Distribution: Occurring on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; southern British Columbia to Oregon.
Habitat: Open woods below 3000 feet in elevation.
Flowers: May-August
Origin: Native
Growth Duration: Perennial
Conservation Status: Not of concern
Pollination: Bumblebees, bees, flies, wasps, hummingbirds
Robust perennial from a woody base, the clustered stems 3-10 dm. tall, with stiff, spreading hairs below the inflorescence
Basal leaves opposite, clustered, petiolate, with ovate to sub-cordate blade up to 10 cm. long and half as wide, about equaling the petiole, serrate, hairy like the stem, especially along the mid-vein beneath; cauline leaves sessile and clasping, more sharply serrate, nearly as large, but more broadly oblong, the upper ovate.
Inflorescence large and open, strongly glandular-hairy; calyx 3-5 mm. long, broadly lanceolate, with parallel veins; corolla blue, 15-22 mm. long, glandular-hairy on the outside, the raised portion of the lower petal pale blue and hairy; corolla strongly bilabiate, the lower lip much the longer; pollen sacs 0.8-1.1 mm. long, fully dehiscent and becoming opposite, nearly glabrous; staminode bearded toward the recurved tip.
Capsule 4-6 mm. long.
PNW Herbaria: Specimen records of Penstemon ovatus in the Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria database
WA Flora Checklist: Penstemon ovatus checklist entry
OregonFlora: Penstemon ovatus information
E-Flora BC: Penstemon ovatus atlas page
CalPhotos: Penstemon ovatus photos