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Sagittaria latifolia

bird's-eye pearlwort, broad-leaf arrowhead, common arrowhead, duck-potato, Indian potato, sagittaire latifoliee, wapato

grass-leaf arrowhead, grassy arrowhead, sagittaire a feuilles de graminees

Habit Herbs, perennial, to 45 cm; rhizomes absent; stolons present; corms present. Herbs, perennial, to 100 cm; rhizomes coarse; stolons absent; corms absent.
Leaves

emersed;

petiole triangular, erect to ascending, 6.5–51 cm;

blade sagittate, rarely hastate, 1.5–30.5 × 2–17 cm, basal lobes equal to or less than remainder of blade.

submersed or emersed; submersed leaves phyllodial, angled abaxially, flattened adaxially, 6.4–35 × 0.5–4 cm; emersed with petiole triangular, 6.5–17 cm, blade linear to linear-oblanceolate, 2.5–17.4 × 0.2–4 cm.

Inflorescences

racemes, rarely panicles, of 3–9 whorls, emersed, 4.5–28.5 × 4–23 cm;

peduncles 10–59 cm;

bracts connate more than or equal to ¼ total length, elliptic to lanceolate, 3–8 mm, delicate, not papillose; fruiting pedicels spreading, cylindric, 0.5–3.5 cm.

racemes or panicles, of 1–12 whorls, emersed, 2.5–21 × 1–8 cm;

peduncles 6.5–29.7 cm;

bracts connate more than to equal to ¼ total length, broadly subulate to lanceolate, 20–50 mm, coarse, not papillose; fruiting pedicels spreading, cylindric, 0.5–5 cm.

Flowers

to 4 cm diam.;

sepals recurved to spreading, not enclosing flower or fruiting head;

filaments cylindric, longer than anthers, glabrous; pistillate pedicellate, without ring of sterile stamens.

to 2.3 cm diam.;

sepals recurved to spreading, not enclosing flower;

filaments dilated, shorter than anthers, pubescent; pistillate flowers pedicellate, without ring of sterile stamens.

Fruiting

heads 1–1.7 cm diam;

achenes oblanceoloid, without abaxial keel, 2.5–3.5 × to 2 mm, beaked;

faces not tuberculate, wings absent, glands (0–)1(–2);

beak lateral, horizontal, 1–2 mm.

heads 0.6–1.5 cm diam.;

achenes oblanceoloid, without abaxial keel, 1.5–2.8 × 1.1–1.5 mm, beaked;

faces not tuberculate, abaxial wings 0–1, ± entire, glands 1–2;

beak lateral, erect, 0.2 mm.

2n

= 22.

Sagittaria latifolia

Sagittaria graminea

Phenology Flowering summer–fall.
Habitat Wet ditches, pools, and margins of streams and lakes
Elevation 0–1500 m (0–4900 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CA; CO; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; WV; AB; BC; MB; NB; NS; ON; PE; QC; SK; c Mexico; s Mexico; Central America (Guatemala); South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; CT; DE; FL; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; NB; NF; NS; ON; PE; QC; West Indies (Cuba)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Sagittaria latifolia has been divided into numerous species and varieties. It was divided into two varieties, based upon the presence of pubescence over the entire vegetative plant (C. Bogin 1955; K. Rataj 1972). We have examined numerous specimens and found that many from the southeastern United States are pubescent; we believe that this character alone is insufficient for recognition of the varieties.

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

Seven varieties of Sagittaria graminea have been recognized, i.e., var. graminea, var. platyphylla Engelmann, var. teres (S. Watson) Bogin, var. weatherbiana Fernald, var. cristata (Engelmann) Bogin, var. chapmanii J. G. Smith, and var. macrocarpa (J. G. Smith) Bogin (C. Bogin 1955). We accept only one infraspecific rank, i.e., subspecies. Consequently, we have made the appropriate combinations. We accept all of the taxa accepted by Bogin at the varietal level. At specific level we accept Bogin’s var. platyphylla, var. teres, and var. cristata and at subspecific level his var. graminea, var. chapmanii, and var. weatherbiana.

Sagittaria graminea var. macrocarpa actually is synonymous with var. graminea (E. O. Beal 1960b). We therefore are following Beal in recognizing var. macrocarpa sensu Bogin as S. fasciculata. We also accept var. platyphylla, var. teres, and var. cristata at the specific level, leaving only three subspecies. These subspecies can be separated by the branching of the inflorescence and the length of pistillate pedicels.

Subspecies 3 (3 in the flora).

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

Key
1. Inflorescences panicles.
subsp. chapmanii
1. Inflorescences racemes.
→ 2
2. Pistillate pedicels 0.5–3 cm; phyllodia less than 1 cm wide
subsp. graminea
2. Pistillate pedicels 2.1–5 cm; phyllodia more than 1 cm wide
subsp. weatherbiana
Source FNA vol. 22. FNA vol. 22.
Parent taxa Alismataceae > Sagittaria Alismataceae > Sagittaria
Sibling taxa
S. ambigua, S. australis, S. brevirostra, S. cristata, S. cuneata, S. demersa, S. engelmanniana, S. fasciculata, S. filiformis, S. graminea, S. guayanensis, S. isoetiformis, S. kurziana, S. lancifolia, S. longiloba, S. montevidensis, S. papillosa, S. platyphylla, S. rigida, S. sanfordii, S. secundifolia, S. subulata, S. teres
S. ambigua, S. australis, S. brevirostra, S. cristata, S. cuneata, S. demersa, S. engelmanniana, S. fasciculata, S. filiformis, S. guayanensis, S. isoetiformis, S. kurziana, S. lancifolia, S. latifolia, S. longiloba, S. montevidensis, S. papillosa, S. platyphylla, S. rigida, S. sanfordii, S. secundifolia, S. subulata, S. teres
Subordinate taxa
S. graminea subsp. chapmanii, S. graminea subsp. graminea, S. graminea subsp. weatherbiana
Synonyms S. latifolia var. obtusa, S. latifolia var. pubescens, S. ornithorhyncha, S. planipes, S. pubescens, S. viscosa
Name authority Willdenow: Sp. Pl. 4(1): 409. (1805) Michaux: Flora Boreali-Americana 2: 190. (1803)
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