Rhexia alifanus

Family: Meadow-beauty (Melastomaceae)

Description: Species of Rhexia are readily recognized by their opposite leaves with 3 parallel veins and their flowers with four petals and 8 jointed stamens. This meadow-beauty (alifanus) differs from all others by its smooth stems and its lanceolate leaves.

Stems are upright, branched or unbranched, smooth, up to 3 feet tall. Leaves are opposite, simple, lanceolate to elliptic, pointed at the tip, tapering to the base, up to 3 inches long, up to 1/2 inch wide, with 3 conspicuous parallel veins, toothless, smooth.

Flowers have few to several in terminal cymes with 4 sepals, triangular, green, smooth, united below to form a vase-like tube, the lobes up to 1/12 inch long, the tube up to 1 inch long. Four petals, purple to rose, up to 1 inch long, slightly hairy with 8 stamens.

Blooms: June to October

Found: Moist to dry pinelands, flatwoods, wet prairies, bogs, roadsides, sandy disturbed areas, savannas.