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Species Image Gallery (opens in a new window) |
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| THE STONECROP FAMILY | |||||||||
| The stonecrops are succulent herbs or shrubs that appear in nearly every region of the world, except for Australia and the Western Pacific islands. The leaves are opposite, alternate, or occasionally whorled. The inflorescences vary considerably within this family, from branched clusters to solitary flowers. The flowers are regular with three to five sepals and petals. The petals may be separate or fused. The stamens are equal in number to or twice as many as the petals. The ovary is made of four or five carpels that are not fused. The fruit type is usually a cluster of pods that open along one line. | |||||||||
| COMMON STONECROP | |||||||||
| LATIN NAME: Sedum lanceolatum ssp. lanceolatum | |||||||||
| WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? | |||||||||
| Common stonecrop grows 5 to 15 cm tall from a woody rhizome. This perennial plant has erect or ascending stems and is mat-forming with numerous sterile offshoots. The leaves are alternate and linear to narrowly lance-shaped. The leaves are fleshy and round in cross-section. The flowers are in terminal clusters and have four or five parts. The petals are yellowish, but they may turn pinkish as they age. The fruit is a grooved, brown pod that releases five to 25 seeds. The beak on the pod is spreading. | |||||||||
| WHERE DOES IT GROW? | |||||||||
| Common stonecrop grows on eroded grassland slopes and in pine woods. | |||||||||
| WHERE IS IT FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN? | |||||||||
| This plant grows in southwestern Saskatchewan in the Mixed Grassland and Cypress Upland ecoregions. | |||||||||
| WHY IS IT RARE? | |||||||||
| No information is available regarding the vulnerable status of common stonecrop, though it is likely that this species is less common and regionally restricted and therefore more vulnerable to habitat loss and human development. | |||||||||
| HOW TO IDENTIFY COMMON STONECROP | |||||||||
| * Are the leaves linear? * Are the leaves fleshy and round in cross-section? * Are the flowers yellow? * Did you find it in southwestern Saskatchewan? | |||||||||
| If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have found common stonecrop! | |||||||||
