Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Asparagales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Spiranthes praecox
FAMILY
Orchidaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
You may enjoy reading Orchids of the Francis Marion National Forest by Jim Fowler.
Learn more about Grassleaf Ladies'-tresses from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
INCLUDED WITHIN
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Spiranthes praecox
FAMILY
Orchidaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Spiranthes praecox
INCLUDED WITHIN Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 26 (2002)
Spiranthes praecox
INCLUDED WITHIN VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 049-12-006:
Spiranthes praecox FAMILY Orchidaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Ibidium praecox
COMMON NAME:
Grassleaf Ladies'-tresses, Giant Ladies'-tresses
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_ibpr_001_lvd
)
Jim Fowler jafspraecox_close
May Brunswick County NC
Green Swamp
Lip has green veins radiating from its center. Lateral sepals appressed, per Wild Orchids of South Carolina: A Popular Natural History (Fowler, 2005).
)
Jim Fowler jafspraecox_group
May Brunswick County NC
Green Swamp
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Spiranthes praecox
FAMILY
Orchidaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Spiranthes praecox
FAMILY
Orchidaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Spiranthes praecox
INCLUDED WITHIN
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 26
Spiranthes praecox
INCLUDED WITHIN
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 049-12-006:
Spiranthes praecox
FAMILY
Orchidaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Ibidium praecox
2156
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: pine savannas, swamps, bogs, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common in Coastal Plain of GA & SC, uncommon in NC Coastal Plain (rare elsewhere in GA-NC-SC)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Simple
Mostly basal (when present)
FLOWER:
Spring/Summer
White
(marked with green)
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
Bisexual
FRUIT:
Spring/Summer
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers (Nelson, 2006) p150
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p406
- Wild Orchids of South Carolina: A Popular Natural History (Fowler, 2005) p204
- Wildflowers of the Sandhills Region (Sorrie, 2011) p174
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".