Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Malvids: Geraniales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/14/23):
Geranium molle
FAMILY
Geraniaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Check out EDDMapS.org to see where this has been reported.
Read more about Dove's-foot Cranesbill at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Geranium molle
FAMILY
Geraniaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Geranium molle
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Geranium molle
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 101-01-006:
Geranium molle FAMILY Geraniaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Geranium molle
COMMON NAME:
Dove's-foot Cranesbill
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_gemo_001_lvd
)
JK Marlow jkm170430_425
April Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm170430_435
April Greenville County SC
Long petioles appear attached to center of the nearly round basal leaves, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).
COMPARE
leaves of Geranium, Larkspur and Monkshood
)
JK Marlow jkm170430_438
April Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm170430_439
April Greenville County SC
Capsules with a slender beak about 0.4" long, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).
)
Roxanna Martin rlm4211_565
April Spartanburg County SC
)
Roxanna Martin rlm42411_215
April Spartanburg County SC
Sepals 3-4mm long, mucro about 0.3mm long, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
Roxanna Martin rlm42411_228
April Spartanburg County SC
Pistil of 5 carpels united into a long beak, separating at maturity, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
Roxanna Martin rlm4410_060
April Spartanburg County SC
)
Roxanna Martin rlm4911_89
April Spartanburg County SC
All 10 stamens are fertile, but anthers may fall readily, per Weakley's Flora.
)
Roxanna Martin rlm4911_99
April Spartanburg County SC
Petals 3-5mm long, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_geranium_molle_3
April
Petals are about 0.25" long, deeply notched, and bright pink, per Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_geranium_molle_4
April
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/14/23):
Geranium molle
FAMILY
Geraniaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Geranium molle
FAMILY
Geraniaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Geranium molle
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Geranium molle
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 101-01-006:
Geranium molle
FAMILY
Geraniaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Geranium molle
3271
Forb
Winter annual
Habitat: Roadsides, pastures, disturbed areas, per Weakley's Flora
Non-native: Europe & western Asia
Uncommon (rare in Coastal Plain)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Simple - palmately lobed or dissected
Basal & alternate (often opposite when subtending the inflorescence)
FLOWER:
Spring/Summer
Pink
5 sepals
5 petals
10 fertile stamens
Bisexual
FRUIT:
Spring/Summer
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p280
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p375
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p218
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p171
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p205
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p090
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".