fen grass of Parnassus
(Parnassia glauca)
Conservation • Wetland • Description • Habitat • Biology • Use • Distribution • Taxonomy
Conservation Status |
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| IUCN Red List | not listed |
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| NatureServe | NNR - Unranked SNR - Unranked |
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| Minnesota | not listed |
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Wetland Indicator Status |
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| Great Plains | OBL - Obligate wetland |
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| Midwest | OBL - Obligate wetland |
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| Northcentral & Northeast | OBL - Obligate wetland |
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Description |
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Fen grass of Parnassus is a 8″ to 16″ tall, erect, perennial forb that rises from a short, thickened, underground stem (caudex) abd fibrous roots. Basal leaves are on long leaf stalks and form a rosette. They are stiff, leathery, hairless, egg-shaped to almost circular, 1⅛″ to 2″ long, and ⅝″ to 1¾″ wide. They are always longer than wide. The base is broadly rounded or slightly heart-shaped. The blade extends down the leaf stalk a short distance below the point of attachment. The margins are untoothed. A single, unbranched, hairless, 8″ to 16″ long flowering stalk (scape) rises from the rosette of basal leaves. There is usually a single leaf-like bract at or well below the middle of the stem. The bract is similar to the basal leaves only smaller. It is stalkless or on a short stalk, but does not clasp the stem. The inflorescence is a single flower held erect at the end of the stem. The flowers are ¾″ to 1½″ wide. Each flower has 5 green sepals and 5 white, ⅜″ to 11 ⁄16″ long petals with conspicuous, dark green veins. The 5 center veins of each petal are usually unbranched. There are 5 white stamens with brown anthers. There are also 5 white sterile stamens (staminodes) that are divided into 3 filaments for 3 ⁄5 or 4 ⁄5 of their length, each filament topped with an anther reduced to a gland. The staminodes are a little shorter than the stamens. The fruit is a 4-valved, egg-shaped, 5 ⁄16″ to ½″ long capsule with numerous seeds. |
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Height |
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8″ to 16″ |
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Flower Color |
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White with dark green veins |
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Similar Species |
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| Marsh grass of Parnassus (Parnassia palustris) has a larger bract, as large as the basal leaves. The bract clasps the stem. The staminodes are green or yellow, and are divided near the tip into 9 to 23 filaments. | ||
Habitat |
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Wet. Calcareous bogs, meadows, shores. |
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Biology |
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Flowering |
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August to October |
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Use |
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Distribution |
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Sources |
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| 12/26/2011 | ||||
Nativity |
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Native |
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Occurrence |
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Taxonomy |
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| Kingdom | Plantae (green algae and land plants) | ||
| Subkingdom | Viridiplantae (green plants) | ||
| Infrakingdom | Streptophyta (land plants and green algae) | ||
| Superdivision | Embryophyta (land plants) | ||
| Division | Tracheophyta (vascular plants) | ||
| Subdivision | Spermatophytina (seed plants) | ||
| Class | Magnoliopsida (flowering plants) | ||
| Superorder | Rosanae | ||
Order |
Celastrales (staff-vines and allies) | ||
Family |
Celastraceae (bittersweet) | ||
| Subfamily | Parnassioideae | ||
Genus |
Parnassia (grass of Parnassus) | ||
Subordinate Taxa |
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Synonyms |
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Parnassia americana |
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Common Names |
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American grass-of-Parnassus fen grass of Parnassus fen grass-of-Parnassus |
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Glossary
Bract
Modified leaf at the base of a flower stalk, flower cluster, or inflorescence.
Caudex
A short, thickened, woody, persistent enlargement of the stem, at or below ground level, used for water storage.
Clasping
Describing a leaf that wholly or partly surrounds the stem but does not fuse at the base.
Scape
An erect, leafless stalk growing from the rootstock and supporting a flower or a flower cluster.
Sepal
An outer floral leaf, usually green but sometimes colored, at the base of a flower.
Staminode
A modified stamen that produces no pollen. It often has no anther.
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