Atriplex glabriuscula |
Atriplex suberecta |
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bract orache, glabrous orach, scotland orache |
peregrine saltbush, sprawling saltbush |
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Habit | Herbs, monoecious, prostrate or sprawling, or sometimes erect, branched, (1–)2–10 dm; branches opposite or subopposite. | Herbs, annual or perennial, sprawling to ascending, 2–6 dm, branching from densely scaly base. | ||||||||
Stems | green and striped, often blue-green when fresh, weakly ridged, sparsely scurfy to glabrous. |
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Leaves | petiole 0.2–2.5(–3.5) cm; blade all entire or some or all triangular or lance-hastate with lobes spreading to antrorse, 5–100 × 3–80 mm, base abruptly to narrowly cuneate, entire or irregularly toothed. |
mostly alternate, shortly petiolate; blade narrow to broadly rhomboid, lanceolate, oblanceolate, or elliptic, (8–)12–35(–42) × 6–16 mm, thin, margin coarsely and irregularly dentate, glabrescent adaxially, somewhat scurfy abaxially. |
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Flowers | in loose glomerules, arranged in foliose, interrupted spikes or axillary, terminating stems and branches. |
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Staminate flowers | in subterminal, axillary glomerules. |
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Pistillate flowers | in axillary glomerules. |
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Seeds | dimorphic: brown, 2.5–4 mm wide (often the only ones present), or black, (1.2–)1.5–2.9(–3) mm wide; radicle median, ± antrorse, of brown seed basal and spreading. |
circular. |
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Bracteoles | green, becoming black or reddish to yellow brown, sessile or some short stipitate, venation obscure, ovate-triangular to rhombic-triangular, 5–13 mm, margin united almost to middle, with few irregular teeth or entire, apex abruptly acuminate, faces irregularly muricate, tuberculate, or smooth, inflated, spongy inner layer strongly developed at bracteole base. |
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Fruiting | bracteoles sessile or on the stipe to 0.5 mm, rhombic to obovate, almost flat to convex, 2.2–4 × 1.7–2.7 mm, thin or somewhat thickened in age, connate in basal 1/2, margin entire in basal 1/2, 2–4-toothed in distal 1/2, apex acute, scurfy. |
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2n | = 18, 36. |
= 18. |
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Atriplex glabriuscula |
Atriplex suberecta |
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Phenology | Flowering summer–fall. | |||||||||
Habitat | Disturbed places, with other ruderal weeds | |||||||||
Elevation | 10-900 m (0-3000 ft) | |||||||||
Distribution |
CT; MA; ME; NH; PA; AB; MB; NB; NS; PE; QC; Europe
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CA; UT; Australia; naturalized South Africa [Introduced in North America]
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Discussion | Varieties 3 (3 in the flora). Members of the Atriplex glabriuscula complex occupy saline or brackish marshes and saline coastal strands mainly in the eastern maritime provinces of Canada, with extensions in similar habitats into the northeastern United States. They are seldom, if ever, ruderal weeds and appear to be indigenous or perhaps early introduced in some part from similar European habitats. The constituent taxa have been regarded at specific level (P. M. Taschereau 1972; I. J. Bassett et al. 1983). They are, however, alike in all major morphologic features, and are apparently closely allied. For those who wish to treat them at specific level, the names are supplied in the synonymy. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 4. | FNA vol. 4, p. 343. | ||||||||
Parent taxa | Chenopodiaceae > Atriplex > subg. Atriplex > sect. Teutliopsis | Chenopodiaceae > Atriplex > subg. Atriplex > sect. Semibaccata | ||||||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||||||
Name authority | Edmondston: Fl. Shetland, 39. (1845) | I. Verdoorn: Bothalia 6: 418, figs. 2, 3(2). (1954) | ||||||||
Web links |