Phyllanthus polygonoides

Nuttall ex Sprengel

Syst. Veg. 3: 23. 1826.

Common names: Smartweed or knotweed leafflower
Illustrated
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 12. Treatment on page 337. Mentioned on page 336.

Herbs, perennial, with woody caudex, usually monoecious, rarely dioecious, 1–5 dm; branching not phyllanthoid. Stems terete, not winged, glabrous. Leaves spiral, all well developed; stipules auriculate, pink or red to medium brown, with hyaline margins; blade narrowly oblong to obovate, 5–10 × 1.5–5 mm, base obtuse, apex acute to mucronulate, both surfaces glabrous or scabridulous. Inflorescences cymules or flowers solitary, unisexual or bisexual, with 1 (–2) pistillate flowers and/or 1–3 staminate flowers. Pedicels: staminate 1.5–3.5 mm, pistillate spreading in fruit, 2.5–7 mm. Staminate flowers: sepals (5–) 6, greenish yellow, sometimes suffused with red, with white margins, flat, 0.7–1.3 mm; nectary extrastaminal, 6 glands; stamens 3, filaments connate 2/3 length. Pistillate flowers: sepals (5–) 6, green with white margins, flat, 1.5–2.5 mm, pinnately veined; nectary annular, 6-lobed. Capsules 2.7–3.2 mm diam., smooth. Seeds uniformly brown, (1.1–) 1.2–1.4 (–1.5) mm, irregularly verrucose. 2n = 16.


Phenology: Flowering and fruiting spring–fall.
Habitat: Grasslands, grass-shrublands, glades, especially calcareous soils.
Elevation: 700–2000 m.

Distribution

V12 346-distribution-map.jpg

Ariz., Ark., La., Mo., N.Mex., Okla., Tex., n, c Mexico

Discussion

Phyllanthus polygonoides is closely related to P. liebmannianus. Although in the flora area they are allopatric and easily distinguished by the characters used in the key, the differences other than habit are all quantitative, and where the species overlap in parts of northeastern Mexico they can be difficult to separate.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"/3" is not declared as a valid unit of measurement for this property."elongating" is not a number."connate" is not a number."/2" is not declared as a valid unit of measurement for this property.

... more about "Phyllanthus polygonoides"
connate +
acute;mucronulate +
Geoffrey A. Levin +
Nuttall ex Sprengel +
0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br /> (1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br />) +
narrowly oblong +  and obovate +
0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br /> (0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br />) +
0.27 cm2.7 mm <br />0.0027 m <br /> (0.32 cm3.2 mm <br />0.0032 m <br />) +
Smartweed or knotweed leafflower +
Ariz. +, Ark. +, La. +, Mo. +, N.Mex. +, Okla. +, Tex. +, n +  and c Mexico +
700–2000 m. +
pistillate +  and staminate +
distinct +
Grasslands, grass-shrublands, glades, especially calcareous soils. +
not branching +  and simple +
bisexual +  and unisexual +
paniclelike +  and racemelike +
bisexual +  and unisexual +
bisexual +  and unisexual +
deciduous +  and persistent +
scale-like +
white +  and hyaline +
extrastaminal +
6-lobed +  and annular +
pistillate +  and staminate +
0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br /> (0.7 cm7 mm <br />0.007 m <br />) +
distinct +
Flowering and fruiting spring–fall. +
3(-4)-carpellate +
smooth +  and ribbed +
papillate +  and verrucose +
0.14 cm1.4 mm <br />0.0014 m <br /> (0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br />) +
verrucose +
rounded-trigonous +
0.12 cm1.2 mm <br />0.0012 m <br /> (?) +  and 0.14 cm1.4 mm <br />0.0014 m <br /> (?) +
green;suffused with red;greenish yellow +
persistent +
0.15 cm1.5 mm <br />0.0015 m <br /> (0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br />) +
Illustrated +
free +, connate +  and distinct +
erect;prostrate +
red +  and medium brown +
auriculate +
connate +  and distinct +
scabridulous +
Reverchonia +
Phyllanthus polygonoides +
Phyllanthus +
species +
hairy +  and glabrous +
dioecious +  and monoecious +
13 +, 9 +  and 8 +