Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Commelinids: Commelinales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Commelina erecta var. erecta
FAMILY
Commelinaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Learn more about Commelina from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
The taxonomy and distribution of the varieties here recognized need further study, per Weakley's Flora (2023)
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Commelina erecta var. erecta
FAMILY
Commelinaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN Flora of North America
Commelina erecta var. angustifolia
INCLUDED WITHIN VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 038-01-002:
Commelina erecta FAMILY Commelinaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Commelina erecta var. angustifolia
COMMON NAME:
Erect Dayflower, Slender Dayflower
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
JK Marlow jkm220517_7919
May Greenville County SC
Chestnut Ridge Heritage Preserve
)
John B. Nelson jbn_135040519_3b5f71e7bc
July Sumter County SC
2 pale blue (rarely pink) petals up to 1" long & a smaller white lower petal, per Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011).
)
JK Marlow jkm230706_4247
July Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
"Erect" appears to be an apt name...
)
JK Marlow jkm230706_4250
July Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm230706_4253
July Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
Leaves narrow, 2-6" long, with a white hairy sheath around stem, per Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005).
)
JK Marlow jkm230706_4257
July Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
Leaf sheaths prolonged upwards into auricles, ciliate with white hairs, per Weakley's Flora (2023).
)
JK Marlow jkm230706_4261
July Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
3 purple stamens, 3 yellow stamens (one with a larger butterfly-shaped anther), and a pistil, per Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019).
)
JK Marlow jkm230706_4266
July Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm230706_4269
July Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
Flowers subtended by folded heart-shaped spathe, its margins fused basally, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm230706_4270
July Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
Individual flowers are shortlived, opening at sunrise and closing by midday, never to open again, per Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011).
)
JK Marlow jkm230706_4279
July Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm230808_4836
August Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm230808_4838
August Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
)
Tim Spira tps_cerecta_arabiamtn5
August
)
JK Marlow jkm200920_7268
September Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
Larger leaves typically 3-6× as long as wide, per Weakley's Flora (2023).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_commelina_erecta_6
September
)
JK Marlow jkm201002_7460
October Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm201002_7461
October Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
View from behind.
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_commelina_erecta
October
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Commelina erecta var. erecta
FAMILY
Commelinaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Commelina erecta var. erecta
FAMILY
Commelinaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
Flora of North America
Commelina erecta var. angustifolia
INCLUDED WITHIN
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 038-01-002:
Commelina erecta
FAMILY
Commelinaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Commelina erecta var. angustifolia
3120
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: Dry openings and woodlands, especially in thin soil around rock outcrops, streambanks, riverbanks, mesic forests, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common in Piedmont & NC Coastal Plain, uncommon in Mountains & SC Coastal Plain (rare in GA Coastal Plain)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Simple
Alternate
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Blue
Bilaterally symmetrical
3-merous
3 sepals, the lateral two partly united
3 petals, the upper two large and the lowest smaller
3 fertile stamens, 3 sterile stamens
Superior ovary
Bisexual
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p092
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p398?
- Wildflowers of the Carolina Lowcountry (Porcher, 1995) p156?
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p158?
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p371
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p342
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p394
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p354
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p004
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