Moneses

Moss eye ( Moneses uniflora )

The moss eye ( Moneses uniflora ), also Einblütiges wintergreen, is a plant species in the subfamily Monotropoideae within the family Ericaceae ( Ericaceae ), which can be found primarily in coniferous forests.

Description

These are perennial herbaceous plants ( chamaephytes or geophytes ), which have an underground, branched, slender rhizome spread than organ - clonal growth is frequently observed. With its evergreen foliage leaves, the plants survive the winter above ground in a vegetative state. It shows the fruit provided with only very narrow longitudinal columns upwards, though the flower had previously directed downward. The dust- fine, " bargain chip -shaped " seeds are sown only in the course of a few months ( "Winter Stayers ").

At the rhizome shiny leaves appear in a basal rosette. The roundish leaves have a diameter of 1 to 2 cm. The petiole is as long as or slightly shorter than the diameter of the blades. The leaf margin is covered with small teeth.

Only one bloom appears per rosette of leaves; it grows terminally on a 5 to 15 cm tall flower stalk in a lantern -shaped bent ( nodding ) shape. About 1 cm below the blossom sit one or two small, lanceolate bracts. The corolla has a diameter of 1.5 to 2 cm. The white petals are wheel-shaped spread and often see a little wrinkled from. The sepals are oval and whitish to whitish- greenish. The stamens are bent S- shaped; the stylus is straight and not thickened beneath the scar. The flower has a delicious scent reminiscent of the lily of the valley. Flowering season is from May to October.

Distribution and habitat requirements

The moss eye is widespread in the northern hemisphere; in Eurasia, it comes from the Pyrenees and central Europe east to Japan and Kamchatka before, also in North America. It prefers cool and temperate regions. In warmer regions it is confined to the mountains, for example in North America in the Rocky Mountains to New Mexico.

It grows mainly in spruce and fir forests on shady, mossy places, but also in oak and pine forests with acidic soils. Together with the spruce culture, it has been widely abducted, especially in Europe, but today is still in many regions of the rare, endangered species.

System

The moss eye was originally made ​​as Pyrola uniflora in the genre of winter green ( Pyrola ). This synonym is used even today from time to time. Meanwhile, the type but generally assigned to the genus Moneses.