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Buckbean
Menyanthes trifoliata
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A perennial growing in northern bogs and ponds. Named 'mitsugashiwa' (three oaks) because the trifoliate leaves resemble oak leaves. In spring, it produces white star-shaped flowers with conspicuous fringed hairs on the inner surface of the petals.
Identification Points
- βLeaves are trifoliate (three leaflets)
- βWhite 5-petaled flowers with dense, curly white hairs on the inner petal surface
- βThick rhizomes creep through the water, sending up petioles
Habitat
Raised bogs and shallow margins of ponds
Season
MayβJuly (flowers)
Morphological TraitsAI-estimated, needs verification
Growth form
Herb
Leaf type
Compound
Habitat
Aquatic
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Petal count
Many
Petal fusion
Fused
Stipules
Absent
Leaf dissection
Undivided
Flower symmetry
Actinomorphic
Plant sex
Hermaphrodite
Compound type
Ternate
Stamen count
5
Phylogenetic Positionγγγ¬γ·γ―η§ β
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Eudicots > Core eudicots > Asterales > Menyanthaceae
Divergence Era
Paleogene to Neogene
Evolution Notes
Menyanthaceae was formerly included in Apocynaceae but is now treated as an independent family. The petal hairs are thought to serve as footholds for insects, enhancing pollination efficiency.
View on evolution timeline βSources & References
AI-generated, needs verification