Chelone glabra
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Photo courtesy Renee Brecht |
Britton & Brown |
| Botanical name: | Chelone glabra |
| Common name: | turtlehead |
| Synonomy: | Chelone chlorantha Chelone montana |
| Group: | dicot |
| Family: | Scrophulariaceae |
| Growth type: | forb/herb |
| Duration: | perennial |
| Origin: | native |
| Plant height: | 1 - 3' |
| Foliage: | Opposite, oblong leaves, 3-6" narrow, sharply toothed, stalkless or nearly so. |
| Flower: | white, sometimes tinted with pink, 1 - 1.5" |
| Flowering time: | flowers July - September; fruits September - October. Fruit is a capsule |
| Habitat: | streambanks, open swamps, and damp ground |
| Range in New Jersey: | throughout north Jersey, the Inner Coastal Plain and Cape May County |
| Heritage ranking, if any: | n/a |
| Distribution: |  |
| Misc. | In NJ, Chelone is an obligate wetland species; i.e., Occurs almost always (estimated probability 99%) under
natural conditions in wetlands. Chelone, Greek for tortoise. Historically, Chelone has been used as a tonic, laxative, and purgative. |