North Carolina Wildflowers, Shrubs, & Trees

by Jeffrey S. Pippen | Back to Jeff's Plant Page | Jeff's Nature Pages

Aristolochiaceae

Wild Ginger (Asarum canadense) Wild Ginger (Asarum canadense)
Graham Co., NC
28 Apr 2006

Uncommon and found in rich woods in the mountains & scattered localities across the piedmont in NC, the flowers of this species grow at the base of the plant and have no petals. The floral tube is made up of fused sepals.

Wild Ginger (Asarum canadense) Wild Ginger (Asarum canadense)
Graham Co., NC
28 Apr 2006
Pipevine (Aristolochia macrophylla) Pipevine (Aristolochia macrophylla)
Buncombe Co., NC
8 July 2006

Common in NC mountain forests, this is a caterpillar host plant for Pipevine Swallowtails, as evidenced by all the chewing that's been going on with these leaves!

Pipevine (Aristolochia macrophylla) Pipevine (Aristolochia macrophylla)
Buncombe Co., NC
8 July 2006

Young fruit. Note that some authorities classify this plant as Isotrema macrophylla.

Annotated habitat and distribution information listed above is from Radford, Ahles, & Bell. 1968. Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas. UNC Press; and from personal observations and discussions with Will Cook, Harry LeGrand, and Bob Wilbur. Common names from personal experience and supplemented by the following resources USDA plants website, Flora of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Georgia, and NatureServe.

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Created on May 10, 2006 | jeffpippen9@gmail.com