Phyla nodiflora
| Phyla nodiflora | |
|---|---|
| |
| Photo by John R. Gwaltney, Southeastern Flora.com | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Division: | Magnoliophyta - Flowering plants |
| Class: | Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Verbenaceae |
| Genus: | Phyla |
| Species: | P. nodiflora |
| Binomial name | |
| Phyla nodiflora (L.) Greene | |
| |
| Natural range of Phyla nodiflora from USDA NRCS Plants Database. | |
Common names: Turkey tangle fogfruit; Creeping frogfruit[1]
Contents
Taxonomic notes
Synonyms: Lippia nodiflora (Linnaeus) Michaux.[1]
Varieties: Phyla nodiflora (Linnaeus) Greene var. minor (Hooker) O'Leary and Mulgara; Phyla nodiflora (Linnaeus) Greene var. nodiflora.[1]
Description
"Appressed pubescent, prostate to ascending or decumbent, perennial herbs, rooting at the nodes, obscurely to definitely 4- angled. Leaves opposite, serrate, base cuneate to attenuate; petioles to 0.5 mm long, often obscured by decurrent blade tissue. Inflorescence a bracteate head, in fruit a spike 8-15 cm long, 5-8 mm in diam., peduncles elongate, usually at alternate nodes and rarely in both axils at a node. Sepals united near base or for ½ their length, shorter than the corolla tube and the subtending bract; corolla zygomorphic, pinkish, lavender or rarely white, salverform, ca. 3 mm long, 5-lobes less than 1 mm long; stamens included, united to the corolla tube near middle at 2 levels. Fruit a schizocarp consisting of 2 mericarps. Mericarps yellowish tan, dull, orbicular to ovoid, rounded on one side and flattened on the other, 1-1.3 mm long." [2] "Stems prostrate or decumbent, rarely more than 1 dm tall. Leaves oblanceolate, obovate or elliptic, 1-3 cm long, 0.3-2 cm wide, acute, base cuneate to attenuate. Peduncles 3-10 cm long, usually 2.5X or more as long as subtending leaves."[2]
The two varieties can be distinguished by the leaves. Var. minor leaves have an elliptic or obovate shape, an acute apex, and a densely white-strigose or canescent texture. They are 0.5-2 cm long and 0.2-1 cm wide.Var. nodiflora has obovate and spatulate leaves, an obtuse apex, and subglabrous texture or with scattered and subappressed hairs. They are 0.5-1.5 cm wide and 2-4 cm long.[1]
Distribution
It is distributed throughout the United States, and can also be found in warmer parts of Asia, Africa, throughout India and Srilanka.[3]
Ecology
Habitat
In the Coastal Plain in Florida, P. nodiflora has been observed growing in roadside hydric seepage bogs and exposed limerock.[4] Habitats are wet and moist with well-drained to poorly drained, sandy, limestone or organic soils without humus.[5] Associated species include Bidens, Polygonum, Cyperus and Ludwigia.[4]
Phyla nodiflora is an indicator species for the Calcareous Savannas community type as described in Carr et al. (2010).[6]
Phenology
P. nodiflora flowers from April to July with peak inflorescence in May.[4][7] It has been observed fruiting in October.[4] Flowers are hermaphroditic.[8]
Pollination
The following Hymenoptera families and species were observed visiting flowers of Phyla nodiflora at Archbold Biological Station:[9]
Apidae: Apis mellifera
Halictidae: Augochloropsis metallica, Halictus poeyi, Lasioglossum lepidii
Megachilidae: Anthidium maculifrons, Coelioxys mexicana, C. texana, Megachile brevis pseudobrevis, M. mendica
Sphecidae: Ammophila urnaria, Bicyrtes insidiatrix, Prionyx thomae
Use by animals
It is the larval host plant for the following butterflies: common buckeye (Junoinia coenia), phaon cresent (Phyciodes phaon) and white peacock (Anartia jatrophae). It is the nectar plant for the following butterflies: barred yellow (Eurema daira), ceranus blue (Hemiargus ceraunus), field skipper (Atalopedes campestris), gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus), little metalmark (Calephelis virginiensis), Miami blue (Hemiargus thomasi), Palatka skipper (Euphytes pilatka), phaon crescent (Phyciodes phaon), queen (Danaus gilippus), swarthy skipper (Nastra lherminier), tropical checkered-skipper (Pyrgus oileus).[5]
Conservation, cultivation, and restoration
Cultural use
It can be used to treat hookworm. It is also a antibacterial, deobstruent, anodyne, parasiticide, and a diuretic.[8]
Photo Gallery
References and notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Weakley, A.S. 2015. Flora of the southern and mid-atlantic states. Working Draft of 21 May 2015. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Radford, Albert E., Harry E. Ahles, and C. Ritchie Bell. Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas. 1964, 1968. The University of North Carolina Press. 892-3. Print.
- ↑ Chaudhary, B. A., M. Jabeen, et al. (2016). "PHYLA NODIFLORA (VERBENACEAE): A REVIEW." 2016 2(1): 6.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Florida State University Robert K. Godfrey Herbarium database. URL: http://herbarium.bio.fsu.edu. Last accessed: October 2015. Collectors: Loran C. Anderson, Robert K. Godfrey, Karen MacClendon, R.A. Norris. States and Counties: Florida: Calhoun, Franklin, Gadsden, Holmes, Leon, Liberty, Monroe, Taylor. Compiled by Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 [[1]] Accessed: February 20, 2016
- ↑ Carr, S.C., K.M. Robertson, and R.K. Peet. 2010. A vegetation classification of fire-dependent pinelands of Florida. Castanea 75:153-189.
- ↑ Nelson, G. PanFlora: Plant data for the eastern United States with emphasis on the Southeastern Coastal Plains, Florida, and the Florida Panhandle. www.gilnelson.com/PanFlora/ Accessed: 12 DEC 2016
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 [[2]]Accessed: February 20, 2016 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "pfaf" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Deyrup, M.A. and N.D. 2015. Database of observations of Hymenoptera visitations to flowers of plants on Archbold Biological Station, Florida, USA.
