Polygala nana, commonly known as candyroot or low bachelors' buttons, is a small herbaceous plant native to the southeastern United States. The root has a sweet liquorice flavor when it is chewed, but it is usually hidden underground until the plant flowers. The seeds of candyroot are dispersed by ants.
| Polygala nana | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Polygalaceae |
| Genus: | Polygala |
| Species: | P. nana
|
| Binomial name | |
| Polygala nana | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
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Polygala lutea var. nana Michx. 1803 | |
Taxonomy edit
French botanist André Michaux described candyroot as a variety of Polygala lutea in 1803.[2] Swiss botanist Augustin Pyramus de Candolle reclassified it as a species in 1824.[3] The species name is the Latin word nanus "dwarf".
Description edit
Candyroot grows as a clumping herbaceous plant 10–15 cm (4–6 in) tall,[4] more commonly 5–10 cm (2–4 in) tall. Growing from the base of the plant are the spathulate (spoon-shaped) leaves, which are 1.5–5 cm (1⁄2–2 in) long and 0.4–2 cm (1⁄4–3⁄4 in) cm wide. The yellow flowerheads are composed of tiny flowers arranged in racemes, and are 2–4 cm (3⁄4–1+1⁄2 in) high by 1.5 cm (1⁄2 in) wide.[5] They appear from April to June,[4] from March to October in Alabama,[6] and year-round in the Everglades. The seeds are smaller than 1 mm in size. The edible root tastes of licorice.[7]
Polygala nana resembles Polygala lutea, which is a taller plant.[5] It also resembles the rare species P. smallii of Miami-Dade County, which has seeds longer than 1 mm.[7]
Distribution and habitat edit
Polygala nana is found across the southeastern United States from far eastern Texas through Louisiana and Arkansas to Florida and north as far as the Carolinas.[8] Arkansas, where it is found in Ashley, Bradley and Calhoun Counties, marks the northwestern limits of its range.[9][10] It grows in moist soil in meadows or coniferous woodlands.[4]
References edit
- ^ Tropicos, Polygala nana (Michx.) DC.
- ^ Michaux, Andreas (1803). Flora boreali-americana :sistens caracteres plantarum quas in America septentrionali collegit et detexit Andreas Michaux. Vol. 2. Paris, France: Levrault brothers. p. 54.
- ^ De Candolle, Augustin Pyramus (1824). Prodromus Systematis Naturalis Regni Vegetabilis. Vol. 1. Paris, France: Treuttel et Würtz. p. 328.
- ^ a b c Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center (2015). "Polygala nana". NPIN: Native Plant Database. Austin, TX: University of Texas at Austin. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
- ^ a b Godfrey, Robert K.; Wooten, Jean W. (2011). Aquatic and Wetland Plants of Southeastern United States: Dicotyledons. University of Georgia Press. p. 275. ISBN 9780820342436.
- ^ Blanche E. Dean; Amy Mason; Joab L. Thomas (1983). Wildflowers of Alabama and Adjoining States. University of Alabama Press. p. 94. ISBN 9780817301477.
- ^ a b Hammer, Roger L. (2015). Everglades Wildflowers: A Field Guide to Wildflowers of the Historic Everglades, including Big Cypress, Corkscrew, and Fakahatchee Swamps. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 143. ISBN 9781493014590.
- ^ Natural Resources Conservation Service (2015). "Polygala nana (Michx.) DC. Show All candyroot". Plants Database. USDA. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
- ^ Hunter, Carl G. (2000). Wildflowers of Arkansas. University of Arkansas Press. p. 126. ISBN 9780912456164.
- ^ Biota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map
