Interesting Facts
Common Names
Common Names in English:
American Water Plantain, Broad-Leaved Water-Plantain, Southern Water-Plantain, Waterplaintain
Description
Family Alismataceae
Herbs, annual
or perennial
, rhizomatous
, stoloniferous
, or cormose, caulescent
, glabrous
to stellate-pubescent; sap
milky
. Roots
septate
or not septate. Leaves basal, submersed
, floating, or emersed
, sessile or petiolate
, sheathing
proximally; blade
with translucent
markings of dots or lines
present or absent, basal lobes present or absent; venation
reticulate
, primary
veins parallel from base
of blade to apex, secondary veins reticulate. Inflorescences scapose
racemes
or panicles, rarely umbels, erect
, rarely floating or decumbent
, whorled
(forming racemes) or whorls branching (forming panicles), bracteolate
. Flowers bisexual
or unisexual
, if unisexual, staminate
and pistillate
on same or different plants
, hypogynous, subsessile
to long-pedicellate; sepals persistent
, 3; petals deciduous, 3, delicate; stamens 0, 6, 9, or to 30, distinct
; anthers
2-loculed, dehiscing longitudinally; pistils 0 or 6--1500 or more, distinct or coherent proximally, 1-loculed; placentation basal; ovules1--2. Fruits achenes or follicles. Seeds: embryo U-shaped; endosperm absent in mature
seed.
Genera 12, species ca.
80 (4 genera, 34 species in the flora
) : nearly worldwide, primarily tropical
and subtropical
regions.[1]
Genus Alisma
Herbs, perennial
, submersed
, floating-leaved, emersed
, glabrous
; rhizomes often present; stolons absent; corms absent; tubers absent. Roots
not septate
. Leaves sessile or petiolate
; petiole
triangular; blade
with translucent
markings absent, linear
to ovate
, base
attenuate to rounded
, margins
entire, apex obtuse
to acute. Inflorescences panicles, of 2--10 whorls, erect
, emersed, rarely submersed; bracts delicate, smooth
, apex acuminate, surfaces smooth. Flowers bisexual
; pedicels ascending
; bracts subtending
pedicels, lanceolate, shorter than pedicels, apex acuminate; receptacle flattened; sepals erect, not sculptured
, herbaceous; petals pink or white, entire; stamens 6--9, filaments
filiform
, glabrous; pistils 15--20, in ring
around margin of flattened receptacle, not radiating in starlike pattern
, distinct
; ovules 1; styles lateral
. Fruits without longitudinal
ribs
, strongly laterally compressed
, abaxial
wings
absent, lateral wings absent, abaxially 2--3-ribbed, abaxial keel absent, glands
absent. x
= 7.
Species 9: widely distributed, nearly worldwide.
Much controversy surrounds the treatment of Alisma in North America. At present three distinct native species in North America are generally recognized (P. Rubtzoff 1964) as well as the probable occurrence of two introduced species
, one in California and the other in Alaska.[2]
Physical Description
Species Alisma subcordatum
Herbs, to 6 dm. Leaves emersed , rarely floating, petiolate ; blade ovate to elliptic , to 15 ´ 10 cm. Inflorescences to 1 m. Flowers chasmogamous ; sepals 1.5--2.5(--6) mm; petals white, 1--3 mm, margins slightly erose, apex mostly acuminate; anthers rounded , 0.4--0.6 mm; style ± curved , 0.2--0.4 mm, ¼ length ovary. Fruiting heads 2--4 mm diam; achenes obliquely ovoid , 1.5--2.2 mm, abaxially rounded, with 1 abaxial groove ; beak ascending . 2n =14. [source]
Habit: Forb/herb
Flowers: Bloom Period: February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October. • Flower Color: near white, white
Size/Age/Growth
Size: under 6" tall.
Habitat
Shallow ponds , stream margins , marshes, and ditches; 50--1500 m (Ref. 51454).
Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 1,966 meters (0 to 6,450 feet).[3]
Biology
Reproduction
Duration: Perennial
Growth
Culture: Space 6-9" apart.
Soil: Minimum pH: 7.6 • Maximum pH: 7.8
Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full Sun .
Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a. (map)
Taxonomy
- Domain:
Eukaryota
(
)
- Whittaker & Margulis,1978
- eukaryotes
- Kingdom:
Plantae
(
)
- Haeckel, 1866
- Plants
- Subkingdom:
Viridaeplantae
(
)
- Cavalier-Smith, 1981
- Phylum:
Tracheophyta
(
)
- Sinnott, 1935 ex Cavalier-Smith, 1998
- Vascular Plants
- Subphylum:
Euphyllophytina
(
)
- Infraphylum:
Radiatopses
(
)
- Kenrick & Crane, 1997
- Class:
Spermatopsida
(
)
- Brongniart, 1843
- Subclass:
Alismatidae
(
)
- Takhtajan, 1967
- Superorder:
Alismatanae
(
)
- Takhtajan, 1967
- Order:
Alismatales
(
)
- Dumortier, 1829
- Family:
Alismataceae
(
)
- Ventenat, 1799
- Water-Plantain Family
- Genus:
Alisma
(
)
- C. Linnaeus, 1753
- Water-plantain [ancient Greek name, adopted by Linnaeus from Dioscorides]
- Specific epithet:
subcordatum
- Raf.
- Botanical name: - Alisma subcordatum Raf.
- Specific epithet:
subcordatum
- Raf.
- Genus:
Alisma
(
- Family:
Alismataceae
(
- Order:
Alismatales
(
- Superorder:
Alismatanae
(
- Subclass:
Alismatidae
(
- Class:
Spermatopsida
(
- Infraphylum:
Radiatopses
(
- Subphylum:
Euphyllophytina
(
- Phylum:
Tracheophyta
(
- Subkingdom:
Viridaeplantae
(
- Kingdom:
Plantae
(
Synonyms
A. plantago-aquatica Linneaus var. parviflorum (Pursh) Torrey • Alisma parviflorum Pursh • Alisma plantago-aquatica L. subcordatum (Raf.) Hult?n • Alisma plantago-aquatica subcordatum< /i> (Raf.) Hultén • Alisma plantago-aquatica var. parviflorum (Pursh) Torr.
Notes
Publishing author : Raf. Publication : Med. Repos. 5: 362 1808
Similar Species
Members of the genus Alisma
ZipcodeZoo has pages for 8 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:
A. cordifolium (Creeping Burrhead) · A. flava (Yellow Velvetleaf) · A. gramineum (Geyer Waterplantain) · A. lanceolatum (American Water-Plantain) · A. plantago-aquatica (American Waterplantain) · A. plantagoaquatica (European Water Plantain) · A. subcordatum (American Water Plantain) · A. triviale (Northern Water Plantain)
More Info
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Further Reading
- A botanical survey of the Sugar Grove region / by Robert F. Griggs. Columbus: Ohio State University, 1914. url p. 308.
- A guide and key to the aquatic plants of the Southeastern United States, by Don E. Eyles and Lynne Robertson, Jr. With original drawings by Garnet W. Jex. Washington, U. S. Govt. Print. Off., 1963. url p. 141, p. 72.
- An ecological characterization of Coastal Maine (north and east of Cape Elizabeth) / Stewart I. Fefer and Patricia S. Schettig: principal investigators. Newton Corner, Mass.: Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Northeast Region, 1980. url .
- An illustrated flora of the Pacific States: Washington, Oregon, and California. Stanford University, Stanford University Press, 1923-[60] url p. 98.
- An illustrated flora of the northern United States, Canada and the British possessions: from Newfoundland to the parallel of the southern boundary of Virginia and from the Atlantic Ocean westward to the 102nd meridian / by Nathaniel Lord Britton and Hon. Addison Brown. New York: Scribner, 1913. url p. 94.
- Annotated list of the ferns and flowering plants of New York state, by Homer D. House. Albany, The University of the state of New York, 1924. url p. 62.
- Annual report / New York State Museum. Albany, N.Y.: University of the State of New York, c1904-1920. url p. 37.
- Annual report of the New Jersey State Museum. Trenton, N.J.: MacCrellish & Quigley, url p. 168.
- Aquatic and wetland plants of southwestern United States, by Donovan S. Correll and Helen B. Correll. [Washington]Environmental Protection Agency; [For sale by the Supt. of Docs., U.S. Govt. Print. Off.]1972. url p. 135.
- Bartonia;proceedings of the Philadelphia botanical club. .. 62 2004 Philadelphia, Philadelphia Botanical Club, Academy of Natural Sciences. url p. 116, p. 126, p. 15, p. 2, p. 2, p. 21, p. 22, p. 24, p. 26, p. 3, p. 4, p. 44, p. 56, p. 72, p. 8.
- Britton, N. L. (ed.). North American flora. [New York]New York Botanical Garden. url p. 1027, p. 43, p. 44.
- Bulletin / Illinois Natural History Survey. Urbana, State of Illinois, Dept. of Registration and Education, Natural History Survey Division, 1918-1985. url p. 475.
- Bulletin / Ohio Biological Survey. Columbus, Ohio: Ohio State University, 1913- url p. 136, p. 308, p. 451.
- Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club. 45 1918 New York: Torrey Botanical Club, 1870-1996 url p. 368, p. 511, p. 62.
- Bulletin of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. [Washington, D.C.?]: Supt. of Docs., G.P.O., 1913-1923. url p. 56, p. 75.
- Catalog of Ohio vascular plants, arranged according to the phyletic classification; with notes on the geographical distribution in the state, based mainly on specimens in the State Herbarium, Botanical Laboratory, the Ohio State Univ Columbus, The Ohio State University, 1914. url .
- Comprehensive plan for the Illinois Nature Preserves System. Rockford, Ill.: Illinois Nature Preserves Commission, 1972-1973. url p. 32.
- Contributions from the Botanical Laboratory. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1892- url .
- Contributions from the United States National Herbarium 21 1919 Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1890- url p. 64.
- Erigenia: journal of the Illinois Native Plant Society. Carbondale, Ill.: The Society, 1982- url p. 27, p. 3, p. 32, p. 36, p. 9.
- FWS/0BS. [Washington]Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Dept. of the Interior. url p. 52.
- Flora of Delaware and the Eastern Shore: an annotated list of the ferns and flowering plants of the peninsula of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. [Wilmington]: Society of Natural History of Delaware, 1946. url p. 17.
- Flora of Illinois, containing keys for the identification of the flowering plants and ferns, by George Neville Jones. .. Notre Dame, Ind., The University Press, 1945. url p. 45.
- Flora of Indiana, by Charles C. Deam. Indianapolis, Wm. B. Burford printing co., contractor for state printing and binding, 1940. url p. 86.
- Flora of Lancaster County: being descriptions of the seed-plants growing naturally in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania / by John Kunkel Small and Joel Jackson Carter. New York: The authors, 1913. url p. 7.
- Flora of Lancaster County; being descriptions of the seed- plants growing naturally in Lancaster County, Pennsylvanial. By John Kunkel Small and Joel Jackson Carter. New York, 1913. url p. 7.
- Flora of the District of Columbia and vicinity. By A.S. Hitchcock and Paul C. Standley, with the assistance of the botanists of Washington. WashingtonGovt. print. off.1919 url p. 64.
- Flora of the southeastern United States; being descriptions of the seed-plants, ferns and fern-allies growing naturally in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, and in Oklahom by John Kunkel Small. New York, The author, 1913. url p. 41.
- Flora of the vicinity of New York; a contribution to plant geography. [New York]1915 url p. 86.
- Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science. Lexington, KY: The Academy, 1998- url p. 121, p. 125, p. 83.
- Lake Maxinkuckee. A physical and biological survey by Barton Warren Evermann and Howard Walton Clark. [Indianapolis]Dept. of Conservation, State of Indiana [Wm. B. Burford, printer]1920. url p. 219.
- Lake Maxinkuckee. a physical and biological survey by Barton Warren Evermann and Howard Walton Clark. [Indianapolis, Wm. B. Burford, printer]1920. url p. 219.
- Lake Maxinkuckee: a physical and biological survey / by Barton Warren Evermann and Howard Walton Clark. Indianapolis: Dept. of Conservation, 1920. url p. 219, p. 456.
- Leaflets of western botany. San Fransisco:[J. T. Howell], 1932-1966. url , , p. 94.
- Manual of the southeastern flora: being descriptions of the seed plants growing naturally in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, eastern Louisiana, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. 1933 New York: The author, 1933. url p. 21.
- National Arboretum contribution. Washington, D.C.: The Arboretum: 1953- url p. 5.
- National list of scientific plant names. [Washington, D.C.]: U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service, 1982- url p. 16.
- New York State Museum bulletin. Albany, N.Y.: University of the State of New York, 1916-1944. url p. 32, p. 69, p. 75.
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- Report of the State Botanist. Albany, N.Y.: University of the State of New York, 1898-1925. url , , .
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- Studies of the vegetation of Missouri. .. / By Julian A. Steyermark. 9 1941 [Chicago, 1940- url p. 489, p. 493, p. 499, p. 500, p. 502, p. 507, p. 555, p. 561, p. 567, p. 587, p. 591, p. 595, p. 610, p. 615.
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- The plants of Southern New Jersey with especial reference to the flora of the pine barrens and the geographic distribution of the species. Trenton, N. J., 1911. url .
- The plants of Southern New Jersey; with especial reference to the flora of the Pine Barrens and the geographic distribution of the species. Trenton, 1911. url p. 168.
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- Vascular plants of the Sangamon River basin; annotated checklist and ecological summary [by] Almut G. Jones and David T. Bell. [Urbana], University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, College of Agriculture, [1974] url p. 8.
- Wild flowers of New York, by Homer D. House. Albany, The University of the state of New York, 1918. url p. 341, p. 341, p. 37.
- Wild flowers; New York, Macmillan Co., 1934. url , .
- Argue, C. L. 1974. Pollen studies in the Alismataceae (Alismaceae). Bot. Gaz. 135: 338--344.
- Argue, C. L. 1976. Pollen studies in the Alismataceae with special reference to taxonomy. Pollen & Spores 18: 161--173.
- Beal, E. O. 1960b. The Alismataceae of the Carolinas. J. Elisha Mitchell Sci. Soc. 76: 68--79.
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- Correll, D. S. and H. B. Correll. 1972. Aquatic and Wetland Plants of Southwestern United States. Washington.
- Godfrey, R. K. and J. W. Wooten. 1979. Aquatic and Wetland Plants of Southeastern United States: Monocotyledons. Athens, Ga.
- Haynes, R. R. and L. B. Holm-Nielsen. 1994. The Alismataceae. In: Organization for Flora Neotropica. 1968+. Flora Neotropica. 75+ nos. New York. No. 64, pp. 1--112.
- Haynes, R. R. and L. B. Holm-Nielsen. 1985. A generic treatment of Alismatidae in the Neotropics. Acta Amazôn. 15(suppl.): 153--193.
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Notes
Contributors
- Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 10, 2012.
Data Sources
Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 15, 2007:
- USDA PLANTS, USDA PLANTS Database
- University of Alabama Biodiversity and Systematics, Herbarium
Identifiers
- Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 2659675
- Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: Kew-294869
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 13751011
- Globally Unique Identifier: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:58261-1
- GRIN Nomen Number: 452456
- Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 38895
- International Plant Names Index (IPNI) ID: 58261-1
- Natural Heritage Network Species Identifier: PMALI01040
- U.S.D.A. Plant Symbol: ALPLP
- Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 20380
Footnotes
- Robert R. Haynes ,C. Barre Hellquist "Alismataceae". in Flora of North America Vol. 22. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
- "Alisma". in Flora of North America Vol. 22. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
- Mean = 277.090 meters (909.088 feet), Standard Deviation = 181.230 based on 1,666 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
