Houstonia montana Small

Locations ofHoustonia montana Small in Virginia

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Detail

Family
Rubiaceae
Botanical Name
Houstonia montana Small
Common Name
Roan Mountain Bluets
Synonym(s)
Houstonia purpurea L. var. montana (Small) Terrell; Hedyotis purpurea (L.) T.& G. var. montana (Small) Fosberg
Flora of Virginia Name/Status
Houstonia montana Small
Comments
A narrow Southern Blue Ridge, high-elevation endemic and federally listed taxon discovered in Virginia in 2013. It resembles a glabrous, dwarfed form of Houstonia purpurea, and has often been treated as a var. of that species. However, recent studies demonstrate that it is distinct; see Church and Taylor (2005) in Amer. J. Bot. 92: 1372-1380 and Glennon et al. (2011) in J. Torrey Bot. Soc. 138: 272-286.
Habitat
Crevices and shelves on lip and faces of a rhyolite cliff at elev. 4600 ft. in the Balsam Mountains at Grayson Highlands State Park. Thirty-seven clumps of this species occur here at a new northern range limit in association with Hydatica petiolaris, Heuchera villosa var. villosa, Solidago roanensis, Asplenium montanum, etc. (G.P. Fleming 15915 and K.D. Patterson, at VPI, NCU). Rare, mountains (Southern Blue Ridge province).
Native Status
Native

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