Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Lamiids: Lamiales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA (11/30/12):
Justicia americana
FAMILY
Acanthaceae
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Read more about American Water-willow at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Justicia americana
FAMILY
Acanthaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 171-05-001:
Justicia americana
FAMILY
Acanthaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933)
Dianthera americana
COMMON NAME:
American Water-willow
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_diam2_001_lvd
)
Tim Spira tpsjamericana8
May
)
JK Marlow jkm100611_040
June Stanly County NC
Morrow Mountain State Park
Ascending peduncles, 2-6" long, arrise from upper leaf axils, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians.
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmjamericana_lakemarion
June SC
Lake Marion
Flower white to lavender w purple markings, upper lip notched, lower 3-lobed, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains.
)
JK Marlow jkm0507e_16
July Fayette County WV
Hawks Nest State Park
Calyx lobes linear to lanceolate, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas.
)
JK Marlow jkm0507e_17
July Fayette County WV
Hawks Nest State Park
Gets its common name from the slender, lanceolate, willow-like leaves, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains.
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_justicia_americana_3
July
WEAKLEY'S FLORA (11/30/12):
Justicia americana
FAMILY
Acanthaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Justicia americana
FAMILY
Acanthaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 171-05-001:
Justicia americana
FAMILY
Acanthaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933)
Dianthera americana
1986
Emergent aquatic or semi-aquatic (rooted); Forb
Perennial
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Documented growing wild in GA NC SC
Common
Look for it in river & stream beds, in shallow water, often rooted in rocky shallows, per Weakley's Flora
Click here to see a more detailed map from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Herbarium,
or click here to see a map from SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Aquatic
LEAVES:
Simple
Opposite
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Pale violet/ White
(with purple markings)
Bisexual
5-lobed calyx
2-lipped corolla, upper lip notched, lower three-lobed
2 stamens
Superior ovary
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Brown
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Field Guide to Aquatic Plants of Alabama p18
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC p174
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide p078
- Southern Appalachian Wildflowers p012
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast p319
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States p096
- Wildflowers of Tennessee p251
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians p295
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont p393
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains p162