Tag Archives: Mitchella

When One Color Isn’t Enough (part one)

Posted on by
3

More pictures to keep us dreaming of warmer weather. This time, spring-blooming multi-colored flowers.

Erigenia bulbosa (harbinger-of-spring; Apiaceae)

This is one of our earliest blooming native plants (the only one I can think of that blooms earlier is skunk cabbage). These anthers turn quickly from dark red to black, giving rise to another common name, pepper-and-salt.

Mertensia virginica (Virginia bluebells; Boraginaceae)

That’s right, bluebells again, because here they are in several different colors all in one clump. I can’t wait to see them again.

Galearis spectabilis (showy orchis; Orchidaceae)

This surprisingly common terrestrial orchid grows in all the physiographic provinces in Maryland, but we have the most records for it in the piedmont and coastal plain. Look for it blooming in April and May in rich, moist soils in wooded areas.

Viola sororia (common blue violet, white form ; Violaceae)

Common blue violets are, well, pretty common around here. They seem quite fond of edge areas and open woodlands, always in moist soils. They can be found all over Maryland, blooming from late March into early May.

Cypripedium acaule (pink lady’s slipper; Orchidaceae)

Like most orchids, pink lady’s slipper has specific growing requirements, which means you won’t find it just anywhere. But it does grow pretty much all over the state. Look for it flowering in early May, in rich, undisturbed woodland soils.

Penstemon hirsutus (hairy beardtongue; Plantaginaceae)

This bizarre-looking flower is found mostly in the northern part of Maryland, but there’s a reliable stand on the Billy Goat B trail. Look for it in lean soils (rocky areas) in full sun light, blooming from early to late May.

Mitchella repens (partridgeberry; Rubiaceae) [click on this one!]

What can I write about partridgeberry that I haven’t written before? This is one of my very favorites; I go looking for it every year at the end of May. The plants grow very long but stay very low, creeping along rocks. We have records for it in every Maryland county.

Thalictrum coriaceum (maid-of-the-mist; Ranunculaceae)

Although it isn’t on the Maryland RTE list, we only have records for it in three quads in Montgomery County. I think that’s rather odd, and suspect it’s due to misidentification (see The Botanerd’s Handy Guide to Thalictrum Species). That bright pink on the sepals and filaments turns quickly to brown.

Getting Madders

Posted on by
1
20150416-20150416-_DSC0359

Houstonia caerulea (azure bluet)

If you go botanizing during growing season, year after year, you notice trends. For example, there’s almost always something in the Asteraceae (daisy family) blooming, but the family really gets going in high summer and into autumn. Plants in the Violaceae (violet family) bloom in early spring and are done by the time the earliest Lamiaceae (mint family) start. And so on.

20140701-DSC_0134

Cephalanthus occidentalis (buttonbush)

This is the time of year for the Rubiaceae, or madder family. Worldwide, it is the fourth largest flowering plant family in terms of number of species (Asteraceae, Orchidaceae (orchid family), and Fabaceae (pea family) are first, second, and third). Depending on which authority you consult, there are about 13,500 species in more than 600 genera.

20160606-_DSC0135

Galium concinnum (shining bedstraw); the flowers are about 3/16″ wide

The Rubiaceae is a cosmopolitan family, with species found worldwide except in the polar regions, but most are in the tropics or subtropics. The plants can be trees, shrubs, lianas, or herbs. Some are well-known garden ornamentals (pentas, ixora, gardenia), and some are economically important, producing dyes (like madder), or drugs (like quinine), or beverages (coffee!).

Here in North America, Rubiaceae ranks 18th, with 264 native species. (Asteraceae is first, Fabaceae second, and Orchidaceae ranks 13th.)

20140825-DSC_0050

Diodia virginiana (Virginia buttonweed)

In Maryland, Rubiaceae is tied with Onagraceae for 13th place, with 39 species. (Asteraceae is first, Fabaceae second, and Orchidaceae is tied with Plantaginaceae for 9th place.)  I gleaned this information from the Maryland Biodiversity Project but did not weed out the aliens, so if you count only natives the rank may change. But you get the idea.

Geez, this is starting to read like baseball stats.

Anyway, the Maryland species fall into eight genera:

  • Cephalanthus (one species, C. occidentalis, aka buttonbush, found almost statewide)
  • Diodia (two species, D. teres and D. virginiana, both found primarily in the Coastal Plain and Piedmont)
  • Gallium (as many as 24 species depending on taxonomy; distribution varies)
  • Houstonia (five species; see previous post)
  • Mitchella (one species, M. repens, aka partridgeberry, found statewide except Washington County)
  • Oldenlandia (one species, O. uniflora, aka clustered mille-grains; coastal plain)
  • Sherardia (one species, O. arvensis, aka field madder, alien found in the coastal plain)
  • Spermacoce (one species, S. glabra, aka smooth false buttonweed, listed S1/endangered, found in Montgomery County)
20150612-20150612-_DSC0029

Houstonia purpurea (purple bluet)

Looking at just the sampling of species here in Maryland, you can see traits that characterize the family: flowers consist of four petals, often pointed, partly fused into a tube; there are two leaves or more per node on the stem (opposite or whorled arrangement), the leaves usually entire, and often there are stipules. Most are herbaceous, except partridgeberry, which hugs the ground and never gets more than an inch tall yet has a woody stem, and buttonbush, which is a shrub. I should note, though, that there are many exceptions to these traits in the worldwide accounting of species.

20150520-20150520-_DSC0045

Mitchella repens (partridgeberry)

 

Flower of the Day: Partridgeberry. Again.

Posted on by
2

20150520-20150520-_DSC0051

Mitchella repens
Rubiaceae

I’ve written about partridgeberry before, I know. But it’s such a neat little plant, I can’t resist posting about it. And it’s in full bloom now.
20150520-20150520-_DSC0052

 

It’s a trailing vine that can grow many feet long but rarely more than an inch tall.

(<—pinkie finger shot to give sense of scale)

20150520-20150520-_DSC0045

 

Amusing fact: you’ll find it in the Peterson Field Guide “Trees and Shrubs”, I suppose because it’s woody (barely) and evergreen.

Partridgeberry ranges from Quebec to Florida and west to Texas, and is threatened in Iowa.  No other species of Mitchella grow in North America. It likes moist, acidic soils and can often be found trailing along rocks.

20150520-20150520-_DSC0053

The plants produce pairs of blossoms; if both are pollinated, the ovaries will fuse to produce a single oval, red berry with two dimples.

 

 

 

20150520-20150520-_DSC0047

Other common names include squawberry, running box, twinberry, and pigeon plum.

(You know how people squeal over puppies and kittens?  I could almost squeal over partridgeberry.  I mean really, isn’t it just precious?)

What’s Green Now? Partridgeberry

Posted on by
Reply

20150131-_DSC0157

Mitchella repens; Rubiaceae

Last one for the “what’s green now’ feature.  Growing in tiny pockets of soil, cascading along rocks, never more than an inch tall (but often many feet long), partridgeberry is one of my favorites.  Look for the twin blossoms

20140527-DSC_0005

in late May, and the two-eyed fruit

20141021-_DSC0063 copy

in late July.

How can you not love this plant?  It’s adorable.  And tough.