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creeping water primrose, floating primrose-willow, marsh purslane

flaxleaf seedbox, southeastern primrose-willow

Habit Herbs or emergent aquatics, rooting at nodes, sometimes with fleshy, white pneumatophores at submerged nodes. Herbs slender, rarely with aerenchyma, forming slender stolons 4–15(–30) cm, 0.7–1(–1.5) mm thick.
Stems

floating or creeping and ascending to erect, terete, 10–100(–300) cm, simple or branched, glabrous or sparsely to densely villous, hairs sometimes viscid on emergent distal stem.

erect or ascending, slightly ridged, usually well branched, 12–55(–62) cm, glabrous.

Leaves

stipules broadly ovate-deltate, 0.6–1.6 × 0.4–1 mm, succulent, apex acute or obtuse, gland-tipped, rarely divided into 3 parts;

petiole flattened or narrowly winged, 0.2–6 cm;

blade narrowly oblong or elliptic to ovate, broadly obovate, or orbiculate, (0.4–)1–10 × 0.4–4 cm, base narrowly cuneate or attenuate, margins entire, apex obtuse or rounded to acute, sometimes mucronate or glandular-mucronate, surfaces of floating leaves glabrous, those of emergent leaves glabrous to sparsely or densely strigillose at least adaxially;

bracts scarcely reduced.

alternate;

stipules narrowly ovate to narrowly lanceolate, 0.2–0.3 × 0.1–0.2 mm;

stolons: petiole narrowly attenuate, 0.05–0.5 cm, blade narrowly obovate or oblanceolate to spatulate, 0.5–2 × 0.1–0.6 cm;

stems: sessile, blade linear to linear-oblanceolate, 1.5–4 × 0.1–0.4(–0.6) cm, base very narrowly cuneate, margins entire with obscure hydathodal glands, apex acuminate to acute;

bracts linear, reduced.

Inflorescences

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

bracteoles (rarely absent), deltate, squamate, 0.5–1 × 0.5–1 mm, apex acute, attached near base or on lower 1/2 of ovary.

leafy spikes, flowers solitary in leaf axils;

bracteoles attached 0–1.5 mm distal to base of ovary, very narrowly oblanceolate to linear, (1.5–)2.5–9(–13) × 0.2–0.8 mm, margins entire, apex acute.

Flowers

sepals narrowly deltate or lanceolate, 3–12 × 1.5–4 mm, apex acute or acuminate, surfaces glabrous or sparsely to densely hirtellous;

petals yellow, obpyramidal,7–24 × 4–13 mm, apex mucronate or emarginate, up-curved;

stamens 10(or 12), in 2 unequal series, bright yellow, filaments suberect or reflexed, shorter ones 1.4–4.2 mm, longer ones (1.9–)3.3–6 mm, anthers oblong, 0.5–2.2 mm;

ovary subcylindric or truncate, 6–20 × 1.5–3 mm, apex somewhat broader, glabrous or sparsely to densely hirtellous;

nectary disc slightly raised on ovary apex, 2–2.5 mm diam., lobed, glabrous or fringed with long hairs;

style (1.9–)2.4–7.3 mm, glabrous or sparsely to densely hirtellous on proximal 1/2, stigma flattened-globose, 0.9–1.2 × 1–2.5 mm, sometimes shallowly or deeply 5-lobed, as long as or exserted beyond anthers.

sepals ascending, green, narrowly lanceolate-deltate, (3–)4–7 × 1.1–1.7 mm, margins entire, apex narrowly acute, surfaces glabrous or minutely papillose;

petals narrowly obovate-elliptic, 4–6 × 2–4 mm, base obtuse, apex obtuse or rounded;

filaments pale yellow, (1.3–)1.5–2.5(–3) mm, anthers oblong, 0.6–1.1 × 0.5–0.8 mm;

pollen shed in tetrads;

ovary subcylindric, 3–4 × 1–1.5 mm;

nectary disc elevated 0.3–0.7 mm on ovary apex, bright yellow, 0.8–1.5 mm diam., prominently 4-lobed, minutely papillose;

style yellow, 1.25–2.5 mm, glabrous, stigma subcapitate, 0.3–0.6 × 0.6–0.8 mm, shallowly 4-lobed, not exserted beyond anthers.

Capsules

cylindric, subterete to obscurely 5-angled, straight or curved, 10–40 × 2–4 mm, with thick woody walls, irregularly and tardily dehiscent, pedicel 7–60(–90) mm.

subcylindric, terete or slightly angled, 5–10(–12) ×1.3–2(–2.2) mm, hard-walled, irregularly dehiscent, pedicel 0 mm.

Seeds

embedded in elongated piece of endocarp, 1–1.5 × 0.9–1.3 mm.

reddish brown, oblong-elliptic, 0.6–0.7 × 0.2–0.3 mm, surface cells nearly isodiametric.

2n

= 16.

= 16.

Ludwigia peploides

Ludwigia linifolia

Phenology Flowering late Jun–Oct.
Habitat Drainage ditches, margins of creeks or swamps, open edges of cypress swamps, moist pinelands, edges of brackish lakes.
Elevation 0–300 m. (0–1000 ft.)
Distribution
from USDA
United States; Mexico; Central America; South America; West Indies (Cuba); Asia (China); Pacific Islands (Galapagos Islands) [Introduced in Europe (France), elsewhere in the Pacific Islands (New Zealand, Society Islands), Australia]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; FL; GA; MS; NC; SC; Mexico (Tabasco)
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Subspecies 4 (3 in the flora).

Ludwigia peploides consists of four subspecies more or less well defined geographically and morphologically, with three present in the flora area: subsp. glabrescens, subsp. montevidensis, and subsp. peploides (P. H. Raven 1963[1964]); these subspecies have ranges that are mostly distinct. Subspecies peploides has a wide distribution in the New World, from the southern United States south to Argentina. Subspecies glabrescens is widespread in eastern United States. Subspecies montevidensis occurs primarily in southern South America and scattered (probably introduced) in the southern United States, Australia, France, and New Zealand. Subspecies peploides and montevidensis occur together locally in California and Louisiana, where subsp. montevidensis is introduced. The ranges of subsp. glabrescens and peploides come together in Texas.

Subspecies stipulacea (Ohwi) P. H. Raven is known from eastern Asia (e China).

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

Ludwigia linifolia is primarily a coastal species that extends farther inland in Georgia and the Carolinas. Being one of five diploids in sect. Isnardia, it has particularly prominent nectary lobes and appears to be modally outcrossing (C. I. Peng 1989). It also is known from a disjunct population on the Yucatán Peninsula in Tabasco, Mexico.

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

Key
1. Stems usually densely villous, rarely sparsely so; leaf blades not shiny, apices glandular-mucronate; capsules (20–)24–32 mm.
subsp. montevidensis
1. Stems glabrous or sparely villous; leaf blades shiny, apices usually eglandular-mucronate; capsules 10–40 mm.
→ 2
2. Principal leaf blades 0.8–4(–8.5) cm; petioles 0.2–2.5 cm; pedicels 10–35 mm; capsules 10–17(–25) mm; seeds 7–14 per locule.
subsp. peploides
2. Principal leaf blades (2–)4–10 cm; petioles 0.7–6 cm; pedicels 35–90 mm; capsule 25–40 mm; seeds 16–18 per locule.
subsp. glabrescens
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. hexapetala, L. hirtella, L. lanceolata, L. leptocarpa, L. linearis, L. linifolia, L. maritima, L. microcarpa, L. octovalvis, L. palustris, L. peruviana, L. pilosa, L. polycarpa, L. ravenii, L. repens, L. simpsonii, L. spathulata, L. sphaerocarpa, L. suffruticosa, L. virgata
L. alata, 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. 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
Subordinate taxa
L. peploides subsp. glabrescens, L. peploides subsp. montevidensis, L. peploides subsp. peploides
Synonyms Jussiaea peploides, J. repens var. peploides, L. adscendens var. peploides Isnardia linifolia
Name authority (Kunth) P. H. Raven: Reinwardtia 6: 393. (1964) Poiret in J. Lamarck et al.: Encycl., Suppl. 3: 513. (1814)
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