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downy carrionflower

sarsaparilla vine, sarsparilla vine

Habit Herbs. Subshrubs or vines; rhizomes black, knotted, 5–6 × 2 cm, often with white to pinkish stolons.
Stems

annual, climbing, branching, to 2.5 m, herbaceous, glabrous;

prickles absent.

perennial, prostrate to clambering, branching, slender, to 1 m, ± woody, densely woolly-pubescent, usually prickly (especially at base).

Leaves

evenly distributed;

petiole ± equaling blade;

tendrils numerous, long, functional;

blade lustrous, dark green abaxially, narrowly to broadly ovate, 8–16 × 3.5–9 cm, often with minute, whitish pubescence abaxially mostly on veins, with transparent trichomes, base cordate, margins entire, convex, apex long-acuminate;

leaves on branches with oblong, smaller blade.

mostly evergreen, ± evenly disposed;

petiole 0.05–0.25 cm, often longer on sterile shoots;

blade gray-green, drying to ashy gray-green, obovate to ovate-lanceolate, with 3 prominent veins, 6–10.5 × 5–8 cm, glabrous adaxially, densely puberulent abaxially, base cordate to deeply notched, margins entire, apex bluntly pointed.

Umbels

numerous, axillary to leaves, 10–35-flowered, globose;

peduncle equaling or shorter than subtending leaf.

1–7, axillary to leaves, 5–16-flowered, loose, spherical;

peduncle 0.2–0.8 cm, shorter than to 1.5 as long as petiole of subtending leaf.

Flowers

perianth greenish;

tepals 3.5–5 mm;

anthers shorter than filaments, ovules (1–)2 per locule;

pedicel 0.5–2.2 cm.

perianth yellowish;

tepals 3–4 mm;

anthers much shorter than filaments;

ovule 1 per locule;

pedicel thin, 0.1–0.4 cm.

Berries

black, subglobose, 8–10 mm, not glaucous.

red, ovoid, 5–8 mm, with acute beaks, not glaucous.

2n

= 26.

Smilax pulverulenta

Smilax pumila

Phenology Flowering Apr–Jun. Flowering Oct–Nov.
Habitat Rich woods, thickets, usually in calcareous soils Woods, along streams, sandy soil
Elevation 0–900 m (0–3000 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AR; DC; DE; IL; IN; KY; MD; MN; MO; NC; NE; NJ; NY; PA; TN; VA; WV
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; FL; GA; LA; MS; SC; TX
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

The distribution of Smilax pulverulenta is disjunct. The eastern distribution is centered in the mid-Atlantic United States, while the western distribution is centered in the Ozark Plateau of Missouri.

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

The red, pointed fruits and densely pubescent herbage of Smilax pumila are distinctive. In Louisiana, the dried leaves are used to prepare a tea for upset stomach.

The name Smilax humilis Miller, which predates S. pumila by 20 years and recently has been determined to apply also to this species, has been proposed for rejection (J. L. Reveal 2000). If that proposal is not adopted, the correct name will be S. humilis.

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

Source FNA vol. 26, p. 476. FNA vol. 26, p. 476.
Parent taxa Smilacaceae > Smilax Smilacaceae > Smilax
Sibling taxa
S. auriculata, S. biltmoreana, S. bona-nox, S. californica, S. ecirrata, S. glauca, S. havanensis, S. herbacea, S. hugeri, S. illinoensis, S. jamesii, S. lasioneura, S. laurifolia, S. pseudochina, S. pumila, S. rotundifolia, S. smallii, S. tamnoides, S. walteri
S. auriculata, S. biltmoreana, S. bona-nox, S. californica, S. ecirrata, S. glauca, S. havanensis, S. herbacea, S. hugeri, S. illinoensis, S. jamesii, S. lasioneura, S. laurifolia, S. pseudochina, S. pulverulenta, S. rotundifolia, S. smallii, S. tamnoides, S. walteri
Synonyms S. herbacea var. pulverulenta S. humilis, S. pubera, S. puberula
Name authority Michaux: Fl. Bor.-Amer. 2: 238. (1803) Walter: Fl. Carol., 244. (1788)
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