Eryngium cuneifolium
| Eryngium cuneifolium | |
|---|---|
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Asterids |
| Order: | Apiales |
| Family: | Apiaceae |
| Genus: | Eryngium |
| Species: | E. cuneifolium |
| Binomial name | |
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Eryngium cuneifolium Small |
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Eryngium cuneifolium is a rare species of flowering plant in the carrot family known by the common names wedgeleaf eryngo, wedge-leaved button-snakeroot, and simply snakeroot. It is endemic to the state of Florida in the United States where it is known only from Highlands County. It is one of many rare species that can be found only on the Lake Wales Ridge, an area of high endemism. It was federally listed as an endangered species of the United States in 1987.
This is an erect perennial herb growing 20 to 66 centimeters in maximum height. The woody taproot may be over 20 centimeters long. The distinctive leaves are wedge-shaped with usually three bristle-tipped teeth at the tips. The basal leaves are largest and there are a few smaller ones along the erect flowering stem. The herbage is aromatic. The inflorescence is a compound umbel of several dense headlike clusters of flowers. Each individual flower has five sharp-pointed sepals, making the clusters bristly. The flowers have white, or possibly blue, or greenish flowers. Blooming occurs in July through January, but especially August through October.
This is a plant of the Florida scrub. It grows in bare stretches of white sand, including gaps in the rosemary and sand pine scrub and in blowouts. The land is dry and the bare, sunny gaps in the scrub are maintained by periodic wildfire. Other plants in the habitat include swampbay (Persea palustris), scrub palmetto (Sabal etonia), eastern prickly pear (Opuntia humifusa), and several species of oak.
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Wikipedia