Campanula rotundifolia (bluebell)

Campanula rotundifolia L.

Campanula rotundifolia L. ssp. groenlandica (Berlin) Á. Löve & D. Löve

Campanula rotundifolia L. ssp. intercedens (Witasek) Á. Löve & D. Löve

Campanula alaskana (A. Gray) W. Wight ex J.P. Anderson

Campanula dubia A. DC.

Campanula gieseckiana Vest ex Schult.

Campanula gieseckiana Vest ex Schult. var. arctica (Lange) Böcher

Campanula gieseckiana Vest ex Schult. ssp. groenlandica (Berlin) Böcher

Campanula groenlandica Berlin

Campanula heterodoxa Bong.

Campanula intercedens Witasek

Campanula petiolata A. DC.

Campanula rotundifolia L. var. alaskana A. Gray

Campanula rotundifolia L. var. alpina Tuck.

Campanula rotundifolia L. var. arctica Lange

Campanula rotundifolia L. var. intercedens (Witasek) Farw.

Campanula rotundifolia L. var. lancifolia Mert. & W.D.J. Koch

Campanula rotundifolia L. var. petiolata (A. DC.) J.K. Henry

Campanula rotundifolia L. var. velutina A. DC.

Campanula sacajaweana M. Peck

Campanula rotundifolia L. ssp. groenlandica (Berlin) A. Löve & D. Löve

Campanula rotundifolia L. ssp. intercedens (Witasek) A. Löve & D. Löve

Bluebell, harebell, bluebell bellflower

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Asterales	Flowering plants with a central disk flower and surrounding petals, like daisies
Family	Campanulaceae	Campanula or bellflower family; means “bell-shaped flowers”
Genus	Campanula	Latin for “little bell”: the bellflower family
Species	rotundifolia	With rounded leaves

About plant names...

You may be thinking that this plant has a few more scientific names than it actually needs. I know I am.

I don’t do heights. While trying to recover a frisbee from the shallow roof of my ranch house back in my 20s, I spent a half-hour hugging the asphalt, unable to move forward or backward. So when I spied these bluebells poking out of a granite outcrop in Acadia National Park, then noticed the abyss underneath, it didn’t seem too likely that I would reach them. But I persevered, bulky camera and flash swinging pendulously as I clambered over the rock faces. I inserted myself into the deepest crack I could find and waited, avoiding the view, for the wind to die down. Finally, oblivious to the personal risk, I got a few good photos. (My wife, who has no fear of heights, reviewed my account with a touch of skepticism. “Drama king” was one term she used. But I’m sticking to my account.)

Identification: Bluebells are North American natives that bloom between June and October, well past many other flowers. Plants are up to 15" (38 cm) high. The beautiful five-petaled bells are distinctive. Often they appear bent over (“nodding”) on their fragile stems, looking all the more like delicate bells. Each flower is about ¾-1¼" (1.9-3.2 cm) long. Leaves are long and narrow.

From Thomé, Prof. Dr. Otto Wilhelm, Flora von Deutschland Österreich und der Schweiz., 1885

Online References:

Campanula rotundifolia on Missouriplants.com

Campanula rotundifolia on

Campanula rotundifolia at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Campanula rotundifolia on Wikipedia

Campanula rotundifolia on CalPhotos

Campanula rotundifolia at Illinois Wildflowers

Campanula rotundifolia on Montana Plant Life

Campanula rotundifolia on Wikimedia Commons

Campanula rotundifolia on SEINet—the Southwest Environmental Information Network

Harebell leaves are very thin, at left. The larger leaves are columbine. · 9/28/2013 · Wild Gardens of Acadia, Acadia Naitonal Park, Bar Harbor, ME
≈ 6 × 4½" (15 × 11 cm)

9/20/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, ME
≈ 4½ × 3" (11 × 7.9 cm)

8/31/2014 · NM
≈ 5 × 5" (13 × 12 cm)

8/30/2014 · NM
≈ 2½ × 2½" (6.9 × 7.2 cm)

Campanula rotundifolia description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

9/20/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, ME
≈ 3½ × 2½" (9.8 × 6.6 cm)

9/20/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, ME
≈ 3½ × 5" (9.2 × 13 cm)

8/31/2014 · NM
≈ 3½ × 4" (8.7 × 10 cm)

The leaves in this photo are columbine. The hareball leaves, visible at the very bottom, are very thin. · 9/28/2013 · Wild Gardens of Acadia, Acadia Naitonal Park, Bar Harbor, ME
≈ 6 × 5" (16 × 13 cm)

9/16/2016 · Sieur de Monts Botanical Gardens, Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, ME

9/29/2013 · Compass Harbor, Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, ME
≈ 5 × 6" (13 × 14 cm)

8/31/2014 · NM
≈ 8 × 6" (19 × 15 cm)

9/29/2013 · Compass Harbor, Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, ME
≈ 5 × 8" (13 × 20 cm)

9/20/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, ME
≈ 8 × 8" (19 × 19 cm)

Range:

About this map...