Halenia deflexa

Halenia deflexa, also known as green gentian or spurred gentian[1][2] is a native flower of the northern regions of the United States (Montana, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Maine, and Pennsylvania) as well as all of Canada. It is mostly found in wetlands or moist forests of these regions. The blooming season is typically from July to August.

Halenia deflexa
Halenia deflexa at Isle Royale National Park, Michigan
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Gentianales
Family: Gentianaceae
Genus: Halenia
Species:
H. deflexa
Binomial name
Halenia deflexa
(Sm.) Griseb.

The flowers come in groups of between two and nine and are from 1⁄3 to 1⁄2 in (8 to 13 mm) long[1] with four petals. Each has a spur up to a fifth inch long, extending back past the sepals (each of the parts of the calyx of a flower, enclosing the petals). The color of H. deflexa is a shade of purple or a light green. The sepals are green and elliptic (adjoined between the spurs) about half the length of the petals above the spur.

The fruit of the plant is a capsule, conical in shape, which sticks out from the opening of the flower. The fruit is typically dry and once ripe will split open.[3]

The green gentian has simple leaves that are small, typically measured at 1 to 5 cm (1⁄2 to 2 in) long and 5 to 20 mm (1⁄4 to 3⁄4 in) wide. The leaves are characteristically toothless, hairless, and glossy. The stems of the green gentian are hairless and square.[3]

References
  1. Chayka, Katy; Dziuk, Peter (2016). "Halenia deflexa (American Spurred Gentian)". Minnesota Wildflowers. Retrieved 2017-09-15.
  2. Merel R. Black; Emmet J. Judziewicz (13 February 2009). Wildflowers of Wisconsin and the Great Lakes Region: A Comprehensive Field Guide. University of Wisconsin Press. pp. 50–1. ISBN 978-0-299-23054-8.
  3. "Halenia deflexa". Go Botany. New England Wildflower Society. Retrieved 2017-09-15.
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