Minuartia uniflora
Minuartia glabra
one-flower stitchwort
Appalachian sandplant, Appalachian stitchwort
filiform.
filiform.
erect to ascending, green, 7–20 cm, glabrous, internodes of stems 1–7 times as long as leaves.
erect or ascending, green, 9–20 cm, glabrous, internodes of all stems 2–7 times as long as leaves.
not overlapping, connate proximally, with tight, herbaceous or scarious sheath 0.1–0.3 mm;
blade straight to outwardly curved, widely spreading, green, flat, 1-veined abaxially, especially proximal, narrowly lanceolate to oblong, commonly linear, 2–20 × 0.3–1.5 mm, flexuous, margins not thickened, scarious, smooth, apex green to purple, rounded to acute, dull, glabrous;
axillary leaves poorly developed.
overlapping proximally (basal rosette absent at flowering), connate proximally, with ± loose, scarious sheath 0.2–0.5 mm;
blade ascending to spreading, green, 1-veined abaxially, flat, linear, 5–20(–30) × 0.5 mm, flexuous, margins not thickened, slightly scarious, smooth, apex green to purple, rounded to acute, dull, glabrous;
axillary leaves absent.
7–25+-flowered, open cymes;
bracts subulate to ovate, herbaceous, margins scarious.
8–15-flowered, open, leafy cymes;
bracts linear to subulate, mostly herbaceous.
0.5–5 cm, glabrous.
0.5–2 cm, glabrous.
hypanthium disc-shaped;
sepals obscurely veined, ovate to elliptic or lanceolate (herbaceous portion elliptic to lanceolate), 2–3.5 mm, not enlarging in fruit, apex green, obtuse to rounded, not hooded, glabrous;
petals oblanceolate to spatulate, 1.5–2.5 times as long as sepals, apex rounded, entire to shallowly notched.
hypanthium disc-shaped;
sepals obscurely veined, oblong-lanceolate, lanceolate, to elliptic (herbaceous portion oblong-lanceolate or lanceolate to elliptic), 1.5–4 mm, to 4.5 mm in fruit, apex green, ± rounded, not hooded, glabrous;
petals clawed, broadly obovate, 1.5–2.2 times as long as sepals, apex rounded, shallowly notched.
on stipe shorter than 0.1 mm, pyramidal-ovoid, 3.5–4 mm, longer than sepals.
on stipe 0.1 mm or shorter, broadly ellipsoid, 3.5 mm, shorter than sepals.
yellowish brown, suborbiculate with radicle obscure, slightly compressed, 0.4–0.6 mm, tuberculate;
tubercles low, rounded.
brown, obliquely triangular with adaxial groove, radicle prolonged into short beak, compressed, 0.5–0.8 mm, low-tuberculate.
= 14.
= 20.
Minuartia uniflora
Minuartia glabra
Minuartia alabamensis was originally described to accommodate much-reduced plants from Alabama (J. F. McCormick et al. 1971). Subsequent studies have shown them to be conspecific with M. uniflora (R. Wyatt 1984).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Minuartia glabra, along with M. groenlandica (Retzius) Ostenfeld and M. uniflora (Walter) Mattfeld, comprise the so-called granite outcrop arenarias of the southeastern United States. These species have been studied extensively, both systematically (e.g., J. F. McCormick et al. 1971; R. E. Weaver 1970) and for pollination biology (R. Wyatt 1984).
At this time, we follow R. E. Weaver (1970) in maintaining Minuartia glabra separate from M. groenlandica. The species are very similar morpho-logically, including sharing clawed petals and obliquely triangular seeds, like those in most Sagina species but unique among North American Minuartia species; the annual versus perennial habit and, at least in the southeast, phenology and elevation can be used to distinguish these taxa. Further studies in northern populations may be warranted to resolve the question completely.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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