Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Liliales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Erythronium umbilicatum ssp. umbilicatum
FAMILY
Liliaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Learn more about Trout Lily from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
Enjoy a virtual visit to a Trout Lily hotspot on Jim Fowler's blog.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Erythronium umbilicatum ssp. umbilicatum
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 26 (2002)
Erythronium umbilicatum ssp. umbilicatum
INCLUDED WITHIN VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 041-26-001?:
Erythronium americanum FAMILY Liliaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Erythronium americanum
COMMON NAME:
Dimpled Trout Lily, Dogtooth Violet
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
Keith Bradley kab_e_umbilicatum_3660
February McCormick County SC
Stevens Creek Heritage Preserve
)
Keith Bradley kab_e_umbilicatum_3680
February McCormick County SC
Stevens Creek Heritage Preserve
A nodding, solitary yellow flower above a pair of elongated, mottled leaves, per Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011).
)
Keith Bradley kab_e_umbilicatum_3850
February McCormick County SC
Stevens Creek Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm0503b_20
March Greenville County SC
Jones Gap State Park
Looking at the flower from behind.
)
JK Marlow jkm090321_254b
March Greenville County SC
Chestnut Ridge Heritage Preserve
Ssp. umbilicatum doesn't have stolons, so most plants in a population bloom, per Flora of North America.
)
JK Marlow jkm100313_114
March Gadsden County FL
Angus Gholson Nature Park
In center of picture, a monocot seed leaf.
)
JK Marlow jkm100313_303
March Grady County GA
Wolf Creek Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm160323_060
March Polk County NC
Pearson's Falls
)
JK Marlow jkm180310_156
March Pickens County SC
Nine Times Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm220315_6110
March Greenville County SC
Bald Rock Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm220315_6142
March Greenville County SC
Bald Rock Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm230328_2141
March Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
Best distinguished by the indented (not rounded) summit of the capsule, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmeumbillicatum_glsy12
March Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmeumbillicatum_glsy18
March Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
Stamens may be yellow, reddish-brown or purple, per Jim Fowler Photography blog.
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_e_umbilicatum_48
March
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_e_umbilicatum_dimpled
March
)
JK Marlow jkm0404f_04
April Haywood County NC
Corneille Bryan Native Garden
)
JK Marlow jkm190412_7226
April Rabun County GA
)
Keith Bradley kab_e_umbilicatum_4469
April Transylvania County NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
)
Keith Bradley kab_e_umbilicatum_5394
April McCormick County SC
Stevens Creek Heritage Preserve
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmeumbillicatum_lex1b
April
Apex of mature capsule usually pointed downward, per Weakley's Flora.
)
Sam Pratt sbp_041022_1382
April Spartanburg County SC
)
Steve Marlow snm082904_05a
April Polk County SC
Pearson's Falls
)
Harry Davis hld537_crw_6110
May
Blue Ridge Parkway
Flowers close at night; as they open each morning the tepals curve backward, per Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011).
)
JK Marlow jkm0505o_14
May Transylvania County NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
Some populations form dense populations of plants, per Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011).
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmeumbillicatum_bm1
May
Anthers usually lavender, brown, cinnamon, or purple (sometimes yellow), per Weakley's Flora (2020).
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmeumbillicatum_glsy5
May Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Erythronium umbilicatum ssp. umbilicatum
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Erythronium umbilicatum ssp. umbilicatum
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 26
Erythronium umbilicatum ssp. umbilicatum
INCLUDED WITHIN
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 041-26-001?:
Erythronium americanum
FAMILY
Liliaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Erythronium americanum
537
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: Moist bottomland or slope forests, or in rather dry upland habitats, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common in Mountains & Piedmont, uncommon in Carolina Coastal Plain, rare in GA Coastal Plain
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 (2)
FLOWER:
Winter/Spring
Yellow
Radially symmetrical
6 tepals
6 stamens
FRUIT:
Spring/Summer
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- All About South Carolina Wildflowers (Midgley, 1999) p152
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC (Porcher & Rayner, 2001) p175
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p274
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005) p034
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p389
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p359?
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p414?
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p370
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p009
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".