Triantha racemosa

(Walter) Small

Fl. S.E. U.S., 249, 1328. 1903.

Common names: Coastal false asphodel
IllustratedEndemic
Basionym: Melanthium racemosum Walter Fl. Carol., 126. 1788
Synonyms: Tofieldia racemosa (Walter) Britton, Sterns & Poggenburg
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 26. Treatment on page 64. Mentioned on page 59, 62.

Stems leafless, or with 1–3 leaves towards base, 20–70 cm, coarsely glandular-pubescent below inflorescence. Leaf-blades to 35 cm × 6 mm. Inflorescences racemose, 15–80-flowered, usually open, 3–22 cm; bracts subtending pedicel in cluster; bracteoles shallowly 3-lobed or cleft from proximal 1/3 to base, lobes acute or rounded, usually glandular. Flowers borne in clusters of (2–) 3 (–7), proximal sometimes remote; perianth white, drying orange; tepals 2.5–5 mm, inner series narrower, longer; stamens 2.5–4.5 mm; ovary ellipsoid to cylindrical, usually tapering abruptly to style base, forming rounded shoulder; styles connate basally into column 1/4–2/3 their length, 1–1.8 mm; pedicel 2–12 mm. Capsules ovoid to subglobose, 3–5 mm, ± equaling or slightly longer than tepals and ± enclosed by them, hard. Seeds reddish-brown, ca. 1 mm; appendages 1 or 2 with one at one end ca. 1/2 to equaling seed, one at opposite end often much shorter; coat absent.


Phenology: Flowering summer.
Habitat: Boggy areas, pine barrens, savannas
Elevation: 0–400 m

Distribution

V26 36-distribution-map.jpg

Ala., Del., D.C., Fla., Ga., La., Md., Miss., Tex., Va.

Discussion

Specimens of Triantha collected in Burlington County, New Jersey, have generally been determined as T. racemosa. However, the population is variable, and while there are aspects in some of these plants suggestive of T. racemosa that would explain the determinations, others are closer morphologically to T. glutinosa. This is seen in the typical “glutinosa” glands, the narrower, less-spreading bracteoles that usually lack glandular hairs, the more-ascending pedicels, the shorter internodes in most inflorescences, and the chartaceous capsules. I suppose that in the past the two species had overlapping ranges in this northeastern region where they no longer are found, and that some hybridization between T. glutinosa and T. racemosa has occurred. The Burlington County population is a surviving disjunct remnant with attributes of both species. The specimens have been annotated T. glutinosa × T. racemosa, and New Jersey is omitted from the list of states in which T. racemosa is found.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"broad" is not a number."elongating" is not a number."thicker" is not a number.

... more about "Triantha racemosa"
cordate +  and linear +
John G. Packer +
(Walter) Small +
whorled +, opposite +  and alternate +
dilated +
Melanthium racemosum +
reticulate-veined +  and parallel-veined +
sheathing +  and involucrate +
1;several +
cleft +  and 3-lobed +
tunicate +  and scaly +
more or less equaling or slightly longer +
ovoid +  and subglobose +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br />) +
Coastal false asphodel +
Ala. +, Del. +, D.C. +, Fla. +, Ga. +, La. +, Md. +, Miss. +, Tex. +  and Va. +
0–400 m +
dilated +  and flattened +
sessile +  and pedicellate +
unisexual +  and bisexual +
loculicidal +  and septicidal +
ovoid +  and broadly ellipsoid or cylindrical +
membranaceous +  and leathery +
Boggy areas, pine barrens, savannas +
open +  and 15-80-flowered +
3 cm30 mm <br />0.03 m <br /> (22 cm220 mm <br />0.22 m <br />) +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (35 cm350 mm <br />0.35 m <br />) +
equitant +  and 2-ranked +
persistent +
rounded +  and acute +
apocarpous +  and stipitate +
tapering;ellipsoid;cylindrical +
many;several +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (1.2 cm12 mm <br />0.012 m <br />) +
zygomorphic +  and actinomorphic +
orange +  and white +
Flowering summer. +
Fl. S.E. U.S., +
wind-distributed +
reddish-brown +
1 +  and many +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (?) +
Illustrated +  and Endemic +
adnate +  and free +
staminodial +
0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br /> (0.45 cm4.5 mm <br />0.0045 m <br />) +
glandular-pubescent +
20 cm200 mm <br />0.2 m <br /> (70 cm700 mm <br />0.7 m <br />) +
1 +  and several +
0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br /> (0.18 cm1.8 mm <br />0.0018 m <br />) +
Tofieldia racemosa +
Triantha racemosa +
Triantha +
species +
persistent +
distinct +
0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br /> (0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br />) +
sepaloid +  and petaloid +
narrower +
3 +  and 2 +