Purple Agalinis

(Agalinis purpurea)

 

   

 

 

Color Photograph: Copyright Nearctica.com, Inc.

Line Drawing: Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada, Second Edition.

 

Purple Agalinis (Agalinis purpurea [L.] Pennell)

Identification: Flowers large (about 1 inches in length), pink to lavender in corolla, slightly fuzzy. Petals in a tubular corollar with 5 free petal lobes. Calyx with large, sharp teeth. Flower stalks short, shorter than the calyx. Leaves narrow, grass-like, in opposite pairs. Plant 1 to 3 feet in height.

Distribution: Minnesota in the west to New England in the east, southward to Florida and Texas.

Habitat: Purple Gerardia is found in damp fields and meadows.

Flowering period: August to September.

Similar Species: There are several similar eastern species of the genus Agalinis. Of the species treated here Small-flowered Agalinis has smaller flowers, even shorter flower stalks, and narrower leaves. The leaves of Seaside Agalinis has succulent leaves. Slender Agalinis has long flower stalks, the stalks longer than the calyx.

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