Angiosperms: Dicotyledons

Scrophulariaceae
Figwort Family

• Stem: perennial; 3’ to 5’ tall; squarish; unbranched; smooth.
• Leaves: opposite; oval with abrupt bases and pointed tips; blades 3” by 1 3/8”; “winged” leaf stalks 1”, smooth; margins double-toothed; smooth above and below.
• Inflorescence: panicles from the upper stem nodes, 6” to 8” long, cylindrical; flowers widely spaced; hairy (glandular).
• Flowers: corolla green (to reddish brown), cup-shaped, 5/8” long, with two lobes above and three below (1/16” to 1/8” long); sterile stamen at the back (within the flower), flat, broad with a blunt, yellow head; calyx small, 1/8” long; flowering from late May to late June.
• Fruits: capsules, 1/4” long, widest at the base, tapering to a point; splitting into two halves; fruiting begins in mid-June.
• Habitat: frequent on dry and sandy prairies, also on mesic prairies, in open woods, on pastures, and on roadsides in northeastern Iowa; becoming less frequent to the south and west.
• Notes: Another figwort, Scrophularia marilandica L., with a dark purple or brown sterile stamen, is usually restricted to open woods.
• Bibliography from Biodiversity Heritage Library
• Vascular Plants of Iowa