pollinator value is scored →
✦ Bees specialist-bee host

Specialist native bees depend on it.

Some native bees are pollen specialists (oligolectic) — they raise young only on pollen from particular plant genera. Campanula is a recorded specialist-bee host, so losing it can mean losing the bee that relies on it.

Xerces pollinator conservation →
Specialist hosts from Smith et al. 2024.
Sources for this entry (9) Open & cited
[01] Scientific name & family — USDA PLANTS (DwCA, Zenodo 17903503)
[02] Growth habit & duration — USDA PLANTS (DwCA, Zenodo 17903503)
[03] Native status & distribution — USDA PLANTS (DwCA, Zenodo 17903503)
[04] Common name — USDA PLANTS (via GBIF)
[05] Invasive / introduced status — USDA PLANTS (DwCA, Zenodo 17903503) — native status
[07] Description — Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)
[08] Ecological value — GloBI · Smith et al. 2024 (CC BY)
[09] Cold hardiness (derived) — Derived from U.S. range × USDA PHZM zones
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