Potentilla canadensis |
Potentilla morefieldii |
|
---|---|---|
dwarf cinquefoil |
Morefield's cinquefoil |
|
Stems | initially ascending to erect, soon becoming prostrate, flagelliform, not branched, eventually rooting at some nodes, (0.3–)0.5–12 dm. |
0.4–1.5(–1.7) dm, lengths 2–3 times basal leaves. |
Basal leaves | ± persistent, usually palmate, 2–9(–11) cm; petiole 1–7(–8) cm, long hairs abundant to dense, appressed to spreading, 1.5–3 mm, mostly ± weak, glands absent or sparse; leaflets (3–)5(–7), central mostly ± obovate to cuneate, sometimes narrowly so, (0.5–)1–4(–6) × (0.5–)0.8–2(–3) cm, distal 1/2 of margin incised 1/4–1/3 to midvein, teeth 2–7 per side, surfaces similar to ± dissimilar, abaxial green to silvery white, sparsely to densely hairy, adaxial green, sparsely to moderately hairy. |
pinnate, usually at least 2 pairs of leaflets separate from terminal leaflets, distal leaflets usually distinct, 2–6 cm; petiole 0.2–1.5 cm, straight hairs abundant, ± appressed, 1–1.5 mm, stiff, cottony hairs absent, glands absent or sparse; leaflets 5–9, on distal (1/4–)1/2–3/4+ of leaf axis, overlapping, proximal pair separated from others by 2–10 mm of leaf axis, central leaflets oblanceolate to narrowly obovate, (0.5–)1–2(–2.5) × 0.5–1.2 cm, petiolules 0–1 mm, distal 3/4 of margins incised 3/4 to midvein (sometimes medially cleft as well), teeth 3–4 per side, separate to slightly overlapping, (1–)2–5 mm, surfaces ± to strongly dissimilar, abaxial grayish to white, straight hairs ± abundant, ± appressed, 1 mm, weak to stiff (especially on veins), cottony hairs abundant to dense, glands absent or obscured, adaxial greenish to grayish, straight hairs ± abundant, appressed, 0.5–1.5 mm, stiff, cottony hairs absent, rarely sparse, glands sparse. |
Cauline leaves | 0–1 proximal to 1st flowering node, not fully expanded at anthesis, usually palmate, 2–7(–9) cm; petiole (0.5–)1–6(–7.5) cm; leaflets (3–)5, ± resembling those of basal leaves, apex rounded to obtuse. |
|
Inflorescences | solitary flowers at stolon nodes. |
3–15-flowered. |
Pedicels | (1–)2–5(–9) cm. |
1–2.5(–3) cm. |
Flowers | 5-merous; epicalyx bractlets linear to lanceolate-elliptic, (2–)3–5(–6) × 0.8–1.5 mm, slightly smaller than to ± equal to sepals; hypanthium 2.5–5 mm diam.; sepals (2–)3–5(–6) mm, apex acute; petals 4–6(–8) × 3.5–6.5(–8) mm, apex rounded to slightly retuse; stamens ca. 20, filaments 0.5–2 mm, anthers 0.4–1 mm; carpels 20–40, styles 0.8–1.4 mm. |
epicalyx bractlets ± ovate-elliptic, 2–4 × 0.8–2 mm; hypanthium 2.5–5 mm diam.; sepals 3.5–5 mm, apex ± acute; petals 4–6 × 3–5 mm; filaments 1–2 mm, anthers 0.5–1 mm; carpels 15–20, styles 2 mm. |
Achenes | 1.2–1.4 mm, smooth. |
1.5–2 mm, smooth to faintly rugose. |
Rootstocks | erect, stout, 0.5–2 cm. |
|
2n | = 28. |
|
Potentilla canadensis |
Potentilla morefieldii |
|
Phenology | Flowering late Mar–early Jun. | Flowering summer. |
Habitat | Dry flats and slopes in lawns, pastures, roadsides, cherty slopes, dry meadows, edges of oak and conifer woodlands, often on acidic soil | Alpine tundra and fellfields, mostly on dolomite substrates |
Elevation | 0–1500 m (0–4900 ft) | 3500–4000 m (11500–13100 ft) |
Distribution |
CT; DC; DE; KY; MA; MD; ME; MO; NC; NH; NJ; NY; OH; PA; RI; SC; TN; VA; VT; WV; NS; ON
|
CA |
Discussion | A cream-colored form (ochroleuca) was described from a now-obliterated site in Massachusetts (M. L. Fernald 1931). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Of conservation concern. Potentilla morefieldii is known only from the White Mountains and adjacent Sierra Nevada. Plants with similar aspect but lacking strigose vestiture occur in White Pine County, Nevada; their disposition is uncertain. Potentilla morefieldii is sometimes confused with P. breweri (sect. Multijugae), but the latter differs in having more or less similar leaflet surfaces with cottony hairs nearly as abundant adaxially as abaxially. Potentilla breweri also lacks the stiff adaxial leaflet hairs that characterize most species in sect. Concinnae, including P. morefieldii. W. L. Jepson (1909–1943, vol. 2) misapplied the name Potentilla pseudosericea var. grandiflora Th. Wolf, which is a synonym of an unresolved species from the Rocky Mountains (B. Ertter 1992; Ertter et al. 2013), to P. morefieldii. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 9, p. 134. | FNA vol. 9, p. 181. |
Parent taxa | Rosaceae > subfam. Rosoideae > tribe Potentilleae > Potentilla > sect. Potentilla | Rosaceae > subfam. Rosoideae > tribe Potentilleae > Potentilla > sect. Concinnae |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | P. canadensis var. pumila, P. canadensis var. villosissima, P. caroliniana, P. pumila | |
Name authority | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 498. (1753) | Ertter: Brittonia 44: 432, fig. 1. (1992) |
Web links |