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false loosestrife, large-flower primrose-willow, primrose willow, six petal water primrose, Uruguayan primrose-willow, water primrose

wing primrose-willow

Habit Herbs, subshrubs, or emergent aquatics, adventitious roots sometimes forming a thick mass 10–23 cm at submerged nodes, sometimes woody at base, white pneumatophores 5–10 cm often on submerged stems. Herbs with aerenchyma when base submerged, forming stolons from lower nodes, 8–65(–95) cm, 0.7–2.5 mm thick.
Stems

floating or creeping and ascending to erect, terete, 20–200(–400) cm, simple to densely branched apically, glabrous (floating) or sparsely to densely villous (emergent), sometimes villous only on inflorescence.

erect or somewhat sprawling, slightly to distinctly winged (wings to 1.8 mm wide), branched distally, 40–120(–160) cm, glabrous.

Leaves

stipules ovate or deltate, 0.7–2 × 0.5–1.1 mm, not succulent, apex subacute, mucronate;

petiole flattened, 0.5–2(–2.5) cm;

blade narrowly oblanceolate, narrowly elliptic, or lanceolate to obovate or spatulate, (1.5–)4.2–10.7(–13.5) × (0.5–)0.8–3 cm, chartaceous, base cuneate or attenuate, margins entire, apex acute to obtuse, rounded or truncate, sometimes mucronate, surfaces not shiny, usually glabrous, sometimes villous on petiole and veins or throughout;

bracts not reduced.

alternate;

stipules ovate-deltate, often narrowly so, 0.2–0.4 × 0.1–0.3 mm, succulent;

stolons: petiole 0.15–1 cm, blades orbiculate to oblanceolate or broadly elliptic, 0.4–2.6 × 0.4–1.5 cm, base attenuate, apex rounded to subacute;

stems: petiole 0–0.3 cm, blade lanceolate-elliptic or very narrowly elliptic to linear, sometimes to oblanceolate or oblanceolate-elliptic near base, 1.8–10 × 0.2–1.3(–2) cm, base narrowly cuneate or attenuate, margins subentire with remote hydathodal glands, rarely minutely papillose-serrulate near apex, apex acute to narrowly acute, leaves on side branches much reduced;

bracts much reduced.

Inflorescences

emergent stems sometimes in leafy racemes, sometimes reflexed, flowers solitary in leaf axils;

bracteoles obovate to narrowly obovate, 1–1.8 × 0.7–0.8 mm, apex acute or acuminate, attached on distal 1/2 of pedicel or at ovary base.

sometimes congested, leafy spikes or racemes, flowers solitary in distal leaf axils;

bracteoles attached near base of ovary, lanceolate-elliptic or narrowly so, 2.4–4.7 × 0.6–1.5 mm, margins minutely papillose or smooth, apex acute, surfaces glabrous.

Flowers

sepals ovate-deltate or lanceolate-deltate, (8–)12–19 × 2–5 mm, chartaceous, margins entire, apex acuminate, surfaces ± densely villous;

petals bright yellow, sometimes with orange base, fan-shaped, (15–)20–30 × (12–)16–25 mm, apex emarginate or mucronate;

stamens 10(or 12), in 2 unequal series, yellow, filaments recurved, shorter ones (1.6–)2.3–5.2 mm, longer ones (3.1–)3.6–7.5 mm, anthers oblong, (1.2–)1.7–4 × 1–1.5 mm;

ovary subcylindric, terete, 10–18 × 2–3 mm, apex ± broadened, glabrous or sparsely to densely villous;

nectary disc slightly raised on ovary apex, yellowish green, 2–4 mm diam., lobed, glabrous or ringed with white hairs;

style yellow, 6–10 mm, glabrous, stigma subcapitate-globose, 0.5–1.5 × 1.5–2.5 mm, often exserted beyond anthers.

sepals spreading to reflexed, creamy white adaxially, broadly ovate-deltate, 2–4 × 1.6–4 mm, margins smooth or minutely papillose-serrulate, apex acute or acuminate, surfaces glabrous;

petals 0;

filaments nearly translucent, 1.1–1.7 mm, slightly dilated near base, anthers 0.5–0.9 × 0.4–0.7 mm;

pollen shed singly;

ovary obpyramidal, sharply 4-angled, 2–3.8 × 2–3.5 mm;

nectary disc elevated 0.5–0.8 mm on ovary apex, bright yellow, square with rounded corners, 2–3.3 mm diam., prominently 4-lobed, glabrous;

style pale green, 0.8–1.3 mm, glabrous, stigma pale yellow, subglobose, 0.3–0.6 × 0.3–0.7 mm, shallowly 4-lobed on top, not exserted beyond anthers.

Capsules

cylindric or subclavate, terete, sometimes curved, (12–)16–24(–30)× 2.5–4 mm, with thick woody walls, irregularly and tardily dehiscent, pedicel (9–)13–25(–85) mm.

obpyramidal, sharply 4-angled and 4-winged, 3–5 × 2.8–4.5 mm, with hard walls somewhat bulging, dehiscent by apical ring, pedicel 0–0.8 mm.

Seeds

embedded in wedge-shaped piece of endocarp, 0.8–1 × 0.8–1 mm.

light brown, ellipsoid, slightly curved on both ends, 0.6–0.7 × 0.3–0.4 mm, surface cells elongate transversely to seed length.

2n

= 80.

= 48.

Ludwigia hexapetala

Ludwigia alata

Phenology Flowering spring–late fall. Flowering Jun–Oct.
Habitat Wet places, along slow-moving rivers, streams, canals, ditches, often growing into main channel as aquatic weed. Ditches, edges of ponds and lagoons, peaty or sandy swales, open cypress swamps, sandy borrow pits in open pine woods, swampy, flat outcrops of oolitic rocks, wet savannas, tidal flats, brackish marshes, sandy beach strands and hammocks.
Elevation 0–200[–2600] m. (0–700[–8500] ft.) 0–50 m. (0–200 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CA; FL; GA; KY; LA; MS; NC; NY; OR; PA; SC; TN; WA; Central America (Costa Rica); South America (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay) [Introduced in w Europe (Belgium, France, Spain)]
[WildflowerSearch map]
from FNA
AL; FL; GA; LA; MS; NC; SC; VA; West Indies (Jamaica)
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Ludwigia hexapetala (2n = 80) was formerly included with L. grandiflora (2n = 48) in L. uruguayensis (Cambessèdes) H. Hara, and some authors (G. L. Nesom and J. T. Kartesz 2000) still consider them to be a single species. The small but consistent morphological differences and different ploidy levels argue for keeping them distinct at the species level.

Fernald described Jussiaea michauxiana (1944), since he thought that J. grandiflora Michaux (1803) was a homonym (not J. grandiflora Ruíz & Pavon). However, it was later determined that the volume containing the Ruíz & Pavon name was published in 1830 (not 1802) making the name by Michaux valid and legitimate, and the name by Fernald an illegitimate substitution. Plants now known as Ludwigia hexapetala were included in the circumscription of L. uruguayensis (Cambessèdes) H. Hara (based on J. uruguayensis Cambessèdes) by P. H. Raven (1963[1964]) and P. A. Munz (1965).

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

Ludwigia alata occurs only at very low elevations along the Atlantic and Gulf coastal plains from Virginia to the tip of Florida, and west to southwestern Louisiana, with disjunct populations on Jamaica (C. I. Peng 1989). This hexaploid species is often confused with L. lanceolata, with which it shares two genomes (Peng 1988, 1989) and with which it is frequently sympatric. The showy petals of L. alata suggest a higher level of outcrossing, and numerous natural hybrids have been documented (Peng 1988, 1989).

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

Source FNA vol. 10. FNA vol. 10.
Parent taxa Onagraceae > subfam. Ludwigioideae > Ludwigia > sect. Jussiaea Onagraceae > subfam. Ludwigioideae > Ludwigia > sect. Isnardia
Sibling taxa
L. alata, L. alternifolia, L. arcuata, L. bonariensis, L. brevipes, L. curtissii, L. decurrens, L. erecta, L. glandulosa, L. grandiflora, L. hirtella, L. lanceolata, L. leptocarpa, L. linearis, L. linifolia, L. maritima, L. microcarpa, L. octovalvis, L. palustris, L. peploides, L. peruviana, L. pilosa, L. polycarpa, L. ravenii, L. repens, L. simpsonii, L. spathulata, L. sphaerocarpa, L. suffruticosa, L. virgata
L. alternifolia, L. arcuata, L. bonariensis, L. brevipes, L. curtissii, L. decurrens, L. erecta, L. glandulosa, L. grandiflora, L. hexapetala, L. hirtella, L. lanceolata, L. leptocarpa, L. linearis, L. linifolia, L. maritima, L. microcarpa, L. octovalvis, L. palustris, L. peploides, L. peruviana, L. pilosa, L. polycarpa, L. ravenii, L. repens, L. simpsonii, L. spathulata, L. sphaerocarpa, L. suffruticosa, L. virgata
Synonyms Jussiaeahexapetala hooker, J. repens var. major, L. grandiflora subsp. hexapetala, L. grandiflora var. hexapetala, L. uruguayensis var. major Isnardia alata
Name authority (Hooker & Arnott) Zardini, H. Y. Gu & P. H. Raven: Syst. Bot. 16: 243. (1991) Elliott: Sketch Bot. S. Carolina 1: 212. (1817)
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