Flora of North America species comparison

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Oxalis suksdorfii

Oxalis triangularis

Suksdorf woodsorrel, Suksdorf's oxalis, Suksdorf's wood-sorrel, western yellow oxalis, western yellow wood-sorrel

purple shamrock, scurvy grass
Habit Herbs perennial, caulescent, rhizomes present long, stolons absent, bulbs absent. Herbs perennial, acaulous, rhizomes present, branching, short, 1 cm diam., densely scaly, stolons absent, bulblets sometimes present, clustered; bulb scales (1–)3-nerved, margins glandular.
Aerial stems

1(–3) from base, mostly erect, 10–25 cm, herbaceous, sparsely to moderately villous, hairs nonseptate and usually septate.

Leaves

cauline;

stipules rudimentary;

petiole (2–)3–5(–6) cm, hairs septate and nonseptate;

leaflets 3, green, obcordate, (8–)10–16(–20) mm, lobed 1/5–1/3 length, margins green, surfaces glabrous to sparsely strigose, oxalate deposits absent.

basal, rarely absent at flowering;

petiole 12–20 cm;

leaflets 3, dark purple, commonly with lighter violet splotches radiating from midvein adaxially, obtriangular to obovate-triangular, (20–)30–50(–60) mm, lobed 1/10 length or apex merely notched, lobes apically truncate to slightly convex, surfaces glabrous, oxalate deposits absent or in short, marginal lines on both sides of notch.
Inflorescences

umbelliform cymes, 1–3-flowered;

peduncles (2–)4–8(–10) cm.

umbelliform cymes, (1–)2–5(–9)-flowered;

scapes 15–35 cm, glabrous.
Flowers

tristylous, above level of leaves;

sepal apices without tubercles;

petals yellow, 12–20 mm.

heterostylous;

sepal apices with 2 orange tubercles;

petals white to pinkish or pale purple, 15–22 mm.
Capsules

oblong-cylindric, 10–15 mm, densely puberulent.

ovoid-ellipsoid, 12–18 mm, glabrous.
2n

= 24.

Oxalis suksdorfii

Oxalis triangularis
Phenology Flowering May–Aug. Flowering Apr–May.
Habitat Open woods, fir, Douglas fir-oak woodlands, dry shrublands, roadsides, disturbed areas. Disturbed sites, near gardens.
Elevation 0–700 m. (0–2300 ft.) 0–100 m. (0–300 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR; WA; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
FL; LA; South America (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru) [Introduced in North America]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

In East Feliciana Parish, Louisiana, north of Baton Rouge, Oxalis triangularis has spread from a planter pot into adjacent woods (G. F. Guala, pers. comm.). In Leon County, Florida, a population is growing and slowly spreading at the edge of a woodland remnant within the city of Tallahassee (L. C. Anderson, pers. comm.).

A. Lourteig (2000) recognized two subspecies sympatric over much of their native ranges (as cited, subsp. triangularis in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, and Paraguay, subsp. papilionacea in Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Peru) and differing by the following contrasts: subsp. triangularis has sepals acute, oxalate tubercles small or absent, and petals white to purplish, three to four times longer than the sepals; subsp. papilionacea has sepals obtuse to subacute with oxalate tubercles thickened, and petals pink to purplish, rarely white, about two to two and a half times longer than the sepals. With these subtle differences and broad sympatry, it seems probable that only a single evolutionary entity exists. In any case, the few North American collections studied here would be Oxalis triangularis in the strict sense. Forms of O. triangularis are sometimes recognized as “atropurpurea” but apparently this is a horticultural name.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 12, p. 145. FNA vol. 12, p. 151.
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. pes-caprae, O. pilosa, O. purpurea, O. stricta, 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. incarnata, 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. trilliifolia, O. violacea
Synonyms Xanthoxalis suksdorfii O. palustris, O. papilionacea, O. regnellii, O. triangularis subsp. papilionacea
Name authority Trelease: Mem. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist. 4: 89. (1888) A. St.-Hilaire: Fl. Bras. Merid. 1(qto.): 128. (1825)
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).



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