Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Asparagales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/14/23):
Hymenocallis pygmaea
FAMILY
Amaryllidaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Strikingly different in appearance from H. crassifolia, per Weakley's Flora (2023).
H. pygmaea differs from its larger cousin [H. crassifolia] by having shorter leaves, often just 1' to rarely 1.5' long, as opposed to 1.5-2' long in the other species; and by having smaller flowers, with the tepals (including the basal fused cup) only 2-2.5" long, as opposed to 3-4" or more in H. crassifolia. Learn more from Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
Identification Notes: Hymenocallis can be distinguished vegetatively from Crinum by its distichous (vs. spiral) leaf arrangement and leaf margins entire (vs. finely toothed). Read more in Weakley's Flora (2023).
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Hymenocallis pygmaea
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Hymenocallis pygmaea
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 26 (2002)
Hymenocallis pygmaea
INCLUDED WITHIN Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Hymenocallis palmeri
COMMON NAME:
Pygmy Spiderlily, Waccamaw Spiderlily, dwarf spiderlily
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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Mark Garland / USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database pnd_hypy2_002_pvp
May Columbus County NC
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Mark Garland / USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database pnd_hypy2_004_pvp
May Columbus County NC
Leaves all basal, linear, to 16" long, per Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022).
)
Mark Garland / USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database pnd_hypy2_005_lhp
May Columbus County NC
Lower portions of filaments united in a crown; perianth segments narrow, linear, 2-2.5" long, per Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/14/23):
Hymenocallis pygmaea
FAMILY
Amaryllidaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Hymenocallis pygmaea
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Hymenocallis pygmaea
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 26
Hymenocallis pygmaea
INCLUDED WITHIN
Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Hymenocallis palmeri
4861
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: Banks of blackwater rivers, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas
Rare
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
Click here to see a map showing all occurrences known to SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria. (Zoom in to see more detail.)
LEAVES:
Simple
Basal
FLOWER:
Spring/Summer
White
Flowers are sessile.
6 tepals
6 stamens
Inferior ovary
Bisexual
Flowers in an umbel
FRUIT:
Summer
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p443
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p468
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