Polygonum douglasii |
Polygonum nuttallii |
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Douglas' knotweed, renouée de Douglas |
Nuttall's knotweed |
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Habit | Herbs. | Herbs. |
Stems | erect, green, simple or branched, not wiry, 5–80 cm, glabrous or sparsely papillose-scabridulous. |
spreading to erect, sometimes zigzagged, purplish, simple or branched, wiry, (5–)10–35 cm, papillose-scabridulous. |
Leaves | uniformly distributed, articulated to ocreae, basal leaves caducous, distal leaves abruptly reduced to bracts; ocrea 6–12 mm, glabrous or minutely papillose-scabridulous, proximal part cylindric, distal part hyaline, lacerate; petiole 0.1–2 mm; blade 1-veined, not pleated, linear, narrow-oblong, or oblanceolate, 15–55 × 2–8(–12) mm, margins revolute, smooth or papillose-denticulate; apex acute to mucronate. |
evenly distributed or crowded at branch tips, articulated to ocreae, basal leaves persistent, distal leaves gradually reduced to bracts; ocrea 3–4 mm, papillose-scabridulous, proximal part funnelform, distal part finely lacerate; petiole 0.1–2 mm; blade 1-veined, not pleated, linear to narrowly oblong-elliptic, 8–30 × 1–4(–7) mm, margins narrowly revolute, never touching along midrib, smooth, apex acute, mucronate, ± glaucous adaxially. |
Inflorescences | axillary and terminal, spikelike, elongate; cymes widely spaced along branches, 2–4-flowered. |
axillary and terminal, spikelike, dense; cymes mostly congested toward tips of branches, 2–3-flowered. |
Pedicels | mostly exserted from ocreae, reflexed, 2–6 mm. |
enclosed in ocreae, erect to spreading, 2–3 mm. |
Flowers | closed; perianth 3–4.5 mm; tube 20–28% of perianth length; tepals overlapping, green to tannish with white or pink margins, petaloid, oblong, cucullate, navicular, apex rounded; midveins usually branched, rarely unbranched; stamens 8. |
semi-open or closed; perianth 1.8–2.4 mm; tube 25–33% of perianth length; tepals overlapping, greenish, white, or pink with pink margins, petaloid, oblong, cucullate, navicular in distal 1/4, apex rounded; midveins unbranched; stamens 8. |
Achenes | enclosed in perianth, black, elliptic or oblong to ovate, 3–4(–4.5) mm, faces subequal, shiny or dull, smooth or minutely striate-tubercled. |
enclosed in perianth, black, elliptic to ovate, 1.8–2.3 mm, faces subequal, shiny, smooth. |
Polygonum douglasii |
Polygonum nuttallii |
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Phenology | Flowering Jun–Oct. | Flowering May–Oct. |
Habitat | Dry, often disturbed places, rock outcrops, sandy ground | Dry prairies, open knolls in lower mountains, open sites in lowland and montane zones, sandy soil |
Elevation | 300-3000 m (1000-9800 ft) | 800-1100 m (2600-3600 ft) |
Distribution |
AZ; CA; CO; IA; ID; MI; MN; MT; NE; NH; NM; NV; NY; OR; SD; UT; VA; VT; WA; WY; AB; BC; MB; ON; QC; SK; YT
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OR; WA; BC
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Discussion | Five taxa that have been included in Polygonum douglasii (E. Murray 1982; J. C. Hickman 1984; J. T. Kartesz and K. N. Gandhi 1990) are treated here as distinct species: P. austiniae, P. majus, P. nuttallii, P. sawatchense, and P. spergulariiforme. Hickman noted extensive intergradation and numerous intermediate specimens among those sympatric elements, but qualitative or quantitative characters allow reliable discrimination in most cases (M. Costea and F. J. Tardif 2005), and species are here circumscribed similar to C. L. Hitchcock (1964). Greene described var. latifolium as having leaf blades and achenes broader than those of var. douglasii. C. L. Hitchcock (1964) recognized the former, but the characters used to distinguish it appear to vary continuously, and reliable separation is not possible. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
C. L. Hitchcock (1964) suggested that Polygonum nuttallii is but a small-flowered form of P. spergulariiforme. Although morphologically similar, P. nuttallii differs from P. spergulariiforme in some respects, including its wiry, purplish stems, short and funnelform ocreae, adaxially glaucous leaves, longer bracts, shorter fruiting perianth, and achenes. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 5, p. 567. | FNA vol. 5, p. 570. |
Parent taxa | Polygonaceae > subfam. Polygonoideae > Polygonum > sect. Duravia | Polygonaceae > subfam. Polygonoideae > Polygonum > sect. Duravia |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | P. douglasii var. latifolium, P. emaciatum, P. montanum, P. tenue var. commune, P. tenue var. latifolium | P. intermedium, P. douglasii subsp. nuttallii |
Name authority | Greene: Bull. Calif. Acad. Sci. 1: 125. (1885) | Small: Mongr. Amer. Sp. Polygonum, 132, plate 53. (1895) |
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