Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Fabids: Fabales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Polygala cymosa
FAMILY
Polygalaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Learn more about Tall Milkwort from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Polygala cymosa
FAMILY
Polygalaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 106-01-017:
Polygala cymosa FAMILY Polygalaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Pilostaxis cymosa
COMMON NAME:
Tall Pinebarren Milkwort
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_pocy_001_lvd
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Alan S. Weakley asw_698376468712152
April FL
Apalachicola National Forest
Flowers tiny, with 2 "wings" (sepals) & 3 joined petals forming a tiny tube with fringed tip, per Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019).
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Keith Bradley kab_polygala_cymosa_76935
May Palm Beach County FL
Hungryland Wildlife and Environmental Area
Erect single-stemmed annual with leafy stem and branched inflorescence, per Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers (Nelson, 2006).
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Jerry Bright jeb_072608_045
July Charleston County SC
Francis Marion National Forest
Flowers in congested heads that terminate the branches of a showy cyme, per Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers (Nelson, 2006).
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Jerry Bright jeb_072608_046
July Charleston County SC
Francis Marion National Forest
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_polygala_cymosa_2
July
Mature plants typically 2-4' tall (vs. P. ramosa rarely over 18"), per Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers (Nelson, 2006).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_polygala_cymosa_6
August
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Polygala cymosa
FAMILY
Polygalaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Polygala cymosa
FAMILY
Polygalaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 106-01-017:
Polygala cymosa
FAMILY
Polygalaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Pilostaxis cymosa
2987
Forb
Biennial
Habitat: Pond-cypress savannas, Coastal Plain depression ponds, clay-based Carolina bays, other sites with seasonally flooded hydrology, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common in Coastal Plain of GA & SC, uncommon in NC
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.)
LEAVES:
Simple
Basal rosette (often absent or withered at flowering)
FLOWER:
Spring/Summer
Light yellow
Bisexual
Bilaterally symmetrical
5 sepals (three small, two larger petaloid "wings")
3 petals united into a tube
6 stamens united to corolla tube in 2 rows
FRUIT:
Spring/Summer
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers (Nelson, 2006) p201
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC (Porcher & Rayner, 2001) p316
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p221
- Wildflowers of the Carolina Lowcountry (Porcher, 1995) p189
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p044
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p286