Favoritos de iacomaner

These highly branched plants were sprawling, as shown in the first photo. They had opposite leaves with a few somewhat blunt teeth per side. Stems had hairs in a line on one side. Flowers were in head-like, sessile clusters that were about 5-7 mm across. The 5 tepals were white, and about 2 mm long. The two bracts underneath were about 1 mm long. Fruits were flat on the sides, rounded in profile, notched above like some Lepidium, and 1.5 mm long by 1.5 mm wide. The single seeds were round, smooth with an apical notch, and about 0.8 mm across. These keyed to A. sessilis per FNA.

Growing in a more or less abandoned field. No longer used for agricultural purposes. Occasionally bushhogged. Soil is loamy. Presumably former bottomland habitat based on a single remaining old growth shagbark hickory (C. ovata) in the tree line. Leaves are narrow and glabrous, almost succulent like. Fairly common in this particular field.

Coastal pond shore.
Persicaria punctata is the most common wetland Persicaria on Martha’s Vineyard, but there are no previous iNaturalist observations from the Island. Apparently, Vineyard naturalists are steering clear of wetlands.
Diffusely spotted tepals rule out Persicaria setacea (unknown on MV) and P. hydropiperoides. Narrow leaves, sparsely flowered inflorescences, and ciliate ocreolae in the upper parts of the inflorescences rule out P. robustior (unknown on MV). Lustrous achenes rule out P. hydropiper (uncommon on MV). Keyed according to Arthur Haines, Flora Novae Angliae 2011.