American Bellflower

Campanulastrum americanum

Pollinator Value

🐝 Specialist Bee Host: Megachile campanulae
S17 Megachile (Chelostomoides) campanulae, oligolege on Campanula/Campanulastrum; S10 confirmed oligolectic

Proximity Score: 1
Native Status: ❌ Outaouais ❌ Ottawa ❌ QC ✅ ON
Closest Direction: S
CEC Eco-Regions: 8 – Eastern Temperate Forests, 8.1 – Mixed Wood Plains, 8.1.1 – Eastern Great Lakes and Hudson Lowlands
Rarity Notes: Globally secure (G5) with a Canadian national rank of N4. In Ontario ranked S4 (Apparently Secure). Not listed under SARA. Not native to Quebec per VASCAN, though a single 1893 herbarium specimen from Ste-Genevieve, Ile de Montreal exists.
S22+S26+S1+S54
Rarity Ranks: QC SNA – Not Applicable, ON S4 – Apparently Secure
Migration: Stable
Ecological Context: Inhabits moist to mesic deciduous forests, both upland and floodplain, especially in openings and disturbed areas such as woodland paths, trails, forest edges, and thickets. Favours rich loamy soils near shady streams. In Michigan, found in beech-maple woods and floodplain forests with associates including Acer saccharum, Fraxinus pennsylvanica, Tilia americana, and Ostrya virginiana. An annual or biennial that exploits light gaps and moderate disturbance within the forest understory.
S7+S4+S10

Roles: Pollinator Attractor
S73/S29/S72 Evidence: Pollinator Attractor: S73 [MEDIUM]: S68 19 bee associations (threshold=3)]
Notes: OWSL lists several woodland companions. As a shade-tolerant forb of moist deciduous forests, it pairs well with other mesic woodland species. Tolerates juglone (black walnut), making it valuable in Juglans nigra guild plantings. Self-seeding habit [S3+S46] provides naturalistic succession in woodland gardens.
S3+S46

Category: Pulmonary Aid, Antitussive
S28 Iroquois pulmonary aid; Meskwaki cough medicine
Notes: Iroquois used an infusion of smashed roots as a pulmonary aid for whooping cough. Meskwaki used leaves for coughs and consumption (tuberculosis). Three drug uses and one medicine use recorded by Moerman.
S28

❌ Not Edible

Foraging Notes: No food uses documented. USDA rates as not palatable to humans. Moerman records only medicinal uses, no food category.
S11+S28