Angiosperms (Flowering Plants) • Earth.com

Sharpwing monkeyflower

(Mimulus alatus)

galery
en

Description

Mimulus alatus, the sharpwing monkeyflower, is an herbaceous eudicot perennial that has no floral scent. It is native to North America and its blooming season is from June to September. The flowering plant has green foliage and blue to violet flowers. It has a short life span compared to most other plants and a rapid growth rate. Like other monkey-flowers of the genus Mimulus, M. alatus grows best in wet to moist conditions and has a bilabiate corolla, meaning it is two-lipped. The arrangement of the upper and lower lip petals suggests a monkey’s face. The winged stems together with the monkey face give the plant its common name. Mimulus alatus is a native species to eastern North America; its range stretches from Connecticut, down south to Florida and extends as far west as Nebraska and Texas. It is most commonly found in central and lower Mississippi valley, and considered rare in Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York and Ontario. The sharp wing monkey-flower is a perennial that grows best under partial sun exposure and wet to moist conditions. It has been found in a variety of wetland types such as edges of small rivers, swamps, shady stream banks, wet woods, marshes, wet meadows, ditches, springs, etc.Full sun is tolerable but when it is grown in habitats that are too dry and sunny, the sharp wing monkey-flower remains small in size and becomes yellowish green. During its season it can endure occasional flooding and foliar disease is infrequent. It prefers a slightly acidic to neutral soil pH of 5.6-7.5 that contains plenty of organic matter.Temperatures below -23 °F are not survivable.

Taxonomic tree:

Domain:
Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order:Lamiales
Family:Phrymaceae
Genus:Mimulus
News coming your way
The biggest news about our planet delivered to you each day