Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Lamiids: Gentianales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Gentiana saponaria
FAMILY
Gentianaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Read more about Soapwort Gentian at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
Feast your eyes on photographs of the southeastern Gentians in Jim Fowler's blog.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Gentiana saponaria var. saponaria
FAMILY
Gentianaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 155-02-008:
Gentiana saponaria FAMILY Gentianaceae
INCLUDING Britton & Brown Illus Flora of Northeast US & adjacent Canada (Gleason, 1952)
Gentiana cherokeensis
INCLUDING Britton & Brown Illus Flora of Northeast US & adjacent Canada (Gleason, 1952)
Gentiana saponaria
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Dasystephana saponaria
COMMON NAME:
Soapwort Gentian, Harvestbells
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
JK Marlow jkm150912_129
September Clay County NC
Nantahala National Forest: Tusquitee Ranger District
)
JK Marlow jkm150912_132
September Clay County NC
Nantahala National Forest: Tusquitee Ranger District
Leaves linear, or elliptical to ovate and widest near the middle, per Gentians of the Eastern US (Drake, 2011).
)
JK Marlow jkm150912_133
September Clay County NC
Nantahala National Forest: Tusquitee Ranger District
)
JK Marlow jkm071025_029
October Pickens County SC
Clemson Forest
Flowers closed or slightly open, pale blue-purple with dark lines within, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm071025_029b
October Pickens County SC
Clemson Forest
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_gentiana_saponaria
October
Calyx lobes elliptic-linear, 4-17mm long to 2mm wide, ascending to spreading, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_gentiana_saponaria_c
October
)
JK Marlow jkm071101_037
November Oconee County SC
Sumter National Forest: Andrew Pickens Ranger District
)
JK Marlow jkm071101_038
November SC
Sumter National Forest: Andrew Pickens Ranger District
)
JK Marlow jkm201107_8057
November Greenville County SC
Caesars Head State Park
)
JK Marlow jkm201107_8073
November Greenville County SC
Caesars Head State Park
)
JK Marlow jkm211116_4981
November Greenville County SC
Blackwell Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm211116_4988
November Greenville County SC
Blackwell Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm211116_4991
November Greenville County SC
Blackwell Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm211116_4999
November Greenville County SC
Blackwell Heritage Preserve
These anthers weren't fused together like the others. Wonder why - is it timing?
)
JK Marlow jkm211116_5008
November Greenville County SC
Blackwell Heritage Preserve
Anthers connate at anthesis, per Weakley's Flora (2022).
)
JK Marlow jkm211116_5012
November Greenville County SC
Blackwell Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm211116_5014
November Greenville County SC
Blackwell Heritage Preserve
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Gentiana saponaria
FAMILY
Gentianaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Gentiana saponaria var. saponaria
FAMILY
Gentianaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 155-02-008:
Gentiana saponaria
FAMILY
Gentianaceae
INCLUDING
Britton & Brown Illus Flora of Northeast US & adjacent Canada (Gleason, 1952)
Gentiana cherokeensis
INCLUDING
Britton & Brown Illus Flora of Northeast US & adjacent Canada (Gleason, 1952)
Gentiana saponaria
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Dasystephana saponaria
2030
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: bogs, marshes, wet hardwood forests, other moist to wet habitats, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Uncommon
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
Opposite
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Light blue-violet
Radially symmetrical
5-lobed calyx
5-lobed corolla
5 stamens
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- All About South Carolina Wildflowers (Midgley, 1999) p163
- Gentians of the Eastern US (Drake, 2011) p108
- Gardening with the Native Plants of Tennessee (Hunter, 2002) p131
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p252
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p427
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005) p198
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p213
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p185
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p221
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p377
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p124
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".
Or try alternate spellings: If "wooly" doesn't work, try "woolly" or just "wool".