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slenderfoot flax, sprucemont flax, Utah yellow flax

spring Hill flax

Habit Herbs, annual or perennial, 15–50 cm, glabrous and glaucous. Herbs, perennial, 60–150 cm, glabrous.
Stems

stiffly spreading-ascending, branched at base and distal to middle.

erect, unbranched below inflorescence.

Leaves

alternate or proximalmost opposite, crowded at base, appressed-ascending;

stipular glands absent;

blade oblanceolate to lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, 8–17 × 1.2–2.3 mm, margins entire, not ciliate, apex apiculate.

proximal opposite, distal alternate, ascending;

stipular glands absent;

blade of cauline leaves narrowly elliptic or linear-oblanceolate, 23 × 4 mm, margins entire, not ciliate, apex acute or apiculate.

Inflorescences

few-flowered racemes.

panicles.

Pedicels

(5–)20–30(–60) mm.

0–2.5 mm.

Flowers

sepals persistent, lanceolate to lance-ovate, 4.5–7 mm, margins narrowly scarious, inner sepals conspicuously toothed, outer ones very coarsely glandular-toothed, sometimes sparsely so, apex acuminate or narrowly acute;

petals lemon yellow, obovate, 9–15 mm;

stamens 5–7 mm;

anthers 1–2 mm;

staminodia absent;

styles connate to within 0.8–3 mm of apex, 5.7–9 mm;

stigmas capitate.

sepals persistent, lanceolate or oblanceolate to obovate, 2.8–3.8 mm, inner broader, somewhat shorter than outer, margins not scarious, entire, apex apiculate;

petals yellow, obovate, 8–11 mm;

stamens 6 mm;

anthers 0.8 mm;

staminodia absent;

styles distinct, length unknown;

stigmas capitate.

Capsules

ovoid (distinctly longer than broad), 3.5–4.6 × 2.5–3.1 mm, apex sharp-pointed, dehiscing completely into 5, 2-seeded segments (very easily crushed), segments persistent on plant, false septa incomplete, proximal margins terminating in loose fringe, cartilaginous plates at base of segments poorly developed.

ovoid, 3.4–3.9 × 3.2–3.5 mm, apex obtuse, dehiscing freely into 10, 1-seeded segments, segments persistent on plant, falling tardily, false septa nearly complete, proximal margins very sparsely and inconspicuously ciliate.

Seeds

2.5–3 × 0.9–1.2 mm.

2.8–3 × 1.2 mm.

2n

= 30.

Linum subteres

Linum macrocarpum

Phenology Flowering May–Aug. Flowering May–Jul.
Habitat Sandy soils, clay, sagebrush and pinyon-juniper zones. Pitcher-plant seepage bogs, wet longleaf and/or slash pine flatwoods and savannas.
Elevation 1300–2200 m. (4300–7200 ft.) 0–30 m. (0–100 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; NM; NV; UT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; FL; LA; MS
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Linum subteres is most closely related to L. vernale; it has lemon yellow petals, rather than orange to salmon-colored with a maroon base, and relatively thick, crowded, broad basal leaves (C. M. Rogers 1984). Leaves on the proximal half of each stem are closely spaced and imbricate; distal branches and inflorescence are widely spaced and subtended by closely appressed, relatively long, narrow leaves or bracts, giving the upper part of the plant a leafless look.

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

Linum macrocarpum is known only from about 20 populations in Bay, Franklin, and Okaloosa counties in Florida; St. Tammany Parish in Louisiana; Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, and Stone counties in Mississippi; and Baldwin, Escambia, Mobile, and Washington counties in Alabama. Its range overlaps both varieties of L. floridanum, but L. macrocarpum may be distinguished by its larger capsules, larger seeds, and usually taller stems (B. A. Sorrie, pers. comm.).

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

Source FNA vol. 12, p. 387. FNA vol. 12, p. 382.
Parent taxa Linaceae > Linum > sect. Linopsis Linaceae > Linum > sect. Linopsis
Sibling taxa
L. alatum, L. allredii, L. arenicola, L. aristatum, L. australe, L. berlandieri, L. bienne, L. carteri, L. catharticum, L. compactum, L. elongatum, L. floridanum, L. grandiflorum, L. harperi, L. hudsonioides, L. imbricatum, L. intercursum, L. kingii, L. lewisii, L. lundellii, L. macrocarpum, L. medium, L. neomexicanum, L. perenne, L. pratense, L. puberulum, L. rigidum, L. rupestre, L. schiedeanum, L. striatum, L. sulcatum, L. trigynum, L. usitatissimum, L. vernale, L. virginianum, L. westii
L. alatum, L. allredii, L. arenicola, L. aristatum, L. australe, L. berlandieri, L. bienne, L. carteri, L. catharticum, L. compactum, L. elongatum, L. floridanum, L. grandiflorum, L. harperi, L. hudsonioides, L. imbricatum, L. intercursum, L. kingii, L. lewisii, L. lundellii, L. medium, L. neomexicanum, L. perenne, L. pratense, L. puberulum, L. rigidum, L. rupestre, L. schiedeanum, L. striatum, L. subteres, L. sulcatum, L. trigynum, L. usitatissimum, L. vernale, L. virginianum, L. westii
Synonyms L. aristatum var. subteres, L. leptopoda
Name authority (Trelease) H. J. P. Winkler: in H. G. A. Engler et al., Nat. Pflanzenfam. ed. 2, 19a: 116. (1931) C. M. Rogers: Brittonia 15: 109, fig. 3(1–4). (1963)
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