Polygala nana
A small annual herb in Polygalaceae, 4–6 inches tall, with unbranched stems and basal rosettes, bearing lemon-yellow flowers in capitate racemes and flowering year-round in moist piney woods or wet meadows of the southeastern United States (AL, AR, FL, GA, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, TX).
Common Names
Candyroot, Bachelor's Buttons, Dwarf Milkwort, Nana Polygala, Nana Milkwort, Senega Nana, Tinípong Bángsà
Summary
Candyroot is a dwarf milkwort, a small annual or biennial herb in the Polygalaceae described by Michx. and named by de Candolle. It is typically unbranched with basal leaves forming a persistent rosette and bears a capitate raceme of lemon-yellow to greenish-yellow flowers arranged as a yellow, compact cluster at the end of the stem, about 1.5 inches long, reaching 0.3–1.8 dm in height.
Its distribution spans AL, AR, FL, GA, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, and TX, and its natural habitats include savannas, sandy pine woods, low wet woods, seepage slopes, bogs, and coastal swales at elevations of 0–300 m.
Lifecycle
Annual, Biennial, Perennial
Height
4-6 inches
Sunlight Requirements
Ideally full sun
Soil Type
Moist, well-drained sandy soil
Soil Drainage
Well-drained
Bloom Color
Yellow
Bloom Time
Spring
Leaf Lifecycle
Evergreen broadleaf
Growth Rate
Annual or biennial, 4-6 inches tall.
Seasons of Interest
Spring and Summer
Propagation Methods
Seeds and Division
Taxonomy
- Taxonomic Rank
- Species
- Author
- DC.
- Publication
- Prodr. 1: 328 (1824)
Superior Taxa
- Kingdom
- Plantae
- Subkingdom
- Pteridobiotina
- Phylum
- Angiosperms
- Order
- Fabales
- Family
- Polygalaceae
- Genus
- Polygala