Polygala sanguinea (Field Milkwort)

Polygala sanguinea

Polygala sanguinea L.

Polygala viridescens L.

Field Milkwort, Blood Milkwort, Purple Milkwort

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
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	Rosidae	Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more
Order	Polygalales	Includes milkwort, krameria, and Barbados cherry families
Family	Polygalaceae	Milkwort family. Also called Diclidantheraceae, Moutabeaceae, Xanthophyllaceae)
Genus	Polygala	From Greek polys, “many or much,” and gala, “milk,” since some of these species were believed to increase milk yields in cattle
Species	sanguinea	From Latin sanguineus, "blood red" (from Stearn's Botanical Latin)

About plant names...

Field milkwort is a North American native plant.

Identification: Plants are 3-16" (7.6-40 cm) in height, with a hairless stem, although it may look pock-marked and irregular near the top from flowers that have dropped away. A cross-section of the stem resembles the keel of a ship or has four sharply-defined edges. Leaves are linear or narrowly elliptic, attached directly to the stem (sessile) or via very short stems, up to 1" (3 cm) × ¹/₁₆-⅛" (2-5 mm). They may be either alternate or opposite. Flowers are a compact raceme atop each stem, which may be white, pale green, or pink or rose-colored. The coloring comes from enlarged sepals called “wings.” The entire flowerhead is up to ¾" (2 cm) tall and about ⅜" (1 cm) around. They appear from May to October.

Online References:

Polygala sanguinea at Illinois Wildflowers

Polygala sanguinea on Missouriplants.com

Polygala sanguinea on Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses

Polygala sanguinea on the New England Wildflower Society’s GoBotany site

Polygala sanguinea on luirig.altervista.org

Polygala sanguinea on Discover Life

Polygala sanguinea on ct-botanical-society.org

Polygala sanguinea at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Polygala sanguinea at the University of Wisconsin's Robert W. Freckmann Herbarium

References:

Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest, Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 82

9/16/2013 · Townsend Wildlife Management Area, Townsend, MA
≈ 6 × 5" (16 × 13 cm)

8/3/2012 · Bemis Rd Conservation Area, Pepperell, MA
≈ 3½ × 3" (9.7 × 8.3 cm)

7/6/2017 · Mt. Watatic, access road, Ashby, MA
≈ 4 × 6" (11 × 16 cm)

9/16/2013 · Townsend Wildlife Management Area, Townsend, MA
≈ 6 × 6" (15 × 14 cm)

Individual flowers are bilaterally symmetrical, and consist of two “wings,” which are actually sepals; and a smaller yellow corolla, the true flower. There are also three more sepals and three petals, but they are too small to see in this view. · 9/6/2018