Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Caryophyllales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/14/23):
Rumex crispus ssp. crispus
FAMILY
Polygonaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Check out EDDMapS.org to see where this has been reported.
The margins of all leaves are finely toothed and distinctly wavy -- characters that together separate it from other Rumex species. Read more at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Rumex crispus ssp. crispus
FAMILY
Polygonaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Rumex crispus ssp. crispus
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 5 (2005)
Rumex crispus ssp. crispus
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Rumex crispus ssp. crispus
INCLUDED WITHIN VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 063-02-006:
Rumex crispus FAMILY Polygonaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Rumex crispus
COMMON NAME:
Curly Dock, Yellow Dock
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA / Selected Weeds of the US. 1970 swus_page_131
)
JK Marlow jkm160206_965b
February Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm000429_b
April Greenville County SC
Smooth, robust perennial to 4' tall, unbranched below inflorescence, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).
)
JK Marlow jkm110507_298
May Pickens County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm190506_8205
May Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
)
JK Marlow jkm210513_0244
May Oconee County SC
Boone's Creek Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm210513_0245
May Oconee County SC
Boone's Creek Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm210513_0245b
May Oconee County SC
Boone's Creek Preserve
)
Roxanna Martin rlm51311_88
May Spartanburg County SC
Pistillate flowers have 3 feathery stigmas, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
Roxanna Martin rlm51311_89
May Spartanburg County SC
Calyx has 3 narrow outer sepals & 3 inner sepals that expand in fruit, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).
)
Roxanna Martin rlm5710_013
May Spartanburg County SC
Panicle composed of clusters of staminate and pistillate flowers, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
JK Marlow s000510_df
May Greenville County SC
Leaves 15-25cm long, 2-6cm wide, undulate, base obtuse to cuneate, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
JK Marlow s000521_c2
May Greenville County SC
)
Roxanna Martin rlm6410_257
June Spartanburg County SC
In fruit the inner sepal usually has one well-developed tubercle, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
Roxanna Martin rlm6610_160
June Spartanburg County SC
)
JK Marlow s000607_b2
June Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm151230_068
December Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/14/23):
Rumex crispus ssp. crispus
FAMILY
Polygonaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Rumex crispus ssp. crispus
FAMILY
Polygonaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Rumex crispus ssp. crispus
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 5
Rumex crispus ssp. crispus
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Rumex crispus ssp. crispus
INCLUDED WITHIN
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 063-02-006:
Rumex crispus
FAMILY
Polygonaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Rumex crispus
1284
Forb
Perennial
Monoecious
Habitat: Disturbed areas, pastures, fields, per Weakley's Flora
Non-native: Europe
Common
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
Click here to see a map showing all occurrences known to SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria. (Zoom in to see more detail.)
This plant may be causing problems in natural areas outside its native range, according to authorities such as:
LEAVES:
Simple
Alternate
FLOWER:
Spring/Summer
Greenish
6 sepals of two different sizes
Petals absent
6 stamens
Superior ovary
Unisexual
FRUIT:
Spring/Summer
Brown
Nutlet
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p404
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p463
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p003
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005) p063
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p295
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p062
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p085
- Weeds of Southern Turfgrasses (Murphy et al., 1992) p166
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".