Floerkea is a monotypic genus of plants in the meadowfoam family containing the sole species Floerkea proserpinacoides, which is known by the common names false mermaid, false mermaidweed, and floerkea. This tiny wildflower is native to many parts of North America, where it is found in moist areas, such as shady forests. It is a fleshy, annual herb which grows short stems which may lie flat on the ground, tangle into a clump, or grow somewhat erect. The foliage is hairless and shiny. The leaves are divided into many oval-shaped, pointed leaflets up to 2 cm (0.79 in) long. The flower is a cup of pointed green sepals containing three tiny white spoon-shaped petals and a bunch of stamens with yellow anthers. Growing in the center of the flower are the two to three fruits, which are bumpy, spherical nutlets.[1][2]
| Floerkea | |
|---|---|
| |
| Minute, white, three-parted flowers | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Brassicales |
| Family: | Limnanthaceae |
| Genus: | Floerkea Willd. |
| Species: | F. proserpinacoides
|
| Binomial name | |
| Floerkea proserpinacoides Willd.
| |
In Vermont, the plant was not seen after 1916 until May 2024 when it was seen again.[3][4]
The logo for the Flora of North America is a Floerkea flower.[5] The genus was named in honor of the German botanist, Heinrich Gustav Flörke.
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Botanical illustration -
Three-parted cotyledons -
Mature plants
References
edit- ^ "Archived TJM 1993 treatment for FLOERKEA proserpinacoides". Archived from the original on 2007-06-11. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
- ^ "USDA Plants Database". Archived from the original on 2008-10-26. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
- ^ "Botanists in Vermont rediscovered a plant last seen there at the start of WW1". June 20, 2024. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
- ^ Kuta, Sarah (June 14, 2024). "Rare 'Absolutely Tiny' Plant, Not Seen for More Than a Century, Found in Vermont". Archived from the original on 14 June 2024. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
- ^ Flora of North America Editorial Committee, ed. (2010). Flora of North America. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 2012-08-14. Retrieved 2012-08-14.
External links
edit- "CalPhotos". Photo gallery at CalPhotos
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