Dalea carnea var. carnea

  • Title

    Dalea carnea var. carnea

  • Authors

    Rupert C. Barneby

  • Scientific Name

    Dalea carnea (Michx.) Poir. var. carnea

  • Description

    43a. Dalea carnea (Michaux) Poiret var. carnea

    (Plate LVII)

    Stems normally erect-ascending, herbaceous or (s.-ward) feebly suffrutescent (3) 4-8 (10) dm tall, either virgate and paniculately branched distally or bushily branched from middle or base; leaves crowded along the stem, the primary ones all subtending spurs, 1.5-3.5 cm long, the (5) 7 or 9 leaflets up to (5) 6-13 mm long; spikes (7) 8-10 mm diam, the axis of central ones 1-3 (3.5) cm long; bracts 2.5-5.5 mm long; calyx 3.2-4.3 mm, the tube (2.1) 2.3-3 (3.2) mm, the dorsal tooth 0.9-1.5 mm long; petals pale flesh-pink to bright lilac-pink, exceptionally white; banner 4.2-5.7 mm, the blade 2.5-3 mm long, 1.7-2.4 mm wdie; epistemonous petals (3) 3.3-4.5 mm, the claw 0.7-1.2 mm, the blade 2.3-3.3 mm long, 0.7-1.1 mm wide; androecium (5.5) 6-9.5 mm, the free filaments 3-6 mm long; 2n = 14 (Wemple, 1970, p. 12), n = 7 II (Mosquin).— Collections: 41 (o, sed v.v.).

    Pine barrens, hammocks, flatwoods, mostly in low, seasonally moist land with palmetto, sometimes on dry upland sands, widespread and locally common almost throughout peninsular Florida, n.-w. on the Gulf side to Taylor County, and on the Atlantic side crossing St. Mary’s River just into Charlton County, Georgia; cf. Wemple, 1970, map 3. — Flowering June to December, in frostless areas throughout the year. — Representative: Georgia: Harper 1493 (NY). Florida: Curtiss 567*, 4225 (NY, UC); Krai 7815, 7924 (NY); Small 8341 (albino, NY); Small & Carter 1205 (NY); Isely & Wemple 9230, 9308, 9372 (NY).

    Dalea carnea (Michaux) Poiret, Diet. Sci. Nat. 13: 462. 1818, based on Psoralea carnea (Michaux) Poiret in Lamarck, Encycl. Meth. 5: 694. 1804, based in turn on Petalostemum carneum (flesh-pink, of the petals) Michx., Fl. Bor. Amer. 2: 49. 1803. — Holotypus, labelled "Lieux humides pres Nord West riv. en Floride", P (herb. Michx.)! —Kuhnia- stera carnea (Michx.) O. Kze., Rev. Gen. 192. 1891.

    Petalostemon roseum (pink) Nuttall, Amer. Jour. Sci. 5: 298. 1822.— "...in East-Florida, during the months of October and November, 1821. By A. Ware, Esq." — Holotypus, verified at GH by Wemple (1970, p. 35), not seen. — Kuhniastera rosea (Nutt.) O. Kze., Rev. Gen. 192. 1891.

    Southward from Levy and Marion counties (the latitude of Daytona Beach) var. carnea is the only prairie-clover of its group (other than the sharply distinct D. feayi) of which I have seen actual specimens. Wemple (1970) traces var. albida south to Lee County and has annotated one sheet from there (Small 8341) as P. albidum, but I believe this is merely an albino variant of var. carnea, of which it has the large calyx. North from the line mentioned var. carnea and var. albida are sympatric, though the former is found mostly in lowlands near the coast, the latter in drier upland conditions in the interior. In this region there are ambiguous populations difficult to assign to either and others intermediate between var. albida and var. gracilis.