Sabatia decandra
Sabatia arenicola
Bartram's marsh-pink or rose-gentian
coast rose-gentian, sand rose-gentian
single, terete, 2.5–8(–10) dm, branching all or mostly alternate.
generally single, 4-angled with wings to 0.3 mm wide, 0.3–2(–3.2) dm, branching alternate or proximally occasionally opposite.
basal and cauline usually present at flowering time;
basal blades oblanceolate to spatulate, 4–10 cm × 9–25 mm;
cauline blades abruptly differentiated, linear to lanceolate, 1.5–5(–6.5) cm × 1–8(–15) mm.
all cauline at flowering time;
blade elliptic to ovate or proximal occasionally obovate, 0.6–2(–2.7) cm × 2–9(–13) mm.
flowers solitary or paired at ends of branches;
pedicels (30–)80–120 mm.
open cymes;
pedicels 2–40(–70) mm.
8–12(–14)-merous;
calyx tube shallowly campanulate, (2–)3–4(–8) mm, mid- and commissural veins about equally prominent, not ridged;
lobes narrowly linear to subulate, 4–20 mm;
corolla pink or rarely white, eye yellow, projections of eye into corolla lobes oblong, usually with a red border, tube 5–9 mm, lobes narrowly spatulate-obovate, 16–35 × 5–12 mm, apex rounded to obtuse;
anthers coiling circinately.
5-merous;
calyx tube campanulate, 3.5–8.5 mm, commissural veins more prominent than midveins, ridged, lobes oblong-lanceolate to narrowly ovate-triangular, 3–20 mm;
corolla white to pink, eye white to pale yellow, projections of eye into corolla lobes oblong, without a contrasting border, tube 2–5 mm, lobes spatulate-obovate, 4–10(–13) × 2–8(–11) mm, apex obtuse to subacute;
anthers remaining straight or slightly coiling circinately.
= 36.
= 28.
Sabatia decandra
Sabatia arenicola
As well as differing as indicated in the descriptions, Sabatia decandra differs from sympatric related species in its thickened calyx lobes, which are semicircular in cross section rather than thin and flat, and in having cauline leaves usually no wider than the diameter of the stem.
Sabatia decandra has generally been called S. bartramii in recent years. No specimen associated with the original description of Chironia decandra by Walter is known to exist, and R. L. Wilbur (1955) concluded that Walter’s description of C. decandra did not suffice to indicate unequivocally to which species he had applied the name. D. B. Ward (2007) neotypified the name C. decandra with a specimen of the species to which the name S. decandra is applied here.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Plants of Sabatia arenicola are densely leafy throughout. The vegetative parts are more succulent than those of the other species of Sabatia and darken upon drying (a useful character in identifying herbarium specimens). The mid-stem leaves of S. arenicola are mostly elliptic, widest near the middle, whereas those of S. campestris and S. formosa, to which it is most closely related, are mostly lanceolate to ovate, widest near the base.
Although Sabatia arenicola appears to be largely autogamous, it is now quite well isolated temporally from S. formosa. Molecular evidence indicates introgression of genetic material from S. formosa into part of the range of this species (N. B. Bell and L. J. Lester 1978).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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