Polanisia dodecandra
Encyclopedia
Polanisia dodecandra is a species of flowering plant in the Cleome
family, Cleomaceae
, known by the common name redwhisker clammyweed, or simply clammyweed, although there are other Polanisia species called 'clammyweed'. It is an annual plant
that is found in many types of habitat throughout much of Canada
and the United States
. It can be found elsewhere as an introduced species
.
The species scientific name
derives from the fact that the plant has many stamens of unequal lengths.
Cleome
Cleome is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cleomaceae. Previously it had been placed in family Capparaceae, until DNA studies found the Cleomaceae genera to be more closely related to Brassicaceae than Capparaceae...
family, Cleomaceae
Cleomaceae
Cleomaceae is a small family of flowering plants in the order Brassicales, comprising about 300 species in 10 genera. These genera were previously included in the family Capparaceae, but were raised to a distinct family when DNA evidence showed that the genera included in it are more closely...
, known by the common name redwhisker clammyweed, or simply clammyweed, although there are other Polanisia species called 'clammyweed'. It is an annual plant
Annual plant
An annual plant is a plant that usually germinates, flowers, and dies in a year or season. True annuals will only live longer than a year if they are prevented from setting seed...
that is found in many types of habitat throughout much of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It can be found elsewhere as an introduced species
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
.
The species scientific name
Binomial nomenclature
Binomial nomenclature is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin grammatical forms, although they can be based on words from other languages...
derives from the fact that the plant has many stamens of unequal lengths.