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lesser wintergreen, snowline wintergreen

Habit Plants 6–25 cm; rhizomatous.
Leaves

oblong-elliptic; ovate, obovate, or round, 10–37 × 8–25 mm, not mottled, abaxially dull and light green, adaxially dull to shiny and green to dark green, slightly leathery;

margins crenulate;

tips obtuse or rounded;

petioles 2–30 mm, glabrous.

Inflorescences

1 per stem, 3–15-flowered;

bracts lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, 3–5 × 0.5–1.5 mm.

Pedicels

2.5–4.5 mm.

Flowers

radially symmetric;

sepals deltate; ~1.5 mm;

margins entire to denticulate, green or pink with thin white to pinkish margins;

tips acute to obtuse;

corollas cup-shaped;

petals obovate to broadly elliptic, 3–5 × 2.5–4 mm, white or pink;

margins entire;

stamens 2–3.5 mm;

anthers 0.3–0.9 mm;

styles included; straight, 0.5–1.5 mm;

stigmas ~1 mm wide.

Fruits

depressed-globose, 3–5.5 mm.

2n

=46.

Pyrola minor

Distribution
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Moist montane forests and streambanks. Flowering Jun–Aug. 900–2200 m. BW, Casc, ECas. CA, ID, NV, WA; north to AK, east to Greenland, southeast to NM; Asia, Europe. Native.

Source Flora of Oregon, volume 2, page 635
Stephen Meyers
Sibling taxa
P. aphylla, P. asarifolia, P. chlorantha, P. picta
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