General: Perennial herb from a short rootstock and fibrous root; stems ascending to erect, usually solitary, simple, 10-25 (30) cm tall.
Leaves: Basal leaves egg-shaped to elliptic, 1-2 cm long, blunt to heart-shaped at the base, entire, the stalks 1.5-4 times as long as the blades; stem leaves solitary, reduced, 2.8-3 cm long, located below midlength.
Flowers: Inflorescence of single terminal flowers; petals 5, white, narrowly to broadly egg-shaped, 6-12 mm long, usually 7- to 13-veined; sterile stamens with a thickened base flared upwards and divided into 15 slender segments.
Fruits: Capsules egg-shaped, 10-12 mm long; seeds numerous.
1. Petals fringed or comb-like on the lower half...................P. fimbriata
1. Petals not frnged or comb-like on the lower half.
2. Flowering stems bractless or with a near-basal bract; petals 1-3 (5) veined.............P. kotzebuei
2. Flowering stems usually with a bract above the level of the basal leaves; petals 5-13-veined.
3. Petals 7-13-veined, 6-12 mm long; sterile stamens cleft into up to 15 slender divisions; leaves often blunt or heart-shaped at base...................P. palustris
3. Petals usually 5-veined, usually 4-8 mm long; sterile stamens cleft into up to 7 slender divisions; leaves tapered at base....................P. parviflora
Source: Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
Habitat / Range
Moist to wet meadows, fens and streambanks in the montane and subalpine zones; common throughout all but extreme S BC east of the Coast-Cascade Mountains; circumpolar, N to AK, YT and NT, E to NF and S to MI, ND, WY and CA; Iceland, Eurasia.
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range. (Updated August, 2013)
