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kidney-leaf mud-plantain

Habit Plants annual or facultatively perennial.
Vegetative stems

submersed with elongate internodes, or emersed and procumbent.

Flowering stems

1–9 cm, distal internode 0.5–4 cm.

Inflorescences

spicate, 2–8-flowered, elongating in 1 day, usually shorter than spathes, terminal flower sometimes extending beyond spathe apex;

spathes 0.8–5.5 cm, glabrous;

peduncle 0.5–4.2 cm, glabrous.

Flowers

opening ca. 3 hours after sunrise, wilting by early afternoon;

perianth white, salverform, tube 5–10 mm, limbs zygomorphic, lobes narrowly elliptic, 3–6.5 mm, distal central lobe with yellow or green region at base, sometimes with distal brown spot;

stamens unequal, lateral stamens 0.9–2.2 mm, filaments linear, pubescent with white multicellular hairs toward apex;

central stamen 2.2–4.7 mm, filament sparsely pubescent with multicellular hairs;

style pubescent with multicellular hairs.

Seeds

8–14-winged, 0.5–0.9 × 0.3–0.5 mm.

Sessile

leaves forming basal rosette, blade linear to oblanceolate, thin, 2.4–3.7 cm × 3–8 mm.

Petiolate

leaves floating or emersed;

stipule 1–5 cm;

petiole 2–13 cm;

blade reniform, 1–4 × 1–5 cm, length equal to or less than width, apex obtuse.

2n

= 48.

Heteranthera reniformis

Phenology Flowering Jun–Oct.
Habitat Roadside ditches, edges of streams and ponds, freshwater tidal mudflats
Elevation 0–2600 m (0–8500 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; CT; DE; FL; GA; IL; IN; KY; LA; MD; MO; MS; NC; NJ; NY; OH; PA; SC; TN; TX; VA; WV; Mexico; throughout Central America; scattered in South America (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay); naturalized in Italy
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Source FNA vol. 26, p. 43.
Parent taxa Pontederiaceae > Heteranthera
Sibling taxa
H. dubia, H. limosa, H. mexicana, H. multiflora, H. rotundifolia
Synonyms Heterandra reniformis
Name authority Ruiz & Pavon: Fl. Peruv. 1: 43. (1798)
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