NC Native Plant Society:
Plant Details
Saururus cernuus
Lizard's-tail, Water-dragon, American Swamp Lily
Scientific Name: |
Saururus cernuus |
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Genus: |
Saururus |
Species Epithet: |
cernuus |
Common Name: |
Lizard's-tail, Water-dragon, American Swamp Lily |
Plant Type |
Herb/Wildflower |
Life Cycle |
Perennial |
Plant Family |
Saururaceae(Lizard's-Tail Family) |
Native/Alien: |
NC Native |
Invasive Status: |
(*Key) |
Size: |
1-3 ft., 3-6 ft. |
Bloom Color(s): |
White |
Light: |
Sun - 6 or more hours of sun per day, Part Shade - 2 to 6 hours of sun per day, Less than 2 hours of sun per day |
Soil Moisture: |
Moist, Wet |
Bloom Time: |
May, June, July, August, September |
Growing Area: |
Mountains, Piedmont, Sandhills, Coastal Plain |
Habitat Description: |
Swamps, overwash pools in stream floodplains, freshwater and oligohaline tidal marshes, semipermanently inundated rocky bars and shores, beaver ponds, ditches, usually where water ponds seasonally or periodically. Common in the coastal plain and most of the piedmont; less common in w. Piedmont and rare in the Mountains. |
Leaf Arrangement: |
Alternate |
Leaf Retention: |
Deciduous |
Leaf Type: |
Leaves veined, not needle-like or scale-like |
Leaf Form: |
Simple |
Life Cycle: |
Perennial |
Wildlife Value: |
Has some wildlife value |
Landscape Value: |
Suitable for home landscapes |
State Rank: |
S5: Secure (*Key) |
Global Rank: |
G5 - Secure (*Key) |
Notes: |
Colonial and can spread aggressively. |
Growing by a stream Orange County, NC Bettina Darveaux |
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Inflorescence emerges from a lower node water garden in Orange County, NC Bettina Darveaux |
|
The inflorescence is a very dense raceme of tiny white flowers in a narrow spire, having a distinctly drooping tip. The progression of flower opening is from the base upwards. Garden in Orange County, NC Bettina Darveaux |
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Links: |
https://auth1.dpr.ncparks.gov/flora/plant_list.php https://nc.audubon.org/conservation/bird-friendly-communities/bird-friendly-native-plants https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/saururus-cernuus/ https://gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org/species/saururus/cernuus/ |
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