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COMMON, FIELD, or PURPLE MILKWORT; PURPLE POLYGALA
(Polygala viridescens; P. sanguinca of Gray) Milkwort family
Flowers - Numerous, very small, variable; bright magenta, pink,
or almost red, or pale to whiteness, or greenish, clustered in a
globular clover-like head, gradually lengthening to a cylindric
spike. Stem: 6 to 15 in. high, smooth, branched above, leafy.
Leaves: Alternate, narrowly oblong, entire.
Preferred Habitat - Fields and meadows, moist or sandy.
Flowering Season - June-September.
Distribution - Southern Canada to North Carolina, westward to the
Mississippi.
When these bright clover-like heads and the inconspicuous
greenish ones grow together, the difference between them is so
striking it is no wonder Linnaeus thought they were borne by two
distinct species, sanguinea and viridescens, whereas they are now
known to be merely two forms of the same flower. At first glance
one might mistake the irregular little blossom for a member of
the pea family; two of the five very unequal sepals - not petals
- are colored wings.


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