Flora of North America species comparison

The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

Oxalis pes-caprae

Oxalis incarnata

African wood-sorrel, Bermuda buttercup, soursob

crimson wood-sorrel, pale pink-sorrel
Habit Herbs perennial, acaulous, rhizomes present vertical, white, rootlike, stolons absent, bulb usually solitary, sometimes with bulblets at base; bulb scales not observed. Herbs perennial, caulescent, rhizomes present, 3–8 cm, slender, sometimes producing small tubers, stolons absent, bulblets often present on rhizomes and in leaf axils.
Aerial stems

mostly 1–4 from base, mostly erect, 5–25 cm, herbaceous, glabrous.
Leaves

basal, rarely absent at flowering;

petiole 3–12 cm;

leaflets 3, green, rarely mottled with purplish red spots, angular-obcordate, (5–)7–20 mm, lobed 1/4–2/5 length, lobes apically convex, margins and abaxial surface villous, adaxial surface glabrous, oxalate deposits absent.

cauline, usually in pseudowhorls of 4–8, sometimes opposite proximally;

stipules rudimentary;

petiole 2–5(–7) cm;

leaflets 3, green, sometimes purplish abaxially, obcordate, 6–10(–15) mm, lobed 1/4 length, lobes apically convex, surfaces glabrous, oxalate deposits absent.
Inflorescences

umbelliform cymes, 2–12(–20)-flowered;

scapes often becoming fistulose proximally, 15–30 cm, sparsely villous to pilose.

1-flowered;

peduncles 5–7 cm.
Flowers

tristylous in diploids and tetraploids, consistently short-styled in pentaploids;

sepal apices with 2 orange tubercles;

petals deep golden yellow, 15–20 mm.

stamen/style arrangement not seen;

sepal apices with 2 orange tubercles;

petals white to pale pinkish purple with darker veins, 10–20 mm.
Capsules

not seen.

not seen.
2n

= 14, 28, 35.

Oxalis pes-caprae

Oxalis incarnata
Phenology Flowering Nov–Apr. Flowering Jan–May.
Habitat Disturbed areas, orchards, fields, grasslands, oak woodlands, coastal sage, dunes. Shady, disturbed, generally urban sites, greenhouses, roadsides, yards.
Elevation 10–500 m. (0–1600 ft.) 0–200 m. (0–700 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; CA; s Africa [Introduced in North America; introduced also in West Indies, Bermuda, South America, Europe, Asia (China, Iran, Turkey), n Africa, Australia]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; Africa (South Africa) [Introduced in North America; introduced also in Europe, Pacific Islands (New Zealand), Australia]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Outside its native range, Oxalis pes-caprae is mostly represented by a sterile pentaploid morph, although tetraploids also are known. The occurrence of both pentaploid and tetraploid individuals in the exotic range may be the result of independent introductions (P. Michael 1964; R. Ornduff 1986). Fruit production has not been observed in North America, and the plants are assumed to be seed-sterile (Ornduff 1987). Bulbs of O. pes-caprae are rarely collected, as they detach easily from the vertical, rootlike stems. Each bulb may produce over 20, small, whitish bulblets each year. Bulblets may also be formed at the soil surface crown.

Oxalis pes-caprae was reported by J. K. Small (1933) to occur in waste places and cultivated grounds in northern Florida, but as noted by D. B. Ward (2004), no Florida specimens are known.

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

Oxalis incarnata is recognized by its rhizomatous habit, small leaves in pseudowhorls, and large, solitary, flowers with white to pink or purple petals. Plants apparently are seed-sterile in California.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 12, p. 146. FNA vol. 12, p. 146.
Parent taxa Oxalidaceae > Oxalis Oxalidaceae > Oxalis
Sibling taxa
O. albicans, O. articulata, O. bowiei, O. brasiliensis, O. caerulea, O. californica, O. colorea, O. corniculata, O. debilis, O. decaphylla, O. dichondrifolia, O. dillenii, O. drummondii, O. florida, O. frutescens, O. grandis, O. hirta, O. hispidula, O. illinoensis, O. incarnata, O. intermedia, O. latifolia, O. laxa, O. macrantha, O. metcalfei, O. montana, O. oregana, O. pilosa, O. purpurea, O. stricta, O. suksdorfii, O. texana, O. triangularis, O. trilliifolia, O. violacea
O. albicans, O. articulata, O. bowiei, O. brasiliensis, O. caerulea, O. californica, O. colorea, O. corniculata, O. debilis, O. decaphylla, O. dichondrifolia, O. dillenii, O. drummondii, O. florida, O. frutescens, O. grandis, O. hirta, O. hispidula, O. illinoensis, O. intermedia, O. latifolia, O. laxa, O. macrantha, O. metcalfei, O. montana, O. oregana, O. pes-caprae, O. pilosa, O. purpurea, O. stricta, O. suksdorfii, O. texana, O. triangularis, O. trilliifolia, O. violacea
Synonyms O. cernua
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 434. (1753) Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 433. (1753)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



Type/paste one or more Latin names into the boxes above; matching taxa will show up below the box as you type. You can use the up/down arrow keys to move through the list.

(If the plant you're looking for doesn't show up in the auto-complete list, that means it either isn't described in Flora of North America yet, or it's listed under a synonym. And please note that Flora of North America is still missing several plant families, including Fabaceae, Apiaceae, Boraginaceae, and Polemoniaceae.)

Choose a data source: Flora of North America, OregonFlora

The species comparison tool is brought to you by:
Northwest Wildflowers