Houstonia acerosa, the New Mexico bluet or needleleaf bluet, is a plant species native to Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, Texas and New Mexico.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant FamiliesBiota of North America ProgramUSDA Plant profile
Houstonia acerosa is an herb up to 20 cm tall, with narrow needle-like leaves and white or purplish flowers.Gray, Asa. 1852. Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge 3(5): 81, Hedyotis acerosa Bentham, George & Hooker, Joseph Dalton. 1873. Genera Plantarum 2(1): 60. Houstonia acerosa Terrell, Edward Everett. 2001. Taxonomic review of Houstonia acerosa and H. palmeri with notes on Hedyotis and Oldenlandia (Rubiaceae). Sida 19:913-922. 2001
Varieties Three varieties of the species are widely accepted:
Houstonia acerosa var. acerosa - Coahuila, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, Texas Houstonia acerosa var. polypremoides (A.Gray) Terrell - Chihuahua, Coahuila, New Mexico, trans-Pecos Texas Houstonia acerosa var. tamaulipana (B.L.Turner) Terrell - Tamaulipas
References
External links Photo of herbarium specimen at Missouri Botanical Garden, Wright 237, type specimen of Houstonia acerosa Gardening Europe Houstonia acerosa Chihuahuan Desert Plants, University of Texas at El Paso, Hedyotis acerosa