Kalmia angustifolia |
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lambkill, sheep American-laurel, sheep-laurel |
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Habit | Shrubs erect, 0.3–1.5 m. | ||||
Twigs | terete, viscid, glabrous or puberulent. |
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Leaves | usually in whorls of 3, rarely alternate or opposite; petiole 6–16 mm, usually puberulent; blade oblong to elliptic-lanceolate, 1.5–8 × 0.5–2.5 cm, margins usually plane, apex obtuse to acute, usually apiculate, abaxial surface glabrous or puberulent, sometimes stipitate-glandular, adaxial lightly puberulent (hairs white, to 0.1 mm), sometimes glabrescent, midrib puberulent. |
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Inflorescences | axillary near distal end, corymbiform racemes, 4–12-flowered. |
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Pedicels | 5–20 mm. |
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Flowers | sepals usually green, sometimes reddish apically or throughout, ovate, 2–2.8 mm, apex usually acuminate, surfaces puberulent; petals connate nearly their entire lengths, usually reddish purple to pink, rarely white or bluish pink, usually deeper colored near anther pockets and with ring of red to purple spots just proximal to pockets, 7.5–9.5 × 6–13 mm, abaxial surface puberulent, adaxial glabrous, puberulent toward base; filaments 2.5–3.5 mm; style 3.5–4.5 mm. |
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Capsules | 5-locular, 2–3.5 × 3–5 mm, puberulent, stipitate-glandular. |
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Seeds | winged, obovoid, 0.6–1 mm. |
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2n | = 24. |
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Kalmia angustifolia |
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Distribution |
CT; DE; GA; MA; MD; ME; MI; NC; NH; NJ; NY; PA; RI; SC; TN; VA; VT; WV; NB; NF; NS; ON; PE; QC [Introduced in n Europe]
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Discussion | Varieties 2 (2 in the flora). The two varieties of Kalmia angustifolia are largely separate geographically and show different flavonoid profiles (S. Liu 1993). Southeastern Virginia has long been known as a region of overlap of these two entities; field and herbarium work (B. A. Sorrie and A. S. Weakley, unpubl.) has demonstrated that the two taxa retain their distinctiveness and that hybrids are rare. Sorrie and Weakley concluded that the two should be treated as separate species. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 8, p. 482. | ||||
Parent taxa | Ericaceae > subfam. Ericoideae > Kalmia | ||||
Sibling taxa | |||||
Subordinate taxa | |||||
Synonyms | Chamaedaphne angustifolia | ||||
Name authority | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 391. 1753 , | ||||
Web links |