Vascular Plants of North Carolina
Account for Common Purslane - Portulaca oleracea   L.
Members of Portulaca with account distribution info or public map:
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Section 6 » Order Caryophyllales » Family Portulacaceae
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AuthorL.
DistributionThroughout the state, with some gaps that will shrink with additional collecting. First collected in 1931 on the campus of UNC Chapel Hill, Orange County.

Native of Europe; in N.A. throughout the U.S. and southern Canada.
AbundanceFrequent throughout, can be locally common.
HabitatMostly in highly disturbed habitats: roadsides, fields, cropfields, waste places, railroads, campus weed, garden weed, greenhouse weed, river and creek banks. Also more natural places, such as granitic outcrops, maritime sandflats, and beaches. It can be a problem on some granitic flatrocks, where it can outcompete native species.
PhenologyFlowering and fruiting nearly throughout the year.
IdentificationThe plants are prostrate to somewhat ascending. The flowers are dull to medium yellow, and the leaves are obovate, both characters unlike our other species of Portulaca.
Taxonomic CommentsDanin and Anderson (1986) and Weakley (2018) recognize taxon nicaraguensis as native in maritime environments of FL; the NC plants of the Outer Banks may belong here.

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State RankSE
Global RankGU
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B.A. SorrieUpper beach of a salt pond, Martha's Vineyard, 1980s. Photo_non_NCPhoto_non_NC
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