Agalinis purpurea (Purple false foxglove)

FloraFinder uses cookies only for correct operation. More info. Okay

Agalinis purpurea (L.) Pennell

Purple false foxglove, smooth gerardia

Purple false foxglove is a North American native plant.

Plants: 4–40″ (10–101 cm) tall, hairless, supported with delicate four-angled stems that flop over if there is no nearby vegetation. Stems and leaves turn purple in early fall.

Leaves: Opposite, linear, ¾–1¾″ (1.9–4.4 cm) long, and thinner than most grass blades. Some leaves branch into smaller leaves.

Flowers: Lavender- to purple- to pink-colored flowers appear in loose racemes. They are roughly trumpet-shaped, with the trumpet pointing sideways but bending upward; and bilaterally symmetrical, with two upper lobes, two lower lobes, and a bottom lobe. Flowers are ½–1″ (1.3–2.5 cm) in size. The central throat of each flower is white, with purple spots. Flowers appear August to September.

Fruits: Flowers are replaced by shiny seed-filled rounded capsules ⅛–¼″ (3.2–6.3 mm) in diameter.

Habitats: Sandy, gravelly, rocky shores, meadows, mashes, bogs, tidal marshes.

Online References:

Illinois Wildflowers

North Carolina Wildflowers, Shrubs, & Trees, by Jeff Pippen

Delaware Wildflowers

Minnesota Wildflowers

Luirig.altervista.org

References:

Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest, Oxford University Press, 2006

Agalinis purpurea (L.) Pennell var. carteri Pennell
Gerardia purpurea L.
Gerardia purpurea L. var. carteri (Pennell) Pennell
Gerardia purpurea L. var. grandiflora Benth.
Gerardia purpurea L. ssp. parvula Pennell

9/4/2013 · Amos Kendall Conservation Area, Dunstable, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 8″ (12 × 19 cm)

4/14/2015 · Long Pine Key, Everglades National Park, Florida · ≈ 4 × 6″ (10 × 14 cm)

9/1/2012 · Bemis Rd Conservation Area, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (17 × 11 cm)

8/15/2016 · Worcester Road Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hampshire

4/12/2015 · Shark Valley, Everglades National Park, Florida · ≈ 2 × 2½″ (6 × 6.6 cm)

8/28/2021 · Otter Brrok Preserve, Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 2 × 1¾″ (5.7 × 4.7 cm)

9/10/2016 · Worcester Road Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hampshire

9/1/2012 · Bemis Rd Conservation Area, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 4″ (15 × 10 cm)

9/4/2013 · Amos Kendall Conservation Area, Dunstable, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 8″ (12 × 19 cm)

7/31/2012 · Bemis Rd Conservation Area, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 3 × 2½″ (8.1 × 6.5 cm)

8/28/2020 · Jack’s and Litchfield Trails, Chase Reserve, Brunswick, Maine · ≈ 4½ × 3″ (11 × 7.8 cm)

9/1/2012 · Bemis Rd Conservation Area, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 4½″ (13 × 11 cm)

9/1/2012 · Bemis Rd Conservation Area, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 10 × 14″ (26 × 35 cm)

9/17/2021 · Woodward Point Preserve, Brunswick, Maine · ≈ 3½ × 5″ (9.4 × 12 cm)

10/27/2017 · Bemis Road Conservation Area, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 8″ (13 × 20 cm)

4/12/2015 · Shark Valley, Everglades National Park, Florida · ≈ 4½ × 5″ (12 × 12 cm)

8/17/2020 · Otter Brrok Preserve, Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 4 × 6″ (10 × 15 cm)

8/17/2020 · Otter Brrok Preserve, Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 4 × 3½″ (10 × 8.9 cm)

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin)
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Lamiales	Aromatic herbs and shrubs, including lavender, lilac, olive, jasmine, ash, teak, snapdragon, sesame, psyllium, garden sage, mint, basil, and rosemary
Family	Orobanchaceae	Broomrape family of parasitic plants
Genus	Agalinis	Botanical Latin: “remarkable flax”
Species	purpurea	Greek “purple”

About plant names...

Range:

About this map...

Agalinis purpurea description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.