Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Asparagales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Iris verna var. smalliana
FAMILY
Iridaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Learn more about Iris from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Iris verna var. smalliana
FAMILY
Iridaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 26 (2002)
Iris verna var. smalliana
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 046-05-007b:
Iris verna var. smalliana FAMILY Iridaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Neubeckia verna
COMMON NAME:
Upland Dwarf Iris, Upland Dwarf Violet Iris
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
JK Marlow jkm200418_3920
April Greenville County SC
Ashmore Heritage Preserve
Three erect spatulate-shaped petals with narrow claws, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).
)
JK Marlow jkm220412_6752
April Greenville County SC
Bald Rock Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm220412_6754
April Greenville County SC
Bald Rock Heritage Preserve
A petaloid style, cleft at its tip, arches over the base of each sepal, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
Ben Geer Keys bgk764_a
April?
Sepals have a hairy yellow-orange band bordered with white but not crested, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmiverna_perfect
April?
)
JK Marlow jkm150712_444
July Pickens County SC
Table Rock State Park
Leaf margins smooth, vs those of Tofieldia glabra minutely upwardly-scabrous, per Weakley's Flora (2020).
)
JK Marlow jkm0509l_16
September Transylvania County NC
Silver Run Preserve
Grasslike leaves are mostly straight, to 4" long & 0.5" wide at flowering, per Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005).
COMPARE
leaves of Dwarf Iris and Dwarf Crested Iris
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Iris verna var. smalliana
FAMILY
Iridaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Iris verna var. smalliana
FAMILY
Iridaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 26
Iris verna var. smalliana
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 046-05-007b:
Iris verna var. smalliana
FAMILY
Iridaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Neubeckia verna
764
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: Dry to somewhat moist, rocky or sandy woodlands and forests, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common in Mountains, uncommon in Piedmont, rare in Coastal Plain
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:
Partially evergreen
Simple
FLOWER:
Spring
Lavender/Violet
Radially symmetrical
3 sepals
3 petals
3 stamens
Inferior ovary
Bisexual
FRUIT:
Summer
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Gardening with Native Plants of the South (Wasowski & Wasowski, 1994, 2020) p132?
- Gardening with the Native Plants of Tennessee (Hunter, 2002) p142
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 1st ed. (Porcher & Rayner, 2001) p197?
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p250
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p120?
- Wildflowers of the Carolina Lowcountry (Porcher, 1995) p144?
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005) p044?
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p383
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p387
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p443
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p393
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p019?
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".