Pyrola minor, known by the common names snowline wintergreen,[2] lesser wintergreen, and common wintergreen, is a plant species of the genus Pyrola. It is a perennial herb or subshrub growing up to 1 ft (0.30 m) tall.[3] It has a Circumboreal distribution and can be found throughout the northern latitudes of Eurasia and North America.[4] It grows in moist areas.[5] Flowers bloom June to August.[5] The plant is mostly self-pollinating; it does not even bother to attract pollinators with the scent of its flowers or by secreting nectar.[6]

Pyrola minor

Secure  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Ericaceae
Genus: Pyrola
Species:
P. minor
Binomial name
Pyrola minor

Description

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The fruit of pyrola minor

It is a sclerophyll, with leaves that appear in rosettes.[6] The blades are 2-5 cm wide[6] and simple and basal in arrangement.[4] They are quite thin, broadly elliptic with a round or abruptly tapering tip. The leaf-stalk is usually shorter than the blade. The spherical flowers are nodding, 5-7 mm wide. The sepals are triangular. Gynoecia are inside the flower, with a short style.[6] Flowers have five petals that are pale pink to rose in color.[5] The fruit of the flower are nodding 5-segmented capsules; the style of the gynoecia are preserved at the tip of the capsule.[6]

References

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  1. ^ NatureServe (2024). "Pyrola minor". Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  2. ^ USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "​Pyrola minor​". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
  3. ^ "Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin". www.wildflower.org. Retrieved 2024-03-02.
  4. ^ a b "Pyrola minor (little shinleaf): Go Botany". gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org. Retrieved 2024-03-02.
  5. ^ a b c "Pyrola minor - Burke Herbarium Image Collection". burkeherbarium.org. Retrieved 2024-03-02.
  6. ^ a b c d e Piirainen, Mikko; Piirainen, Pirkko; Vainio, Hannele (1999). Kotimaan luonnonkasvit [Native wild plants] (in Finnish). Porvoo: WSOY. p. 190. ISBN 951-0-23001-4.
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