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Drummond's nailwort

creeping nailwort, low nailwort

Habit Plants annual or biennial; taproot filiform to slender. Plants perennial, densely cespitose and mat-forming; caudex branched, woody.
Stems

sprawling t2o erect, nearly simple to much-branched especially distally, 7–35 cm, retrorsely pubescent on 1 side or throughout.

erect to ascending, branched proximally, 5–25 cm, hirtellous.

Leaves

stipules lanceolate to ovate, 5–10 mm, apex acuminate, entire;

blade linear-oblong to oblanceolate, 5–30 × 1–7 mm, leathery, apex acute to cuspidate, moderately antrorsely pubescent.

stipules lanceolate to subulate, 2–3 mm, apex long-acuminate, often deeply cleft;

blade linear-subulate, 4–7.5 × 0.5–0.8 mm, leathery, apex acute or shortly cuspidate-mucronate, very finely puberulent to glabrous.

Flowers

5-merous, ± short-campanulate, with prominently enlarged hypanthium and calyx flaring distally, (1.5–)2–2.3 mm, pubescent proximally with short, hooked hairs;

sepals greenish to brownish or red-brown, white distally, veins absent, oblong to obovate, 1–1.5 mm, leathery to rigid, margins white, 0.2–0.3 mm wide, papery, apex terminating in divergent awn, hood broadly rounded, awn white, stout-conic, 0.5–0.6 mm, glabrous;

staminodes filiform, ± 0.3 mm;

style 1, cleft in distal 1/5, 0.3–0.6 mm.

5-merous, ± ovoid, with enlarged hypanthium and calyx narrowing distally, 3.6–5 mm, moderately pubescent with silky to stiff, antrorse to somewhat spreading hairs;

sepals green to red-brown, midrib and lateral pair of veins prominent, lanceolate-oblong, 1.5–2 mm, leathery, margins whitish to translucent, 0.1–0.2 mm wide, scarious, apex terminated by awn, hood ± obscure, narrowly rounded, awn erect to somewhat spreading, 1–1.5(–2) mm, narrowly conic in proximal 1/2 with white, scabrous spine;

staminodes filiform, 0.7–1 mm;

style 1, cleft in distal 1/5, 1.4–1.5 mm.

Cymes

terminal, 25+-flowered, much-branched but congested, clusters 5–20 mm wide.

terminal, 3–6-flowered, congested, or flowers solitary.

Utricles

ellipsoid to subglobose, 0.5–0.8 mm, minutely papillate distally.

ovoid-oblong, 1.3–1.4 mm, densely pubescent in distal 1/2.

Paronychia drummondii

Paronychia sessiliflora

Phenology Flowering spring–fall. Flowering summer.
Habitat Sandy woodlands, clearings, roadsides Dry, stony hillsides, summits, and sandstone mesas
Elevation 0-100 m (0-300 ft) 700-3100 m (2300-10200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
LA; OK; TX
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[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CO; MT; ND; NE; NM; NV; OK; TX; UT; WY; AB; SK
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[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Chaudhri described two subspecies of Paronychia drummondii based on differences in leaf pubescence, flower size, and style length. We follow B. L. Turner (1983b), who noted that many specimens demonstrate intermediate characteristics, suggesting that taxonomic recognition not be given to the extremes.

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

Source FNA vol. 5, p. 36. FNA vol. 5, p. 42.
Parent taxa Caryophyllaceae > subfam. Paronychioideae > Paronychia Caryophyllaceae > subfam. Paronychioideae > Paronychia
Sibling taxa
P. ahartii, P. americana, P. argyrocoma, P. baldwinii, P. canadensis, P. chartacea, P. congesta, P. depressa, P. echinulata, P. erecta, P. fastigiata, P. franciscana, P. herniarioides, P. jamesii, P. jonesii, P. lindheimeri, P. maccartii, P. monticola, P. patula, P. pulvinata, P. rugelii, P. sessiliflora, P. setacea, P. virginica, P. wilkinsonii
P. ahartii, P. americana, P. argyrocoma, P. baldwinii, P. canadensis, P. chartacea, P. congesta, P. depressa, P. drummondii, P. echinulata, P. erecta, P. fastigiata, P. franciscana, P. herniarioides, P. jamesii, P. jonesii, P. lindheimeri, P. maccartii, P. monticola, P. patula, P. pulvinata, P. rugelii, P. setacea, P. virginica, P. wilkinsonii
Synonyms P. drummondii subsp. parviflora
Name authority Torrey & A. Gray: Fl. N. Amer. 1: 170. (1838) Nuttall: Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 1: 160. (1818)
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