North Carolina Botanical Garden

Plant Index

Scientific Name:
Common Name:
Genus:
Family:

Sarracenia flava

Sarracenia flava L.

yellow pitcherplant, trumpets

Cultivar(s): Sun Warrior

Image ID: 13062
Image by: Cressler, Alan M.
Image Collection: NCBG Digital Library

PLANT INDEX

ID_PLANT: SAFL4
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Sarracenia flava
Include in WOTAS: 1
Publish to Web: 1
Last Modified: 2018-10-30

CULTIVAR INDEX

Cult_id	Cultivar_name	Action
1546	Sun Warrior	View

GENUS INDEX

GENUS CODE: SARRA
GENUS SCIENTIFIC: Sarracenia
GENUS AUTHORITY: L.
GENUS COMMON: Pitcherplant
GENUS SUMMARY: A genus of about 11 species, perennial insectivorous herbs, of e. North America. The sections that have sometimes been recognized do not accord with recent findings about clades and relationships within Sarracenia, so are not recognized here.
GENUS IDENTIFICATION: Identification notes: Hybrids between the various species of pitcher-plants are relatively frequent; see Bell (1952), Bell & Case (1956), Mellichamp (2008), and Mellichamp in FNA (2009) for further discussion. They are usually rather easy to determine, since they show intermediacy in characters, and usually are found in close proximity to both parents.
GENUS REFERENCES: Mellichamp & Case in FNA (2009); McDaniel (1971)=U; Wood (1960)=Z; Schnell & Determann (1997)=Y; Schnell (2002b)=X; Bell (1949)=Q; Case & Case (1976)=V; McPherson (2007); Neyland & Merchant (2006); Schnell (1979, 1981, 1993, 1998, 2002a); Bell (1952); Bell & Case (1956); Reveal (1993); Cheek (1994, 2001); Godt & Hamrick (1999); Naczi et al. (1999); Romanowski (2002); Catalani (2004); Mellichamp (2008).

FAMILY INDEX

FAMILY CODE: SARRAC
FAMILY SCIENTIFIC: Sarraceniaceae
FAMILY AUTHORITY: Dumortier 1829
FAMILY COMMON: Pitcherplant Family
FAMILY SUMMARY: A family of 3 genera and about 22 species, perennial insectivorous herbs, of e. North America (Sarracenia), w. North America (Darlingtonia), and ne. South America (Heliamphora).
FAMILY REFERENCE: Mellichamp in FNA (2009); Neyland & Merchant (2006); Kubitzki in Kubitzki (2004).

NCBG DESCRIPTIVES

INTRO: Carnivorous perennial of wet pine savannas, seepage bogs and pocosins.
STEMS: Stems underground, sending up several leaves and a single flower stalk per plant.
LEAVES: Leaves erect, yellowish-green pitchers (tubes that trap insects) with a hood partially covering the opening, often streaked with red and with a red band around base of hood. A narrow wing runs along length of pitcher. Long, flat, erect leaves (phyllodia) are produced in late summer.
INFLORESCENCE:
FLOWERS: Flower solitary, nodding from top of an erect stalk about equal in height to pitchers, yellow, with 5 drooping petals (2-3 in. long), 5 strongly curved (also yellow) triangular sepals, and an umbrella-shaped structure in the center.
FRUITS:
COMMENTS: Endemic to the southeastern U.S. In the centers of peat domes and large peat-filled Carolina bays, S. flava is sometimes very abundant, occasionally the dominant plant over a large area.
HEIGHT: 2-3 ft.

DURATION: Perennial
HABIT: Herb

LEAF ARRANGEMENT: Alternate, Basal
LEAF COMPLEXITY: Simple
LEAF RETENTION:

FLORAL CHARACTERISTICS
SYMMETRY: Radial (Actinomorphic)
BLOOM TIME: March-April

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
	x	x	x	x

BLOOM COLOR: Yellow

White	Red	Pink	Orange	Yellow	Green	Blue	Lavender	Purple	Violet	Brown	Not Applicable
				x

FRUITING PERIOD: May-Jun.

DISTRIBUTION
HABITAT TYPE: Bogs/pocosins, Pine savannas
NATIVE RANGE: southeastern United States

HORTICULTURAL
Plant Sale Text: Yellow pitcher-plant matures to be one of the tallest of all the southeastern pitcher-plants. This native carnivorous plant attracts bees, wasps, beetles and other insects to its leaf traps by producing nectar. This is one of the first pitcher-plants to bloom in the spring, usually around early April in our area. A brochure on growing native carnivorous plants is available upon request.

Bloom Table Text:

NCBG Location:

Cultural Notes:

SOIL MOISTURE: Average, Moist/Wet
LIGHT EXPOSURE: Sun, Part Shade
MINIMUM HARDINESS ZONE: 5
MAXIMUM HARDINESS ZONE: 9
GERMINATION CODE: 2
WILDLIFE VALUE: Bee Friendly
DEER RESISTANCE:

GRIM ACCESSIONS

acc_id	acc_num	acc_dt	coll_id	Action
1008	1985-0704			View
1143	1985-0894			View
1154	1985-0909			View
1155	1985-0910			View
1156	1985-0911			View
1157	1985-0913			View
1882	1986-1663			View
3305	1990-0169			View
8966	1992-0067	0000-00-00	991	View
9214	2006-0658	2020-05-07	1862	View
9606	2023-0058	2023-03-30		View

GRIM COLLECTIONS

Coll_id	Project	Collection date	Collector	Action
991	HORT	1986-01-01		View
1029	HORT	1979-09-01	Gardner	View
1626	HORT	1982-10-15		View
1862	HORT		Bryan	View

GRIM PLANTINGS

plt_num	acc_id	loc_num	pers_num	inst_dt	Action
1889	1008	144	NCBG staff	1985-08-06	View
2047	1143	144	NCBG staff	1985-09-26	View
2976	1882	64	NCBG staff	1984-03-11	View
5489	3305	59	NCBG staff	2001-03-15	View
6235	8966	63	NCBG staff	1967-12-31	View
12300	9214	125	Liloia	2007-11-14	View
13383	9214	64	Liloia	2022-09-01	View
13526	9606	128	Liloia	2023-03-14	View

USDA PLANTS DATABASE

USDA Symbol: SAFL4
USDA Common Name: Yellow Pitcherplant
Native Status: L48 (N)
Distribution: USA (AL, FL, GA, NC, NJ, SC, VA)
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: Subshrub, Forb/herb

NATIONAL WETLAND INDICATOR STATUS

Region:	AGCP	AK	AW	CB	EMP	GP	HI	MW	NCNE	WMVE
Status:	OBL				OBL				OBL

This information is derived from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 2016 National Wetland Plant List, Version 3.3 (Lichvar, R.W., D.L. Banks, W.N. Kirchner, and N.C. Melvin. 2016. The National Wetland Plant List: 2016 wetland ratings. Phytoneuron 2016-30: 1-17. Published 28 April 2016. ISSN 2153 733X). Regions: AGCP-Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain, AK-Alaska, AW-Arid West, CB-Caribbean, EMP-Eastern Mountains and Piedmont, GP-Great Plains, HI-Hawaii, MW-Midwest, NCNE-Northcentral and Northeast, WMCV-Western Mountains, Valleys & Coast

WEAKLEY FLORA

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Sarracenia flava
COMMON NAME: Yellow Pitcherplant, Trumpets
SYNONYMY: [= C, F, FNA, G, GW, K1, K3, Q, RAB, U, Va, W, WH3, Z; < S. flava - S (also see S. oreophila); > S. flava var. flava - X; > S. flava var. atropurpurea (Bull) C.R. Bell - X; > S. flava var. maxima Bull ex Masters - X; > S. flava var. ornata Bull ex Masters - X; > S. flava var. cuprea Schnell - X; > S. flava var. rugelii (Shuttleworth ex de Candolle) Masters - X; > S. flava var. rubricorpora Schnell - X]
PHENOLOGY: Mar-Apr; May-Jun.
HABITAT: Savannas, seepage bogs, pocosins.
COMMENTS: Se. VA south to n. FL and west to s. AL and se. MS. In the centers of peat domes and large peat-filled Carolina bays, S. flava is sometimes very abundant, occasionally the dominant plant over areas exceeding several square kilometers.
RANGE MAP: Sarracenia flava.png

Key to Map Symbols

ABOUT FAMILY (Weakley Flora)
Sarraceniaceae Dumortier 1829 (Pitcherplant Family)
SUMMARY: A family of 3 genera and about 22 species, perennial insectivorous herbs, of e. North America (Sarracenia), w. North America (Darlingtonia), and ne. South America (Heliamphora).
REFERENCE: Mellichamp in FNA (2009); Neyland & Merchant (2006); Kubitzki in Kubitzki (2004).

ABOUT GENUS (Weakley Flora)
Sarracenia L. (Pitcherplant)
SUMMARY: A genus of about 11 species, perennial insectivorous herbs, of e. North America. The sections that have sometimes been recognized do not accord with recent findings about clades and relationships within Sarracenia, so are not recognized here.
REFERENCE: Mellichamp & Case in FNA (2009); McDaniel (1971)=U; Wood (1960)=Z; Schnell & Determann (1997)=Y; Schnell (2002b)=X; Bell (1949)=Q; Case & Case (1976)=V; McPherson (2007); Neyland & Merchant (2006); Schnell (1979, 1981, 1993, 1998, 2002a); Bell (1952); Bell & Case (1956); Reveal (1993); Cheek (1994, 2001); Godt & Hamrick (1999); Naczi et al. (1999); Romanowski (2002); Catalani (2004); Mellichamp (2008).

HERBARIUM RESOURCES

SERNEC: Find Sarracenia flava in Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)
UNC SERNEC: Find Sarracenia flava in University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Herbarium - Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)

WEB RESOURCES

USDA: Find Sarracenia flava in USDA Plants
NPIN: Find Sarracenia flava in NPIN Database
FNA: Find Sarracenia flava in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Sarracenia flava

IMAGE USE RECORDS

ID IMAGE: 13062 - Primary Image FloraQuest Plant Detail Page (Landscape Preferred)
ID IMAGE1: 19603 - Primary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE2: 21853 - Secondary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE3: 17099 - Primary Image Plant Sale Sign (Landscape Only)
ID IMAGE4: 0 - Primary Image New Plant Sale Label (Portrait Only)