SafePlants

Nettle-Leaved Bellflower and Other Bellflowers

This page explores various species of bellflowers (Campanula), focusing on their characteristics, distribution, and interactions with the environment.

Considerations for Pets and Children

• Some bellflower species have hairy stems and leaves, which might cause mild skin irritation in sensitive individuals.
• Several bellflower species are described as having "sharp-cut" or "toothed" leaves.

Scientific and Common Names

• Scientific Name: Campanula trachelium
• Common Names: Nettle-leaved bellflower, Bats-in-the-Belfry (USA)
• Other Bellflowers mentioned: Clustered Bellflower, Spreading Bellflower, Trailing Bellflower, Hairy-flower Bellflower, Bearded Bellflower, Hairy-Leaved Brittle Bellflower, Giant Bellflower, Creeping Bellflower, Purple Bellflower.

Taxonomy and Nomenclature

• Family: Bellflower (Bellflower family, Campanulaceae)
• Examples of other taxonomic ranks mentioned:
  • Campanula dasyantha subsp. chamissonis
  • Campanula dasyantha f. albiflora
• Synonyms mentioned:
  • C. chamissonis (synonym for Campanula dasyantha subsp. chamissonis)
  • C. dasyantha (synonym for Campanula dasyantha subsp. chamissonis)

Distribution and Habitat

• Campanula trachelium is found in Eurasia and has naturalized in North America.
• Purple Bellflower is commonly found in the Himalayas at lower altitudes.
• One observation notes a tall bellflower plant with blue flowers found by the road in a damp area.

Morphological Characteristics and Growth Habits

• Campanula trachelium (Nettle-leaved bellflower) is a medium to tall, roughly hairy perennial. Flowers are violet, or lilac to azure pale blue, bell-shaped, with hairy interiors. Each flower has five fused, erect, and hairy sepals. The petals are hairy with three to five veins.
• Clustered Bellflower is described as an erect perennial plant of 1 to 2 feet height with a densely hairy stem.
• Giant Bellflower is a tall perennial herb growing up to 1.2m with softly hairy stems and narrow sepal teeth.
• Several species have bell-shaped flowers, usually blue.
• Leaves can be "nettle-like", "sharp-cut", "toothed", or "hairy."
• Some species have basal and stem leaves, or linear basal leaves and sparingly hairy stem leaves.

Interactions with Other Organisms

• The text mentions various bellflower species can be difficult to eradicate.

Further Information

• dict.cc German-English Dictionary
• Pixabay (for images of Bearded Bellflower)
• AllPosters.co.uk and AllPosters.com