Black swallow wort

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Black swallow wort

Black swallow wort

Black swallow wort

Black swallow wort inflorescence

Black swallow wort flowers

Black swallow wort stems and leaves

Black swallow wort

Black swallow wort inflorescence

Black swallow wort leaves

Morphology

Stem

Few to several, simple or branched, mostly slender, 3 to 6 feet long, soft-hairy in longitudinal lines.

Leaves

Opposite, widely spreading, narrowly to broadly ovate, 1.2 to 4 inches long, .6 to 2.8 inches wide, short-hairy along veins and margins; tips long-tapering to points; bases rounded to shallowly heart-shaped; stalks 1/10 to 3/5 inch long.

Inflorescence

Cymes, umbel-like, in leaf axils, 5- to 14-flowered; stalks 1/5 to 3/5 inch long.

Flower

1/4 to 1/3 inch across; stalks slender, to 1/4 inch long, short-hairy; calyx lobes 5, narrowly triangular to ovate, green to purplish, sparsely short-hairy; corolla erect or ascending, lobes 5, triangular, dark purple to nearly black, fleshy, inner surface minutely hairy, outer surface glabrous; corona cup-like disc, fleshy, shallowly lobed, dark purple to nearly black.

Fruit

Pods, single or paired, narrowly spindle-shaped, 1.6 to 2.8 inches long, smooth; seeds many, flattened, ovate, to 1/3 inch long, brown, tufted with long, silky white hairs.

Ecology

Habitat

Open disturbed areas, woods, thickets, fence rows, roadsides; moist, sunny places.

Distribution

East 1/3 of Kansas.

Additional Notes

Synonyms

Alternative scientific names that have been used for this plant.