OF THE CAROLINAS & GEORGIA

Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Caryophyllales

WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Saponaria officinalis   FAMILY Caryophyllaceae   Go to FSUS key



SYNONYMOUS WITH PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Saponaria officinalis   FAMILY Caryophyllaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)

Saponaria officinalis

SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 5 (2005)

Saponaria officinalis

SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 071-15-001:

Saponaria officinalis   FAMILY Caryophyllaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)

Saponaria officinalis

 

COMMON NAME:
Soapwort, Bouncing Bet


         To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.

image of Saponaria officinalis, Soapwort, Bouncing Bet

USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913    pnd_saof4_001_lvd

        

image of Saponaria officinalis, Soapwort, Bouncing Bet

USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / USDA Wetland flora: Field office illustrated guide    pnd_saof4_010_lvd

        

image of Saponaria officinalis, Soapwort, Bouncing Bet

Stephanie C. Brundage    scb_061917blairsville23

June    Union County    GA

Georgia Mountain Research & Education Center

A green or red-tinged calyx tube, 10 protruding stamens and usually 2 styles, per Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019).

image of Saponaria officinalis, Soapwort, Bouncing Bet

Stephanie C. Brundage    scb_061917blairsville24

June    Union County    GA

Georgia Mountain Research & Education Center

Leaves sessile or clasping, strongly 3-veined, smooth, per Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019).

image of Saponaria officinalis, Soapwort, Bouncing Bet

Stephanie C. Brundage    scb_061917blairsville25

June    Union County    GA

Georgia Mountain Research & Education Center

image of Saponaria officinalis, Soapwort, Bouncing Bet

Terry Holdsclaw    tdh_s_officinalis_7969

June    Catawba County    NC

Petals narrowly wedge-shaped, indented at the summit, and somewhat reflexed, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).

image of Saponaria officinalis, Soapwort, Bouncing Bet

Terry Holdsclaw    tdh_s_officinalis_7979

June    Catawba County    NC

Inflorescence a dense cluster of flowers atop the thick-jointed stem, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).

image of Saponaria officinalis, Soapwort, Bouncing Bet

Terry Holdsclaw    tdh_s_officinalis_7985

June    Catawba County    NC

When mixed with water, crushed leaves & roots make lather, hence "Soapwort", per Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 1st ed. (Porcher & Rayner, 2001).

 

 

WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Saponaria officinalis   FAMILY Caryophyllaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Saponaria officinalis   FAMILY Caryophyllaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Saponaria officinalis

SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 5
Saponaria officinalis

SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 071-15-001:
Saponaria officinalis   FAMILY Caryophyllaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Saponaria officinalis

 

Find by SCIENTIFIC NAME:

1319

Forb
Perennial

Habitat: Disturbed areas, fields, roadsides, per Weakley's Flora

Non-native: Europe

Common (uncommon in Coastal Plain of GA & SC)

map
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.

LEAVES:
Simple
Opposite
Leaves sessile or clasping

FLOWER:
Spring/Summer/Fall
Nearly white/ light pink
Radially symmetrical
5-lobed calyx
5-limbed corolla
10 exserted stamens
Superior ovary
Usually bisexual

Flowers in dense cymes

FRUIT:
Spring/Summer/Fall
Capsule

 

TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!



 


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