Polygala mariana
Polygala senega
Maryland milkwort
polygale sénéca, seneca milkwort, seneca-snakeroot
erect, glabrous or sparsely pubescent distally, hairs incurved.
erect, puberulent or glabrous, hairs appressed, incurved, and spreading.
alternate;
sessile or petiolate, petiole to 1 mm;
blade narrowly spatulate proximally to linear distally, (6–)10–20(–25) × (0.5–)1–2(–2.5) mm, base cuneate or acute, apex acute, surfaces glabrous or sparsely pubescent.
alternate;
subsessile or petiolate, petiole to 0.5–5 mm;
blade scalelike proximally, linear-lanceolate to lanceolate-elliptic, lanceolate, or lanceolate-ovate distally, (13–)20–80 × (1.5–)8–35 mm, base acute, margins often appearing serrulate from toothlike projections associated with cilia, apex acute to acuminate, surfaces glabrous.
capitate, (0.5–)1–3.5 × 0.6–1.1 cm;
peduncle 0.2–2 cm;
bracts usually deciduous, infrequently a few persistent, scattered, lanceolate-ovate.
conic or cylindric-conic, (1–)1.5–4(–4.5) × 0.5–0.9 cm;
peduncle 1–3 cm;
bracts deciduous, ovate.
1.5–3.5 mm, glabrous.
0.5(–1) mm, glabrous.
pink or purple, 4–5.7 mm;
sepals elliptic to ovate-lanceolate, 0.8–1.8 mm;
wings ovate, elliptic, or obovate, 2.5–4.5(–5.2) × 1.1–3(–3.6) mm, apex acute to obtuse, often minutely apiculate;
keel 2.3–3.5(–4) mm, crest 2-parted, with2–4 lobes on each side.
white, wings often with greenish veins, other sepals sometimes white, 2–4 mm;
sepals ovate or lanceolate, 1–2 mm;
wings suborbiculate to broadly elliptic or obovate, 2–3.7 × 2–3 mm, apex bluntly rounded (or rarely obtuse);
keel 2–3.5 mm, crest 2-parted, with 2–4 lobes on each side.
subglobose or ellipsoid, 1.5–2.3 × 1–2 mm, margins not winged.
subglobose or ovoid, 2.5–4.5 × 3–4.3 mm, margins not winged.
0.9–1.2 mm, pubescent;
aril 0.4 mm, lobes nearly vestigial to 1/3 length of seed.
2–3.5 mm, sparsely pubescent;
aril 1.9–3.6 mm, lobes subequal to longer than length of seed.
= 34.
= 34.
Polygala mariana
Polygala senega
Polygala mariana is polymorphic (for example, flower color and inflorescence and flower size); separation into discrete taxa has been unsuccessful. Some specimens resemble P. curtissii, which has persistent bracts and usually deeper pink flowers. The two species are largely allopatric, with P. mariana predominantlyon the coastal plain and P. curtissii more inland.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Two varieties have been recognized within Polygala senega: var. latifolia (= P. lonchophylla) with the distal leaf blades more than 1 cm wide (in correlation with an overall more robust habit and slightly larger size of most parts), and var. senega, with the distal leaf blades to 1 cm wide. A. E. Trauth-Nare and R. F. C. Naczi (1998) suggested that these entities may warrant specific recognition based on size and phenology differences, but in the absence of published details, the ranges and morphological features overlap too extensively to warrant taxonomic recognition.
Manitoba and Saskatchewan have been the major source of wild harvested roots of Polygala senega in North America, with up to several thousand kilograms being harvested annually (C. J. Briggs 1988). An increase in demand for Polygala senega has raised concerns about sustainable harvest (C. L. Turcotte 1997).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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