Epilobium ciliatum

      
Northern Willowherb

Middle Stem

Antelope Lake Regional Park
13-Aug-2004

Note that the key to the species in Flora of Alberta requires "cauline leaves either linear or entire, not both".  In fact, the cauline leaves are lanceolate to ovate and slightly toothed.

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Ciliatum:  Answers to key questions in Budd's Flora and Flora of Alberta leading to this species.  
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perennial; NOT annual

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plants not clumped, or if so loosely, forming sessile, leafy rosettes or fleshy turions; NOT [plants clumped or caespitose, forming short, leafy, epigaeous stolons]

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plants lacking stolons; NOT [with basal thread-like, remotely leafed stolons, terminating in compact, fleshy turions]

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plants forming rosettes or large, hypogaeous turions; NOT [plants lacking rosettes, only compact hypogaeous turions present]

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plants 0.3-19.0 dm high; NOT 0.2-6.0 dm high

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stem-base erect; NOT [decumbent to ascending]

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bark NOT shreddy

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stem with hairy, elevated lines, decurrent from the leaf bases

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leaves opposite or verticillate, at least below; NOT alternate

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leaves lanceolate to oblong; NOT narrowly lanceolate, NOT linear, NOT [ovate to elliptic]

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leaves toothed

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leaves NOT rolled at margins

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cauline leaves either linear or entire, NOT both (FOA)

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gemmae absent; NOT [often present in the upper leaf-axils]

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inflorescence predominantly glandular mixed with strigillose hairs; NOT [strigillose, eglandular], NOT [white-canescent, occasionally with a few glandular hairs]

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flowers actinomorphic; NOT zygomorphic

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flowers small, less than 12 mm across

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hypanthium present

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petals white, pink or rose-purple; NOT yellow, NOT cream

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style NOT deflexed

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stigma entire, cylindric, clavate or capitate; NOT distinctly 4-lobed

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seeds narrowly obovoid; NOT broadly obovoid

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seeds 0.8-1.6 (1.9) mm long; NOT 1.1-1.6 (1.8) mm long

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seeds 0.3-0.8 mm wide; NOT 0.8-1.2 mm wide

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seeds longitudinally striate with hyaline crests or ridges but lacking distinct papillae; NOT distinctly papillose

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coma white or dingy; NOT reddish

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coma readily detached; NOT persistent

 

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Epilobium: Answers to key questions in Budd's Flora and Flora of Alberta leading to this genus.
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flower parts in 4's; NOT 2's

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fruit a capsule; NOT nut-like

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fruit many-seeded; NOT 1-seeded

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fruit opening by valves; NOT indehiscent

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fruit NOT covered with hooked bristles

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seeds with a tuft of silky hairs (coma) at one end

 

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Onagraceae: Answers to key questions in Budd's Flora leading to this family.
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herbs; NOT shrubs, NOT trees

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terrestrial plants; NOT [mud plants with small axillary flowers], NOT aquatic

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plants NOT with colored milky juice

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plants with more than one normal leaf

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leaves opposite, whorled, or basal; NOT alternate

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plants WITHOUT large petal-like bracts

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flowers with two floral rings, and with each petal distinct from the others

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flowers 2- or 4-merous

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style single; NOT 2 or more

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ovary inferior