Flora of North America species comparison

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Hypericum perforatum

Hypericum cistifolium

Chase-devil, common St. John's-wort, Klamath weed, millepertuis commun, Tipton's weed

roundpod St. Johnswort
Habit Shrubs, erect, unbranched or with relatively short branches and sometimes 1–2 branches ascending from proximal nodes, 5–13 dm.
Stems

internodes 4-lined at first, then terete.
Leaf

blades narrowly oblong or narrowly elliptic-oblong to triangular-lanceolate, 15–40 × 2–10 mm, base not articulated, cuneate to subcordate, margins recurved, apex subacute to rounded, midrib with 1 pair of branches.
Inflorescences

corymbiform to cylindric, (7–)15–65-flowered, narrowly branched, sometimes with 3–65-flowered dichasia from 1–2 proximal nodes and relatively short, flowering branches from further 1–4 nodes.
Flowers

7–12 mm diam.;

sepals persistent, not enclosing capsule, 5, obovate or broadly elliptic to oblong, unequal, 2–4 × 1–1.7 mm;

petals 5, bright yellow, oblanceolate, 5–8 mm;

stamens (some or all) persistent, 30–50;

ovary 3-merous, placentation parietal.
Capsules

ovoid-cylindric to broadly ovoid, 4–6 × 3–4 mm.
Seeds

not carinate, 0.6 mm;

testa reticulate to linear-foveolate.
2n

= 18.

Hypericum perforatum

Hypericum cistifolium
Phenology Flowering spring–early fall (Apr–Oct).
Habitat Pine flatwoods, margins of bogs, swamps, and marshes, ditches, on sand, coastal plain
Elevation 0–300 m (0–1000 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AR; CA; CO; CT; DC; DE; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; ON; PE; QC; Europe; Asia (sw Arabia, China, India, Mongolia, Siberia); n Africa [Also introduced widely elsewhere]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; FL; GA; LA; MS; NC; SC; TX
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Subspecies 4 (1 in the flora).

Hypericum perforatum has been introduced into various parts of the world, including North America, where only subsp. perforatum is represented. The range of variation in the flora area is less than occurs in Europe, and signs of hybridization that are common there are absent in North America.

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

Hypericum cistifolium is woodier in habit than H. sphaerocarpum and has shorter leaves, smaller flowers, narrower sepals, narrower capsules, and smaller seeds.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 6, p. 99. FNA vol. 6, p. 82.
Parent taxa Hypericaceae > Hypericum > sect. Hypericum Hypericaceae > Hypericum > sect. Myriandra
Sibling taxa
H. adpressum, H. anagalloides, H. apocynifolium, H. ascyron, H. boreale, H. brachyphyllum, H. buckleyi, H. canadense, H. canariense, H. chapmanii, H. cistifolium, H. concinnum, H. crux-andreae, H. cumulicola, H. densiflorum, H. denticulatum, H. dolabriforme, H. drummondii, H. edisonianum, H. ellipticum, H. erythreae, H. fasciculatum, H. frondosum, H. galioides, H. gentianoides, H. graveolens, H. gymnanthum, H. harperi, H. hypericoides, H. kalmianum, H. lissophloeus, H. lloydii, H. lobocarpum, H. maculatum, H. majus, H. microsepalum, H. mutilum, H. myrtifolium, H. nitidum, H. nudiflorum, H. paucifolium, H. prolificum, H. pseudomaculatum, H. punctatum, H. radfordiorum, H. scouleri, H. setosum, H. sphaerocarpum, H. suffruticosum, H. tenuifolium, H. tetrapetalum, H. virgatum, H. ×mitchellianum
H. adpressum, H. anagalloides, H. apocynifolium, H. ascyron, H. boreale, H. brachyphyllum, H. buckleyi, H. canadense, H. canariense, H. chapmanii, H. concinnum, H. crux-andreae, H. cumulicola, H. densiflorum, H. denticulatum, H. dolabriforme, H. drummondii, H. edisonianum, H. ellipticum, H. erythreae, H. fasciculatum, H. frondosum, H. galioides, H. gentianoides, H. graveolens, H. gymnanthum, H. harperi, H. hypericoides, H. kalmianum, H. lissophloeus, H. lloydii, H. lobocarpum, H. maculatum, H. majus, H. microsepalum, H. mutilum, H. myrtifolium, H. nitidum, H. nudiflorum, H. paucifolium, H. perforatum, H. prolificum, H. pseudomaculatum, H. punctatum, H. radfordiorum, H. scouleri, H. setosum, H. sphaerocarpum, H. suffruticosum, H. tenuifolium, H. tetrapetalum, H. virgatum, H. ×mitchellianum
Subordinate taxa
H. perforatum subsp. perforatum
Synonyms H. opacum, H. punctulosum, H. rosmarinifolium
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 785. (1753) Lamarck: in J. Lamarck et al., Encycl. 4: 158. (1797)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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