Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Ranunculales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Jeffersonia diphylla
FAMILY
Berberidaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Learn more about Twinleaf from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
It is somewhat suggestive of Sanguinaria in both foliage and flower, per Weakley's Flora (2022)
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Jeffersonia diphylla
FAMILY
Berberidaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Jeffersonia diphylla
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Jeffersonia diphylla
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 077-04-001:
Jeffersonia diphylla FAMILY Berberidaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Jeffersonia diphylla
COMMON NAME:
Twinleaf
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA Forest Service / A Guide to Medicinal Plants of Appalachia. 1969 mpa_page_147
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_jedi_001_lvd
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_j_diphylla_twinl
March Walker County GA
Solitary flowers on leafless stems last only a day or so in March or April, per Gardening with the Native Plants of Tennessee (Hunter, 2002).
)
JK Marlow jkm090404_177
April Walker County GA
Pigeon Mountain
)
JK Marlow jkm090404_185
April Walker County GA
Pigeon Mountain
)
JK Marlow jkm090404_189
April Walker County GA
Pigeon Mountain
)
Tim Spira tpsjdiphylla
April
Leaves basal, on stalks 6" tall (taller after flowering), per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).
)
Tim Spira tpsjdiphylla2
April
)
Zen Sutherland zen27197846_f5320fdfc6
July Buncombe County NC
Botanical Gardens at Asheville
Somewhat suggestive of Sanguinaria in both foliage and flower, per Weakley's Flora.
)
Zen Sutherland zen27197847_ac7d258e32
July Buncombe County NC
Botanical Gardens at Asheville
)
JK Marlow jkm150827_922
August Haywood County NC
Corneille Bryan Native Garden
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmjdiphylla_cherokfm2
Month Unknown Knox County TN
Fruit erect, the upper part making a lid hinged at the back, per Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999).
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmjdiphylla_cherokfm3
Month Unknown Knox County TN
The two leaf blades are entire or toothed, per Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999).
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmjdiphylla_cherokfm9
Month Unknown Knox County TN
Each leaf deeply cleft into 2 leaflets, not unlike bird or butterfly wings, per Gardening with the Native Plants of Tennessee (Hunter, 2002).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Jeffersonia diphylla
FAMILY
Berberidaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Jeffersonia diphylla
FAMILY
Berberidaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Jeffersonia diphylla
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Jeffersonia diphylla
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 077-04-001:
Jeffersonia diphylla
FAMILY
Berberidaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Jeffersonia diphylla
770
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: Moist and extremely nutrient-rich forests, generally over calcareous or mafic rocks (including limestone, dolostone, amphibolite, greenstone, etc.) or very rich alluvium, per Weakley's Flora
Native to North Carolina & Georgia
Rare
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Compound: 2 leaflets
Basal
FLOWER:
Spring
White
Radially symmetrical
4 petaloid sepals
8 petals
8 stamens
Superior ovary
Bisexual
FRUIT:
Spring
Follicle
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Gardening with the Native Plants of Tennessee (Hunter, 2002) p143
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p364
- Field Guide to the Rare Plants of Georgia (Chafin, 2007) p181
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p176
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p016
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005) p080
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p045
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p067
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p052
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".