Flora of the Southeastern United States

1 Leaves triangular to ovate-sagittate or subhastate, portions of the sides of larger leaves straight or concave; leaves mottled, the paler areas between the veins; style extension bifid to the stigma.

  2 Calyx abruptly contracted near the middle, the lower portion narrowly cuplike, abruptly expanded into a much broader upper half; calyx tube with internal raised reticulations; [of AL].

    3 Calyx lobes erect; style appendages maroon; [endemic in n. AL]

    3 Calyx lobes recurved; style appendages greenish; fresh plants odorless; [endemic in Coastal Plain of AL].

      4 Inside of calyx without stripes; pedicels stiff, ascending to erect, thus holding the flowers well above the substrate, but strongly recurved near the base of the (nodding) flower; orifice of the flowers usually nodding and facing the substrate; [native distribution uncertain, probably from Coffee County, AL]

      4 Inside of calyx with numerous and well defined yellow and maroon stripes oriented toward the center of flower; pedicels lax, causing flowers to rest on substrate or on top of other flowers, not recurved near the base of the flower; orifice of the flowers usually facing laterally to ascending related to the plane of the substrate; [endemic near Montgomery, AL]

  2 Calyx gradually contracted to a smooth waist just below the calyx lobes; calyx tube smooth internally; calyx lobes spreading or erect; [collectively widespread in our area].

        5 Calyx lobes erect, 2-4 mm long, 2-4 mm wide at base; [of the Mountains and westward].

          6 Plants short-rhizomatous, distinctly clumped, each plant normally with < 10 leaves; leaves usually prominently variegated; mouth of calyx more open; style extensions short; leaves averaging longer than wide (length measured from petiole attachment to apex)

          6 Plants long-rhizomatous, forming clonal patches, plants often with >10 leaves; leaves solid green or faintly variegated; mouth of calyx tightly constricted; style extensions long; leaves averaging as wide as long

        5 Calyx lobes spreading, 2.5-8 mm long, 3-9 mm wide at base; [of the Coastal Plain, Piedmont, and eastern Mountains].

             7 Calyx tube 13-18 mm long, 6-10 mm wide; calyx lobes 2.5-8 mm long, 3-9 mm wide across the base; [of the Coastal Plain, Piedmont, and Mountains of s. VA, NC, SC, GA, and westward through AL and MS to se. LA]

             7 Calyx tube 20-25 mm long, 10-12 mm wide; calyx lobes 12-20 mm long, 8-15 mm wide across the base; [of the lower Gulf Coastal Plain, of sw. GA, FL Panhandle, s. AL, s. MS, and se. LA]

1 Leaves rounded, with cordate base, all portions of the sides of the leaves convex; leaves mottled or unmottled, if mottled, the paler areas along the veins; style extension notched or divided at the apex, not bifid to the stigma.

               8 Inner surface of calyx lobes pilose with whitish or yellowish hairs.

                 9 Leaves scattered along the length of the long-creeping rhizome, plants thus forming clonal mats; sepal lobes red, often with white mottling; leaves with entire margins; [Piedmont and Coastal Plain of s. VA and c. and e. NC]

                 9 Leaves clustered at tip of upright-ascending rhizome, plants thus in clumps; sepal lobes yellow-white, without mottling; leaves with undulate-crenulate margins; [Piedmont/Blue Ridge Escarpment of nw. NC]

               8 Inner surface of calyx lobes puberulent with red hairs or an admixture of red and white hairs; leaves variously clustered at the tip of the upright-ascending rhizome, or somewhat to very scattered (plants thus either clumped or clonal).

                   10 Calyx tube > 30 mm long, relatively thin and especially brittle (in fresh flowers); flower odor often acidic and rancid.

                     11 Leaves scattered along the length of the long-creeping rhizome, plants thus forming clonal mats; [of Coastal Plain and lower Piedmont of GA and AL]

                     11 Leaves clustered at the tip of the rhizome, plants thus in clumps; [of the Mountains and upper Piedmont of NC, SC, and GA]

                   10 Calyx tube < 30 mm long, thicker and less brittle (in fresh flowers); flower odor malodorous, but not acidic and rancid.

                       12 Calyx tube orifice strongly constricted, its diameter < 2/3 the diameter of the broadest point of the calyx tube below (most easily reckoned by making a longitudinal section of the flower).

                          13 Stamen filaments circular in ×-section; thecae latrorse or nearly so; calyx lobes 4-15 mm long.

                            14 Calyx tube broadest at or just above its midpoint; calyx lobes 10-15 mm long; stamen filaments/connectives narrowly conical (strongly and evenly tapering towards the tip), the thecae therefore at a slight angle to one another; interior calyx tube reticulation with strong longitudinal and transverse ridges (forming deep, irregular pits), the reticulation ending abruptly upwards

                            14 Calyx tube broadest below its midpoint; calyx lobes 4-8 mm long; stamen filaments/connectives cylindrical (not strongly tapering towards the tip), the thecae therefore parallel; interior calyx tube reticulation either absent or with weak longitudinal and transverse ridges (forming shallow, sloping depressions), the reticulation smoothing gradually upwards

                          13 Stamen filaments flattened (broad and straplike) in ×-section; thecae extrorse; calyx lobes 2-8 mm long.

                              15 Calyx tube rhombic in 2-dimensional outline (the widest point at roughly the midpoint, narrowing towards the base and the apex); [sw. NC and nw. SC]

                              15 Calyx tube nearly isodiametric before being constricted at the orifice, sometimes expanded at a point well above the midpoint or well below the midpoint; [VA, WV, and e. KY south to se. NC, sc. NC, and nw. NC]

                       12 Calyx tube orifice not or only slightly constricted, its diameter > 2/3 the diameter of the broadest point of the calyx tube below.

                                16 Calyx lobes 2-4 mm long, more or less erect and planar (sometimes curved outwards at the tips, but not undulate); leaves solid green

                                16 Calyx lobes 4-15 mm long, spreading, typically at a 45-90 degree angle (at least in part of their length) from the vertical axis of the flower, often undulate-margined; leaves solid green or variegated.

                                  17 Calyx tube greatly flared at the midpoint or higher, the floral orifice only slightly more constricted than the widest portion of the calyx tube; sepal lobes much broader than long; leaves usually strongly to weakly variegated.

                                    18 Calyx tube 12-25 mm long; leaves strongly variegated; [widespread in dry to moist upland forests of the Piedmont (and rarely Coastal Plain and low Mountains) of VA, NC, and SC]

                                    18 Calyx tube 8-18 mm long; leaves solid green or faintly variegated; [of pocosins, pocosin ecotones, and sandhill seeps in the NC and SC sandhills, usually growing in or near Sphagnum]

                                  17 Calyx tube often flared above the middle, the floral orifice of approximately the same width as the unflared portion of the calyx tube; sepal lobes as long as or longer than their width at base; leaves variegated or not.

                                       19 Longitudinal and transverse ridges of the calyx tube sculpturing of about equal relief, the transverse ridges anastamosing and often not spanning across parallel transverse ridges, therefore forming irregularly shaped pits; calyx lobes 2-4 mm long, more-or-less erect, much broader than long; leaves usually solid green (rarely variegated)

                                       19 Longitudinal ridges of the calyx tube of greater relief than the transverse ridges; calyx lobes 4-15 mm long, spreading, about as broad as long; leaves solid green or variegated.

                                         20 Calyx tube > 1 cm long; calyx tube orifice 8-12 mm in diameter; style extensions longer than the width of the stigmatic surfaces; stigmas dorsal and overhanging; leaves usually solid green (sometimes variegated)