Saxifraga oppositifolia

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Saxifraga oppositifolia
Purpsaxifrage2.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Saxifragales
Family: Saxifragaceae
Genus: Saxifraga
Species:
S. oppositifolia
Binomial name
Saxifraga oppositifolia
L.
Saxifraga oppositifolia - MHNT Saxifraga oppositifolia MHNT.BOT.2009.13.38.jpg
Saxifraga oppositifolia - MHNT

Saxifraga oppositifolia, the purple saxifrage or purple mountain saxifrage, [1] is a species of plant that is very common in the high Arctic and also some high mountainous areas further south, including northern Britain, the Alps and the Rocky Mountains.

Contents

Saxifraga oppositifolia grows at a latitude of 83°40'N on Kaffeklubben Island, making it one of the northernmost plants in the world.

Description

Saxifraga oppositifolia is a low-growing, densely or loosely matted plant growing up to 5 cm (2 in) high, with somewhat woody branches of creeping or trailing habit close to the surface. The leaves are small, rounded, scale-like, opposite in four rows with ciliated margins. The flowers are solitary on short stalks, petals purple or lilac, much longer than the calyx lobes. It is one of the first spring flowers, continuing to flower during the whole summer in localities where the snow melts later. The flowers grow to about 1 cm (12 in) in diameter.

Ecology

Habitat

Saxifraga oppositifolia grows in all kinds of cold temperate to Arctic habitats, usually found from sea level up to 1,000 m (3,300 ft), in many places colouring the landscape. Its native habitats include tundra, arctic coastal bluffs, alpine scree, and rock crevices. [2]

Swiss botanist Christian Körner found the plant growing at an elevation of 4,505 m (14,780 ft) in the Swiss alps, making it the highest elevation angiosperm in Europe. [3] It is even known to grow on Kaffeklubben Island in north Greenland, [4] at 83°N40°E / 83°N 40°E / 83; 40 , the most northerly plant locality in the world.

Species interactions

The flowers of Saxifraga oppositifolia may be consumed by certain animal species, such as the caterpillars of the cold-adapted Gynaephora groenlandica , the Arctic woolly-bear caterpillar. [5]

Uses

Saxifraga oppositifolia is a popular plant in alpine gardens, though difficult to grow in warm climates.

Purple Mountain Saxifrage (Saxifraga oppositifolia) by William Catto (1916) Purple Mountain Saxifrage (Saxifraga oppositifolia) - William Catto - ABDAG016202.jpg
Purple Mountain Saxifrage (Saxifraga oppositifolia) by William Catto (1916)

The edible flower petals are eaten, particularly in parts of Nunavut without abundant berries. They are bitter at first but, after about one second, they become sweet. (They are also slightly sticky.) It is known to the Inuit as aupilaktunnguat. The leaves and stems are brewed for herbal tea: According to many Nunavummiut, the tea is best later in the season once the flowers have died. [6]

Saxifraga oppositifolia serves as the territorial flower of Nunavut in Canada, [6] a symbolic flower of Nordland county in Norway, and the county flower of County Londonderry in Northern Ireland.

Taxonomy

There are a few subspecies of Saxifraga oppositifolia, including:

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Saxifraga flagellaris, the whiplash saxifrage or flagellate saxifrage, is a plant native all over the Eurasian Arctic Coast, Siberia, Far East, Caucasus and some areas of northern Rocky Mountains. It is not very common. It is also known as spider saxifrage or "spider plant", though the latter name more commonly refers to the unrelated Chlorophytum comosum (Agavaceae).

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<i>Saxifraga cespitosa</i> Species of flowering plant

Saxifraga cespitosa, the tufted alpine saxifrage or tufted saxifrage, is a flower common to many arctic heights. It appears further south in mountainous areas of the Alps, Norway, Scotland, Wales, Iceland, Siberia, western North America and Greenland.

<i>Saxifraga paniculata</i> Species of flowering plant

Saxifraga paniculata is an alpine species of flowering plant in the saxifrage family, with native distribution in the temperate northern hemisphere. Common names include alpine saxifrage, encrusted saxifrage, lifelong saxifrage, lime-encrusted saxifrage, livelong saxifrage, white mountain saxifrage, and silver saxifrage.

<i>Micranthes virginiensis</i> Species of flowering plant

Micranthes virginiensis, the early saxifrage, or Virginia saxifrage, is a wildflower native to eastern and central North America.

<i>Saxifraga aizoides</i> Species of flowering plant

Saxifraga aizoides, yellow mountain saxifrage or yellow saxifrage, is a flowering alpine plant of the genus Saxifraga.

<i>Papaver radicatum</i> Species of flowering plant in the poppy family Papaveraceae

Papaver radicatum is a species of poppy known by the common names Arctic poppy, rooted poppy, and yellow poppy. It is a flowering plant in the family Papaveraceae.

<i>Saxifraga rivularis</i> Species of saxifrage

Saxifraga rivularis is a species of saxifrage known by several common names, including highland saxifrage, weak saxifrage, alpine brook saxifrage, and pygmy saxifrage.

<i>Saxifraga aspera</i> Species of saxifrage

Saxifraga aspera is a species of saxifrage known by the common name of rough saxifrage. In German it is known as Rauhhaariger Steinbrech. It is placed in section Trachyphyllum of the genus Saxifraga. There are two subspecies, Saxifraga aspera subsp. aspera and Saxifraga aspera subsp. micrantha. It is a plant of the pan-Arctic tundra and is also found in Europe at moderately high altitudes in the Alps, Pyrenees and northern Apennines.

<i>Micranthes</i> Genus of flowering plants in the family Saxifragaceae

Micranthes is a genus of flowering plants in the saxifrage family. It was formerly included within the genus Saxifraga until recent DNA evidence showed the members of what is now Micranthes are more closely related to Boykinia and Heuchera than to other members of the genus Saxifraga.

Saxifraga nathorstii, Nathorst's saxifrage, is a species of flowering plant belonging to the family Saxifragaceae. Saxifraga nathorstii is a putative allotetraploid hydrid between S. aizoides and S. oppositifolia, and morphologically intermediate, even in terms of pollen, between the parent species.

<i>Saxifraga crustata</i> Species of plant

Saxifraga crustata, the crusted-leaved saxifraga and silver saxifrage, as well as encrusted saxifrage, is an evergreen perennial plant species in the family Saxifragaceae, native to the Eastern Alps. This species was described by Austrian botanist Lorenz Chrysanth von Vest in 1804.

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References

  1. "ITIS Standard Report Page: Saxifraga oppositifolia". Itis.gov. 10 April 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
  2. "Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin". www.wildflower.org. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  3. Körner, Christian (2011). "Coldest places on earth with angiosperm plant life". Alpine Botany. 121 (1): 11–22. doi:10.1007/s00035-011-0089-1. S2CID   22796093.
  4. "Template". Sagaxexpeditions.com. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
  5. Kukal, Olga; Dawson, Todd E. (1989-06-01). "Temperature and food quality influences feeding behavior, assimilation efficiency and growth rate of arctic woolly-bear caterpillars". Oecologia. 79 (4): 526–532. doi:10.1007/BF00378671. ISSN 0029-8549.
  6. 1 2 Official Flower of Nunavut, Nunavut, Canada
  7. "ITIS Standard Report Page: Saxifraga oppositifolia ssp. glandulisepala". Itis.gov. 10 April 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
  8. "ITIS Standard Report Page: Saxifraga oppositifolia ssp. oppositifolia". Itis.gov. 10 April 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
  9. "ITIS Standard Report Page: Saxifraga oppositifolia ssp. smalliana". Itis.gov. 10 April 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2013.