Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Fabids: Malpighiales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Emblica urinaria
FAMILY
Phyllanthaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Check out EDDMapS.org to see where this has been reported.
Read more about Phyllanthus at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
INCLUDED WITHIN
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Phyllanthus urinaria
FAMILY
Euphorbiaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Phyllanthus urinaria ssp. urinaria
COMMON NAME:
Chamber Bitter, Gripeweed
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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JK Marlow jkm140809_443
August Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
Its distichous leaves are easily mistaken for leaflets of a pinnately compound leaf, per Weakley's Flora (2022).
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Sam Pratt sbp_1680
August Spartanburg County SC
Young plants are short and few-branched, with leaves in a single plane, per Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
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Sam Pratt sbp_1682
August Spartanburg County SC
Male flowers borne toward branchlet tip, female [and thus fruit] toward base, per Weakley's Flora (2012).
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Sam Pratt sbp_1682b
August Spartanburg County SC
Both male and female flowers have 6 sepals; petals are absent, per Flora of North America.
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JK Marlow jkm140924_945
September Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
Unique among Phyllanthus in our area in that leaves are sensitive to touch, per Flora of North America.
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JK Marlow jkm140924_945b
September Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
Leaf blade papery, abaxially gray-green or pale, or sometimes reddish tinged, per Flora of China.
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JK Marlow jkm140924_949
September Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
Leaves thin, smooth-margined, oblong, arranged in two rows on the branchlets, per Weeds of Southern Turfgrasses (Murphy et al., 1992).
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JK Marlow jkm140930_988
September Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
Superficially resembles Chamaecrista, but these are NOT compound leaves!
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JK Marlow jkm140930_992993
September Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
Capsules globose, 2-2.5mm diam., with reddish blotches, scurfy-tuberculate, per Flora of China.
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JK Marlow jkm200911_7182
September Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
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Terry Holdsclaw tdh_p_urinaria_urinaria_1
September Iredell County NC
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Terry Holdsclaw tdh_p_urinaria_urinaria_2
September Iredell County NC
Lateral flowering branches have distichously arranged leaves and shed as a unit.
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JK Marlow jkm211018_4355
October Pickens County SC
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JK Marlow jkm211018_4356
October Pickens County SC
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JK Marlow jkm211018_4358
October Pickens County SC
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Emblica urinaria
FAMILY
Phyllanthaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Phyllanthus urinaria
FAMILY
Euphorbiaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Phyllanthus urinaria ssp. urinaria
1071
Forb
Annual
Monoecious
Habitat: Gardens, roadsides, and other disturbed ground, apparently preferring nitrogen-rich or fertilized soils, per Weakley's Flora
Non-native: tropical southeast Asia
Uncommon in Coastal Plain, rare in Piedmont
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
This plant may be causing problems in natural areas outside its native range, according to authorities such as:
- Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries
- Alabama Invasive Plant Council, 2012
- USDA Forest Service Southern Regional Task Force ... Nonnative Invasive Species
DOES THE PLANT HAVE "MILKY SAP"?
Does not have milky sap
LEAVES:
Simple
Alternate: scalelike & spiral on stems; well-developed & 2-ranked on branchlets
Leaves are subtended by stipules.
FLOWER:
Winter/Spring/Summer/Fall
Yellowish, greenish-white
6 sepals
Petals absent
3 stamens in staminate flowers
Unisexual
FRUIT:
Winter/Spring/Summer/Fall
Green
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
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".