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Species Image Gallery (opens in a new window) |
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| THE GENTIAN FAMILY | |||||||||
| The gentians are found in many parts of the world, but are especially common in temperate to subtropical regions. All of the plants in this family are herbs. They have an association with fungi in the soil that helps the plant to obtain nutrients. The leaves are always opposite and without a leaf stalk. The flowers may be at the ends of the plants or in the upper leaf axils. The flowers may be small and greenish or large and purplish or white in colour. The petals often have hairs, scales or nectaries at the base or within the petal tube. The stamens are attached on the petals in most genera. The fruit is a capsule. | |||||||||
| MARSH FELWORT | |||||||||
| LATIN NAME: Lomatogonium rotatum | |||||||||
| WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? | |||||||||
| Marsh felwort grows as tall as 35 cm from fibrous roots. These annual plants have slender, simple or branched stems. The basal leaves are spatula-shaped and soon wither away. The stem leaves are mostly linear and are purplish green in colour. The flowers are clustered in heads at the top of the stem or in the leaf axils. The sepals are deeply divided and the lobes are almost equal to the petals. The petals are purple and widely spreading. Each petal lobe has a pair of scale like appendages near the base. The fruit is a capsule. | |||||||||
| WHERE DOES IT GROW? | |||||||||
| Marsh felwort grows in moist meadow depressions and on marshy shores. | |||||||||
| WHERE IS IT FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN? | |||||||||
| This species is found in south to central Saskatchewan in the Mixed Grassland, Moist Mixed Grassland, Aspen Parkland, Boreal Transition, and Mid-Boreal Upland ecoregions. | |||||||||
| WHY IS IT RARE? | |||||||||
| Marsh felwort is vulnerable because it is rare or uncommon in Saskatchewan. It occurs in two or three general regions of the province, but with few localities. Local population sizes vary. No immediate threats are known for this species. | |||||||||
| HOW TO IDENTIFY MARSH FELWORT | |||||||||
| * Are petals blue or purple in colour? * Are the petal lobes flat and spreading? * Are the stems slender? * Did you find it in south to central Saskatchewan? | |||||||||
| If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have found marsh felwort! | |||||||||
