Species: Parnassia glauca Raf.

comments | credits | copyright

Back to: Plants at Risk in Saskatchewan

Parnassia glauca Raf.

Species Image Gallery
(opens in a new window)

TAXONOMY

Family:

Saxifragaceae

Genus:

Parnassia

Species Synonyms:

Parnassia americana Muhl.

Common Names:

fen grass-of-parnassus
glaucous grass-of-parnassus

DISTRIBUTION

Canada:

east-central Saskatchewan – Manitoba – Ontario – Quebec – New Brunswick - Newfoundland

Saskatchewan:

east-central Saskatchewan; Big River – Pasquia Hills – Duck Mountain – Carievale

Ecoregion:

Aspen Parkland, Boreal Transition, Mid-Boreal Lowland, Mid-Boreal Upland

HABITAT

Saskatchewan:

wet, calcareous fens or sedge meadows

Associated Species:

bristly muhly, brook lobelia, dwarf raspberry, knotted rush, little green sedge, Macoun’s gentian, northern grass-of-Parnassus, prairie goldenrod, sage willow, small bedstraw

RARITY STATUS

Provincial Status According
to Harms (2003):

Vulnerable

Nature Conservancy Status:

G5 S2

Saskatchewan Species at
Risk Status:

None

COSEWIC Status:

None

Fen grass-of-parnassus is vulnerable because it is rare or uncommon in Saskatchewan. This species is usually locally numerous within limited areas. No immediate threats are known but may occur in the future.

SPECIES DESCRIPTION

Height:

15 – 40 cm

Roots:

roots fibrous, stringy; rhizomes short

Stems:

essentially leafless, with a waxy coating, solitary or several

Leaves:

basal, 2 – 5.0 cm long, broadly oval to oblong or rounded, base rounded to tapered and winged on upper petiole, 7 – 9-veined, leathery; stem leaf, when present, below the middle of the stem, sessile

Inflorescence:

flowers solitary, erect

Flowers:

sepals 5, 3 – 5 mm long, overlapping, leathery, margin membranous, apex rounded, 3 – 5-nerved, spreading in flower, reflexed in fruit; petals 1 – 2 cm long, creamy to greenish, broadly oval, spreading, conspicuously 9-nerved; sterile stamens 3 – 5 in each cluster, with rounded tips, shorter than stamens; stamens 4 – 9 mm long; ovary 4 – 9 mm long, sessile to slightly inferior

Fruits:

capsule membranaceous, many-seeded; seeds ca. 1 mm long

PARNASSIA KEY FOR SPECIES FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN

1 Sterile stamens with up to 15 divisions	P. palustris var. tenuis
1 Sterile stamens with no more than 9 divisions	2

2 Petals shorter than to equalling sepals, 3-nerved; stem naked or with a leaf close to the base	P. kotzebuei
2 Petals longer than sepals, with at least 5 nerves; stem usually with a leaf at or below the middle	3

3 Petals more than 3 times as long as the sepal lobes; calyx lobes reflexed at maturity; stems with a waxy coating	P. glauca
3 Petals less than 2 times as long as the sepal lobes; calyx lobes ascending; stems without a waxy coating	4

4 Leaves acute at base; stem leaf small, narrowed to base	P. palustris var. parviflora
4 Leaves heart-shaped at base; stem leaf often heart-shaped and clasping	P. palustris var. montanensis