Flora of the Southeastern United States

1 Bracts subtending flowers boat-like, strongly differentiated from (unlike) the leaves; leaves usually longitudinally green-and-pink striped; [subgenus Campelia].

1 Bracts subtending flowers similar in shape and size to foliage leaves; leaves usually solid green, purplish-green, or purple, or if longitudinally striped, dark-green-and-silver.

  2 Flowers nearly sessile; petals clawed, the claws fused basally; stamens epipetalous.

    3 Leaf blade longitudinally striped with dark green and silver; leaves tending to be 2-ranked; [subgenus Campelia]

    3 Leaf blade not variegated, purple, purplish-green, or green on upper surface; leaves spirally arrayed; [subgenus Setcreasea]

      4 Leaves oblong-elliptic to ovate, mostly 3-7 cm long; peduncle 3-5.5 cm long; leaves green; [s. TX, native]

      4 Leaves oblong-elliptic to lanceolate-elliptic, mostly 7-15 cm long; peduncle (3.5-) 4-13 cm long; leaves usually purplish violet; [deep South, exotic]

  2 Flowers distinctly pedicelled; petals neither clawed nor connate; stamens not adnate to the petals.

        5 Plant sprawling, rooting at the nodes; leaves 2.5-5 cm long, < 4× as long as wide; [exotic]; [subgenus Austrotradescantia].

          6 Stems glabrous; leaf-sheaths glabrous (except the densely setose margin); leaf blades membranous to slightly fleshy, abaxially light to medium green; pedicels glabrous to distally sparsely glandular-pubescent; sepals with hairs restricted to the keels; petals plicate

          6 Stems finely strigose; leaf-sheaths strigose (and the margin setose); leaf blades chartaceous, abaxially completely to partially wine-red; pedicels velutinous, sometimes with some odd glandular hairs; sepals evenly velutinous (hairs sometimes deciduous in dried specimens); petals flat

        5 Plant erect or ascending, not rooting at the nodes; leaves > 4 cm long, > 5× as long as wide; [native]; [subgenus Tradescantia].

             7 Leaf blades of the upper stem constricted at their bases to a narrower subpetiolar sheath, the opened sheath narrower than the leaf blade; leaf blades 6-27 cm long, 1.0-5.0 cm wide, mostly < 10× as long as wide; stomates much more abundant on the lower leaf surface than on the upper, giving the lower surface a much paler color.

               8 Pedicels 10-17 mm long; proximal leaves petiolate; stems frequently flexuous, usually obviously zigzag; sepals 4-10 mm long; plants flowering mainly May--Sep; [WV, OH, IN, IL, MO south to e. SC, s. GA, Panhandle FL, s. AL, s. MS, and s. LA]

               8 Pedicels (15-32 mm long; proximal leaves narrowed directly into sheath; stems not flexuous, usually straight or subtly zigzag; sepals 8-16 mm long; plants flowering mainly Feb--May; [MO, AR, OK, TX; disjunct eastwards in n. and c. AL and nw. MS].

                 9 Leaves dark green; sepals 9-16 mm long, inflated; hairs of the sepals not gland-tipped; flowers usually deep blue, purple, or rose-red

                 9 Leaves glaucous or gray-green to light green; sepals 6-10 mm long, not inflated; hairs of the sepals (at least some of them) gland-tipped (use 10× or higher magnification).

                   10 Leaves not glaucous; capsules 8-10 mm long; [of TX]

                   10 Leaves ± glaucous; capsules 6-8 mm long; [of AR, MO]

             7 Leaf blades of the upper stem not constricted to a subpetiolar sheath, the opened sheath about as wide or wider than the leaf blade; leaf blades 4-45 cm long, 0.2-2.8 (-4.5) cm wide, mostly > 10× as long as wide; stomates slightly more abundant on the lower leaf surface than on the upper, or about equally distributed on the two surfaces, the lower surface slightly to not at all paler than the upper.

                     11 Sepals glabrous or the tip with a tuft of eglandular hairs (use 10× magnification).

                       12 Plants distinctly glaucous; leaves 5-45 cm long, arcing, at an acute angle to the stem

                       12 Plants green or slightly glaucous; leaves 4-11 cm long, straight, at nearly right angles to the stem

                     11 Sepals pubescent (use 10× magnification).

                          13 Sepals covered with eglandular hairs.

                            14 Bracts saccate at base; leaves densely velvety

                            14 Bracts not saccate at base; leaves sparsely to densely pilose.

                              15 Flowering stems 2-7 cm long (elongating to 20 cm long in fruit), pilose to villous; sepals purple or rose-colored (rarely pale green), not inflated; [of rocky prairies]

                              15 Flowering stems 5-50 cm long, glabrous to pilose or hirsute; sepals various; [habitat various, but rarely rocky prairies].

                                16 Stems usually hirsute or pilose throughout; roots 1.0-1.5 (-2.0) mm thick; sepals not inflated-turgid

                                16 Stems glabrous, or sparsely puberulent on the upper stem only; roots (1.5-) 2.0-4.0 mm thick; sepals usually inflated-turgid

                          13 Sepals pubescent with glandular hairs.

                                  17 Sepals with mostly glandular pubescence.

                                    18 Internodes and leaves glabrous

                                    18 Internodes pubescent.

                                       19 Pedicels 2.5-4.5 cm long; at least some roots thick and tuberous; [nc. and c. TX]

                                       19 Pedicels 1-2.8 cm long; roots all thin and fibrous; [SC to FL and AL]

                                  17 Sepals with glandular and eglandular pubescence.

                                         20 Stems densely arachnoid-pubescent; roots brownish-tomentose.

                                           21 Stems spreading, diffusely branched, 10-30 cm long; [TX endemic]

                                         20 Stems variously pubescent but not arachnoid-pubescent; roots not brownish-tomentose.

                                             22 Plants diffuse, spreading; stems much branched; [TX and OK only in our region]

                                             22 Plants erect or ascending; stems unbranched or sparsely branched; [collectively widespread].

                                               23 Sepal hairs mainly eglandular, glandular hairs few, inconspicuous

                                               23 Sepal hairs mainly glandular or eglandular, glandular hairs numerous, conspicuous.

                                                 24 Sepals puberulent, hairs all less than 1 mm long; roots relatively thin, 0.5-1(-2) mm thick

                                                 24 Sepals pilose-puberulent, longer hairs 1.5-6 mm long; roots relatively stout, 1-3 mm thick.

                                                    25 Plants bright green; stems, leaves usually glabrous

                                                    25 Plants dull green; stems, leaves usually pubescent (rarely glabrescent).

                                                      26 Stems (2-)15-40 cm long; pedicels 1.5-3.5 cm long; leaves and bracts puberulent, usually sparsely to densely pilose, margins ± densely ciliolate; [relatively widespread in our region, NC south to GA, west to OK and ne. TX]

                                                      26 Stems 2-10 cm long; pedicels (2-)4-6 cm long; leaves, bracts pilose but not puberulent, margins sparsely ciliate; [Interior Highlands]