| Identification | Because this species has no petals, and the sepals are not colored pale yellow, most biologists would walk right past this species without noticing it, or simply call it as the very common L. alternifolia. This is, however, not a small species, as it has several ascending branches, growing to about 2-3 feet tall, with a smooth stem. The alternate leaves are rather "ordinary", being lanceolate to elliptical, about 3-4 inches long and 2/3-inch wide, entire, and tapering at both ends, to a petiole about 1/2-inch long. This species has the flowers in many leaf axils, sessile, with a lack of petals. The 4 sepals are short and triangular-ovate, barely 1/10-inch long, but the base of the flower (and later the capsule) is distinctive -- cylindrical and 4-sided, about 1/3-inch long, about 3 times longer than wide. Other similar species either have yellow petals, or the capsules are usually shorter, about as long as wide. Sadly, there are very few online photos (google "cylindric fruit seedbox"), but once you get a visual on what to look for, you may find it routinely in some openings in swamps and bottomlands in the eastern part of the state. | |
