strict blue-eyed-grass, Sisyrinchium montanum

Blue-eyed-grass are fascinating little lilies! Not. They're irises. How come? The main difference is the inferior ovary. That means as you go along the flower stem toward the flower, you come to the ovary before you get to the sepals and petals. With lilies, the ovaries are superior, and the sepals and petals come first. And of course there are exceptions in both families, just to add to the fun. Strict here is a reference to the plant's rigid stems, a feature common to most blue-eyed-grasses, and for that matter most stems. Strict blue-eyed-grass grows in AK, CO, CT, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, MA, ME, MI, MN, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NY, OH, PA, RI, SD, TX, UT, VA, VT, WA, WI, WY, all provinces of Canada, and on GL and SPM. Lenawee Co MI, 5/15/21. Iris family, Iridaceae.