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Key to Ipomoea

Convolvulaceae

Ipomoea

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1 Shrubs to 2 m tall, erect; stems hollow
1 Herbaceous vines (trailing or twining) or herbs (erect); stems solid or hollow.
  2 Corollas campanulate, the tube < 2× as long as its diameter; fruit indehiscent; [Old World Clade].
    3 Young stems glabrous; leaf undersurfaces glabrous; corollas lavender (purple, rose, or white), darker in the tube, 6-7 cm long
    3 Young stems densely white-hairy; leaf undersurfaces white-hairy; corollas cream-white, with pale yellow pleats and with maroon markings in the tube, 2.5-3 cm long
  2 Corollas salverform or funnelform, the tube > 4× as long as its diameter; fruit a dehiscent capsule.
      4 Corollas salverform, the long narrow tube cylindrical (with sides more-or-less parallel) for most of its length, the limb abruptly flaring at the summit of the tube.
        5 Corollas 3-15 cm long, predominantly lavender to white; flowers open from evening until early morning.
          6 Leaves tomentose beneath; corolla mostly white on the outer surface, lavender to purple on the inner surface, thus bicolored in-and-out; [of outer Coastal Plain dunes, hammocks, and shell middens from se. NC southward]
          6 Leaves glabrous (or with scattered hairs or large fleshy hairlike structures) beneath; corolla either white on both surfaces or lavender on both surfaces, not bicolored in-and-out; [weedy, widespread, of disturbed habitats].
               8 Corollas lavender, the throat darker; stems bearing dark, fleshy, hairlike structures; [non-native, rare introduction]
               8 Corollas white, with 5 yellowish lines; stems glabrous; [native, s. and c. peninsular FL]
                 9 Corollas 10-14 cm long, white with 5 greenish or yellowish lines; fruits 2-3 cm long, borne on dry pedicels
                 9 Corollas 3-7.5 cm long, whitish to violet or lavender; fruits 1.8-2 cm long, the pedicels fleshy
        5 Corollas 1.4-5 cm long, red, orange, or yellow; flowers open from early morning to late morning or late afternoon.
                   10 Corolla tubes 3-4 mm in diameter; plants perennial from tubers; [s. FL]
                   10 Corolla tubes 1-3 mm in diameter; plants annual from fibrous roots; collectively widespread in our region]; [Quamoclit Clade].
                     11 Leaf blades pinnately divided into 11-31 (or more) linear or lanceolate segments (with parallel sides or narrowing towards the base)
                       12 Leaf blade segments 11-19, lanceolate, 3-7 mm wide, parallel-sided near the base or narrowing towards the base, the apical portion of the segment narrowly triangular
                       12 Leaf blade segments 11-31 (or more), linear, < 2 mm wide, parallel-sided
                     11 Leaf blades entire, or angled, or shallowly to deeply palmately 3-7-lobed (and then the lobes broadening towards their bases).
                          13 Leaf blades unlobed (not counting the cordate base), or with leaves shallowly 3-lobed.
                            14 Inner sepals 4-6 mm long; pedicels becoming reflexed in fruit; leaves usually unlobed (though sometimes with a few coarse dentate teeth)
                            14 Inner sepals 2-3 (-4) mm long; pedicels remaining erect in fruit; leaves usually 3-lobed about halfway from margin to base
      4 Corollas funnelform, the short to long tube expanding in diameter upwards from below the middle, the limb gradually to abruptly flaring at the summit of the tube.
                              15 Pedicels and peduncles with spreading, ascending, or reflexed trichomes; gynoecium 3-parted; sepals 8-25 (-30) mm long; corollas deep purple to rich blue or light blue (rarely white or bright pink), the tube and throat lighter in color (white or yellow); [Pharbitis clade].
                                  17 Corolla pink to purple (rarely white or blue); sepals oblong-lanceolate, merely obtuse or acute and without a prominently narrowed (caudate) tip; leaves entire or 3-5-lobed
                                  17 Corolla blue with a white tube (drying pink); sepals ovate with an elongate or caudate apex longer than the sepal body, notably accrescent in fruit; leaves usually 3-lobed.
                                    18 Sepals < 2 cm long at anthesis, abruptly narrowed upwards, the long subacute tips strongly spreading or recurved outwards; corolla < 3.5 cm long; peduncles very short.
                                    18 Sepals ca. 3 cm long at anthesis, gradually narrowed upwards, the long acute tips suberect, straight, scarcely spreading; corolla 4-4.5 cm long; peduncles long or short
                              15 Pedicels and peduncles glabrous or with short, appressed trichomes; gynoecium 2-parted; sepals 4-15 mm long; corollas mainly pink, lavender, or white, the tube and throat mainly deeper pink, purple, or maroon (but some species – I. tricolor, I. aristolochiifolia -- blue with white or yellow throats).
                                       19 Leaves palmately, pinnately, or pedately compound or pseudocompound (so deeply parted as to appear superficially compound).
                                         20 Leaves palmately or pedately compound, the leaflets or segments 3-10 mm wide; corollas 1.8-6 cm long, lavender, pink, or purplish.
                                           21 Corollas 4-6 cm long; pedicels 1-2.5 cm long, straight; leaves pinnately dissected (the pair of lobes about the basal pair diverging from the midvein several mm above the basal pair); axillary buds developing stipule-like leaves
                                             22 Leaves linear, 2-8 mm wide, > 10× as long as wide; stems erect to ascending, bushy-branched, neither trailing nor twining
                                             22 Leaves broader, > 20 mm wide, < 5× as long as wide; stems either trailing or twining.
                                                 24 Corollas lavender; larger leaves not lobed (though notched at the apex on at least the larger, better-developed leaves of I. brasiliensis)
                                                    25 Leaves rounded, acute, or short-acuminate at the apex; sepals unequal, the outer 5-6 mm long, , thicker and about 1/2 as long as the herbaceous inner sepals
                                                 24 Corollas white with a white or purple throat (I. aquatica) or yellow or purple throat (I. imperati); larger leaves either hastate (I. aquatica) or 3-7-lobed (I. imperati).
                                               23 Stems erect or twining, not rooting at the nodes (except sometimes in I. batatas); leaf apex acute to acuminate.
                                                              30 Leaves glabrous; sepals oval, 8-9 mm long, apex obtuse to rounded, mucronulate, coriaceous, glabrous; corollas 5-6 cm long; [widespread in the outer Coastal Plain from ne. NC south to s. FL, west to s. TX, and scattered elsewhere as an introduction]
                                                                     33 Corollas 1-4.5 cm long, 1-4.5 cm in diameter (across the limb); seeds 2.8-7 mm long; [collectively widespread in our region].
                                                                         35 Corollas 2-4.5 cm long, 2.2-3.2 cm in diameter across the limb, at least partly pink to lavender (or entirely white in I. batatas); seeds shortly pubescent on the angles.
                                                                           36 Sepals more-or-less equal in length, oblong-lanceolate, with acuminate apices; leaves 2-5 cm wide; [native, widespread in the southern portion of our region, especially in the Coastal Plain].