Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Asparagales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA (11/30/12):
Spiranthes lacera var. gracilis
FAMILY
Orchidaceae
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Learn more about Ladies'-tresses from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Spiranthes lacera var. gracilis
FAMILY
Orchidaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 049-12-004a:
Spiranthes gracilis var. gracilis
FAMILY
Orchidaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
Britton & Brown Illus Flora of Northeast US & adjacent Canada (Gleason, 1952)
Spiranthes gracilis
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933)
Ibidium gracile
COMMON NAME:
Southern Slender Ladies'-tresses
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_ibgr_001_lvd
)
JK Marlow jkm060731_022
July Greenville County SC
Bunched Arrowhead Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm140817_821
August Spartanburg County SC
)
Roxanna Martin rlm82510_76
August Spartanburg County SC
)
Roxanna Martin rlm82710_36
August Spartanburg County SC
)
Roxanna Martin rlm82710_73
August Spartanburg County SC
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_s_lacera_gracilis
August
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_s_lacera_gracilis_2
August
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_s_lacera_gracilis_sou
August
)
Rusty Wilson fkw_ladiestresses_1
September Greenwood County SC
Ninety Six National Historic Site
Flower stem about 12-18" tall, with no leaves present at flowering, per Wild Orchids of South Carolina: A Popular Natural History.
)
Rusty Wilson fkw_ladiestresses_2
September Greenwood County SC
Ninety Six National Historic Site
Flower cluster typically is a single rank but is quite strongly spiraled, per Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
)
Rusty Wilson fkw_ladiestresses_3
September Greenwood County SC
Ninety Six National Historic Site
Distinguished by the green spot on the lip, which has a white edge, per Wild Orchids of South Carolina: A Popular Natural History.
WEAKLEY'S FLORA (11/30/12):
Spiranthes lacera var. gracilis
FAMILY
Orchidaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Spiranthes lacera var. gracilis
FAMILY
Orchidaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 049-12-004a:
Spiranthes gracilis var. gracilis
FAMILY
Orchidaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
Britton & Brown Illus Flora of Northeast US & adjacent Canada (Gleason, 1952)
Spiranthes gracilis
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933)
Ibidium gracile
2116
Forb
Perennial
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Documented growing wild in GA NC SC
Uncommon (rare in GA Coastal Plain)
Look for it in fields, meadows, pastures, woodlands, 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.
...Variable
LEAVES:
Simple
Mostly basal
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
White
(with green stripe)
Bisexual
Bilaterally symmetrical
3 sepals, two lateral and one dorsal
3 petals, the two lateral similar and a third (the lip) enlarged
stamens and pistil fused together into a column
Inferior ovary
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Guide to the Plants of Granite Outcrops p45
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast p073
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition p054?
- Wild Orchids of South Carolina: A Popular Natural History p180
- Wildflowers of Tennessee p406
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains p029