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codlins-and-cream, fiddle grass, fiddle grass willowherb, great or great hairy willowherb, great willowherb, hairy willlowherb, hairy willow-herb, épilobe hirsute

California fire chalice, California fuchsia, firechalice, hummingbird trumpet, zauschneria

Habit Herbs usually robust and rank, sometimes woody near base, with thick, ropelike stolons to 1 m with scattered cataphylls and, often, terminal leafy rosette. Herbs suffruticose or not, with basal shoots from ± woody caudex, often decussate scales at base.
Stems

erect to ascending, often clumped, terete, 25–120(–250) cm, unusually thick, 3–9 mm diam., well branched mainly in distal 1/2, densely long-villous throughout, usually mixed glandular puberulent distally, rarely sparsely villous or densely white-tomentose.

erect to ascending, often clumped but not matted, green or gray-green, terete, 10–110(–120) cm, usually well-branched throughout, sometimes simple, strigillose and/or long-villous, usually mixed glandular puberulent distally, rarely glabrate.

Leaves

opposite proximal to inflorescence, alternate distally, sessile and ± clasping stem;

blade elliptic-lanceolate to narrowly obovate or elliptic, 4–12(–23) × 0.3–4(–5) cm, base cuneate to attenuate, margins serrulate, 15–50 teeth per side, veins 6–9 per side, apex acute to acuminate or obtuse proximally, surfaces ± densely villous;

bracts moderately reduced.

± densely spaced, alternate and often fasciculate distally, subsessile, blade grayish green or green to silvery-canescent, usually narrowly linear to lanceolate or elliptic to ovate, rarely orbiculate, 0.6–5(–6) × 0.1–2.5 cm, base cuneate to attenuate, margins subentire to sharply toothed, 3–15 teeth per side, veins inconspicuous or prominent, 3–7 per side, apex acute, sometimes with caducous dark mucro, surfaces usually ± densely strigillose, sometimes mixed villous and/or glandular puberulent, rarely glabrate;

bracts much smaller and narrower.

Inflorescences

erect racemes or panicles, usually densely villous and glandular puberulent, rarely tomentose.

erect spikes or racemes, loose to congested, often branched, glandular puberulent and sometimes mixed strigillose or villous.

Flowers

erect;

buds 5–9 × 1.8–4.5 mm, sometimes beaked;

pedicel 3–11 mm;

floral tube 1.3–2.9 × 2.2–4 mm, conspicuous ring of spreading hairs near mouth inside;

sepals oblong-linear, often keeled, 6–12 × 1–3 mm, abaxial surface densely pubescent;

petals bright pink to rose-purple, rarely white, broadly obcordate, 9–20 × 7–15 mm, apical notch 1–3 mm;

filaments white or pink, those of longer stamens 5–10 mm, those of shorter ones 2.5–6 mm;

anthers cream, 1.5–3 × 0.6–1.2 mm;

ovary 15–34 mm, densely villous and glandular puberulent;

style white or pink, 5–12 mm, usually glabrous, stigma deeply 4-lobed, 1.8–2.2 × 3–5.5 mm, lobes recurved or spreading, exserted beyond anthers.

buds 11–18 × 4–6 mm, subsessile or pedicels 1–2 mm;

floral tube same color as petals, 16–32 × 5–8 mm, base slightly bulbous, ring of 8 irregular scales at base of filaments 4–6.5 mm from base inside;

sepals same color as petals, 7–15 × 3.5–5 mm, abaxial surface densely pubescent;

petals usually orange-red, very rarely white, obcordate, 8–17 × 5–9.5 mm, apical notch 2–3 mm;

filaments light orange-red to white, those of longer stamens 12.5–32 mm, those of shorter ones 10–25 mm;

anthers 2.7–4x 0.8–1.2 mm, apiculate;

ovary 8–15 mm, glandular puberulent, often mixed villous;

style light orange-red, 42–65 mm, glabrous, stigma 4-lobed, 1–1.4 × 2.4–3 mm, exserted 8–15 mm beyond anthers.

Capsules

often flushed purple, 25–90 mm, surfaces usually densely villous and glandular puberulent, rarely glabrescent;

pedicel 5–20 mm.

straight or ± curved-ascending, 15–35 mm, sometimes beaked, surfaces glandular puberulent and strigillose;

subsessile or pedicel 0–3 mm.

Seeds

narrowly obovoid, 0.8–1.2 × 0.3–0.6 mm, chalazal collar inconspicuous, dark brown, surface coarsely papillose;

coma easily detached, tawny or dull white, 7–10 mm.

broadly to narrowly obovoid, with constriction 0.6–0.8 mm from micropylar end, 1.5–2.6 × 0.9–1.3 mm, chalazal collar inconspicuous, light brown, surface low papillose;

coma easily detached, dingy white, 5.5–7 mm.

2n

= 36.

Epilobium hirsutum

Epilobium canum

Phenology Flowering Jun–Sep.
Habitat Low wet areas along streams, rivers, ponds, and lakes, roadside ditches, along railroad tracks, marshes and swampy areas.
Elevation 0–150[–3000] m. (0–500[–9800] ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CO; CT; IL; IN; KY; MA; MD; ME; MI; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; UT; VT; WA; WI; WV; BC; NB; NS; ON; PE; QC; Eurasia; Africa [Introduced in North America]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from USDA
sw United States; nw Mexico
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Epilobium hirsutum is very widespread in cool temperate Eurasia and montane regions, occurring throughout Europe except in the far north (P. H. Raven 1968), through the Caucasus and central Asia (E. I. Steinberg 1949) to Nepal (Raven 1962), China (Chen C. J. et al. 1992), and Japan (A. W. Lievens and P. C. Hoch 1999). It occurs as well along the Mediterranean coast of Africa, through East Africa to southern Africa, and in the Canary and Cape Verde Islands (Raven 1967).

Epilobium hirsutum exceeds almost all other species of the genus in stature, so its size, very large flowers, and densely villous aspect make it easy to identify. R. L. Stuckey (1970) provided a detailed account of the introduction and spread of E. hirsutum in North America, noting the earliest known collection (July 1829) was from Newport, Rhode Island. Most early collections appeared in waste areas, particularly near harbor ballast piles, although some may have been grown in gardens. By the 1890s this species was well established along the Atlantic coastal region from New Jersey and Philadelphia through New England, and around Niagara Falls in the Great Lakes region. During the twentieth century, E. hirsutum spread extensively in southern Ontario and Quebec, south along the Atlantic coast to Maryland, and to all of the states along the southern shores of the Great Lakes, most recently including Wisconsin (1970), and Indiana (1972). It occurs in much the same habitat as that of another, more widely publicized invader, Lythrum salicaria, and sometimes is recorded as a companion species. The earliest known collection in western North America was made in 1933 in Bingen (Klickitat County), Washington. Whether from that introduction or others, E. hirsutum is now naturalized and widespread in the Pacific Northwest. It also was reported recently from the Denver region in Colorado and near Midway in Utah.

Epilobium grandiflorum F. H. Wiggers and E. grandiflorum Allioni are illegitimate names that pertain here.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Subspecies 3 (3 in the flora).

This treatment recognizes three self-compatible but highly outcrossing subspecies marked by distinct but sometimes intergrading morphology and overlapping geographical ranges. R. N. Bowman and P. C. Hoch (1979) agreed with the treatment of Epilobium canum subsp. garrettii (n = 15) and subsp. latifolium (n = 30) by P. H. Raven (1976), but considering the complex intergrading patterns of variation involving the rest of this species, they combined the two remaining tetraploid subspecies recognized by Raven (subspp. angustifolium and mexicanum) with the remaining diploid subspecies into a single polyploid subsp. canum.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Leaf blades linear to narrowly lanceolate or elliptic, rarely to narrowly ovate, 0.6–4.5 × 0.1–0.6(–0.8) cm, usually less than 0.6 cm wide, often fascicled distally, herbaceous to suffrutescent; stems 20–110(–120) cm.
subsp. canum
1. Leaf blades lanceolate to broadly ovate, 0.8–5(–6) × 0.4–2.3 cm, usually more than 0.6 cm wide, not fascicled; herbaceous; stems 10–50(–70) cm.
→ 2
2. Leaf blades usually lanceolate to ovate or broadly elliptical, rarely orbiculate, not coriaceous, margins subentire to distinctly denticulate, lateral veins obscure to conspicuous.
subsp. latifolium
2. Leaf blades ovate to broadly elliptical, coriaceous, margins prominently denticulate, lateral veins conspicuous.
subsp. garrettii
Source FNA vol. 10. FNA vol. 10.
Parent taxa Onagraceae > subfam. Onagroideae > tribe Epilobieae > Epilobium > sect. Epilobium Onagraceae > subfam. Onagroideae > tribe Epilobieae > Epilobium > sect. Zauschneria
Sibling taxa
E. anagallidifolium, E. arcticum, E. brachycarpum, E. campestre, E. canum, E. ciliatum, E. clavatum, E. cleistogamum, E. coloratum, E. davuricum, E. densiflorum, E. densum, E. foliosum, E. glaberrimum, E. hallianum, E. hornemannii, E. howellii, E. lactiflorum, E. leptocarpum, E. leptophyllum, E. luteum, E. minutum, E. mirabile, E. montanum, E. nevadense, E. nivium, E. obcordatum, E. obscurum, E. oreganum, E. oregonense, E. pallidum, E. palustre, E. parviflorum, E. rigidum, E. saximontanum, E. septentrionale, E. siskiyouense, E. smithii, E. suffruticosum, E. torreyi
E. anagallidifolium, E. arcticum, E. brachycarpum, E. campestre, E. ciliatum, E. clavatum, E. cleistogamum, E. coloratum, E. davuricum, E. densiflorum, E. densum, E. foliosum, E. glaberrimum, E. hallianum, E. hirsutum, E. hornemannii, E. howellii, E. lactiflorum, E. leptocarpum, E. leptophyllum, E. luteum, E. minutum, E. mirabile, E. montanum, E. nevadense, E. nivium, E. obcordatum, E. obscurum, E. oreganum, E. oregonense, E. pallidum, E. palustre, E. parviflorum, E. rigidum, E. saximontanum, E. septentrionale, E. siskiyouense, E. smithii, E. suffruticosum, E. torreyi
Subordinate taxa
E. canum subsp. canum, E. canum subsp. garrettii, E. canum subsp. latifolium
Synonyms Chamaenerion hirsutum, E. amplexicaule, E. aquaticum, E. hirsutum var. villosum, E. villosum Zauschneria cana
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 347. (1753) (Greene) P. H. Raven: Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 63: 335. (1977)
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