Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Asparagales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA (11/30/12):
Asparagus aethiopicus
FAMILY
Asparagaceae
NEW! Click to go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Check out EDDMapS.org to see where this has been reported.
Learn more about Sprenger’s Asparagus-fern from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
(?)
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Asparagus aethiopicus
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Asparagus aethiopicus
COMMON NAME:
Sprenger’s Asparagus-fern, Emerald-fern
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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Keith Bradley kab_a_aethiopicus_74031
May Miami-Dade County FL
From a distance, asparagus fern looks very soft or fluffy, per Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants.
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Keith Bradley kab_a_aethiopicus_74032
May Miami-Dade County FL
Refrain from purchasing, propagating, or planting asparagus fern, per Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants.
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Keith Bradley kab_a_aethiopicus_74050
May Miami-Dade County FL
Needle-like branchlets are clustered in nodes, per Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants.
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Keith Bradley kab_a_aethiopicus_74052
May Miami-Dade County FL
"Cladophyll" = a stem with the form and function of a leaf, per Plant Identification Terminology.
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Keith Bradley kab_a_aethiopicus_74052b
May Miami-Dade County FL
Cladophylls solitary or in fascicles of 3+, linear, flattened, 8-22 x 2mm, per Flora of North America.
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Keith Bradley kab_a_aethiopicus_74052c
May Miami-Dade County FL
Flowers are white or pale pink, very fragrant, small and hardly noticeable, per Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants.
WEAKLEY'S FLORA (11/30/12):
Asparagus aethiopicus
FAMILY
Asparagaceae
(?)
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Asparagus aethiopicus
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Asparagus aethiopicus
3859
Forb
Perennial
Non-native: southern Africa
Documented growing wild in GA - SC
Rare
Habitat: Disturbed areas, seeding down especially around plantings, especially commonly planted in coastal areas; sometimes epiphytic in palm boots, per Weakley's Flora
NEW! Click here to see a range map (and maybe identification notes) 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.)
This plant may be causing problems in natural areas outside its native range, according to authorities such as:
LEAVES:
Evergreen
Cladophylls and simple scalelike leaves
Alternate
FLOWER:
Spring/Summer
White to pale pink
Bisexual
6 tepals, perianth rotate to campanulate
6 stamens
Superior ovary
Flowers in axillary racemes
FRUIT:
Red
Berry
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!