The status of this species. It has been proven that Urtica gracilis is a unique, native species, and not a subspecies of Urtica dioica, (Weakley 2022).
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{{Short description| |
{{Short description|Species of flowering plant}} |
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|image = Urtica dioica gracilis (5107357421).jpg |
|image = Urtica dioica gracilis (5107357421).jpg |
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|genus = Urtica |
|genus = Urtica |
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|species = |
|species = gracilis |
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|subspecies = gracilis |
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|synonyms_ref = <ref name="POWO gracilis" /> |
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|authority = |
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|synonyms = |
|synonyms = |
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*''Urtica |
*''Urtica dioica'' subsp. ''gracilis'' <small>(Aiton) Selander</small> |
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*''Urtica dioica'' var. '' |
*''Urtica dioica'' var. ''gracilis'' <small>(Aiton) Roy L.Taylor & MacBryde</small> |
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*''Urtica dioica'' var. ''californica'' <small>(Greene) C.L. Hitchc.</small> |
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*''Urtica dioica'' var. ''gracilis'' <small>(Aiton) R.L. Taylor & MacBryde</small> |
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*''Urtica dioica'' var. ''lyallii'' <small>(S. Watson) C.L. Hitchc.</small> |
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*''Urtica dioica'' var. ''procera'' <small>(Muhl. ex Willd.) Wedd.</small> |
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*''Urtica gracilis'' <small>Aiton</small> |
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*''Urtica lyallii'' <small>S. Watson</small> |
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*''Urtica procera'' <small>Muhl. ex Willd.</small> |
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*''Urtica viridis'' <small>Rydb.</small> |
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|synonyms_ref = <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl/record/tro-33400022|title=The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species}}</ref> |
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}} |
}} |
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'''''Urtica gracilis''''', commonly known as the '''slender nettle''', '''tall nettle''', or '''American stinging nettle''', is a [[perennial plant]] without woody stems that is well known for the unpleasant stinging hairs on its leaves and stems.<ref name="Ohio">{{cite web |title=Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica) |url=https://weedguide.cfaes.osu.edu/singlerecord.asp?id=81 |website=Ohio Perennial and Biennial Weed Guide |publisher=Ohio State University |access-date=31 May 2023 |date=2023}}</ref> It is native to much of the [[North America]] from [[Guatemala]] northwards and temperate areas of [[South America]].<ref name="POWO gracilis">{{cite POWO |id=262034-2 |title=''Urtica gracilis'' Aiton |access-date=31 May 2023}}</ref> It is easily confused with the visually very similar [[eurasia|Eurasian]] species [[Urtica dioica]] and is still listed in some resources as a subspecies of this plant. However, genetic analysis and experiments show that they are genetically distinct. |
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'''''Urtica'' ''gracilis''''', the '''California nettle'''<ref name=GRIN>{{GRIN | accessdate = 23 January 2018}}</ref> or '''American stinging nettle''',<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.calflora.org/cgi-bin/species_query.cgi?where-calrecnum=8186|title=Calflora: Information on California plants for education, research and conservation, based on data contributed by dozens of public and private institutions and individuals, including the Consortium of Calif. Herbaria. 2013. Berkeley, California|accessdate=August 16, 2013}}</ref> is a [[herbaceous perennial]] plant native to most of the [[United States]] and [[Canada]].<ref name=GRIN/> It was considered to be a subspecies of Urtica dioica, but new analysis has revealed it to be a species, and not closely related to Urtica dioica. Its morphology is similar to Urtica dioica, which led to it being classified as a subspecies of Urtica dioica. The 2 species will not cross pollinate. |
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==Description== |
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''Urtica gracilis'' is a perennial plant, one that regrows for many years, with stems that die back the ground in winter ([[herbaceous plant]]).<ref name="FNA Urtica dioica">{{cite web |last1=Boufford |first1=David E. |title=''Urtica dioica'' - FNA |url=http://floranorthamerica.org/Urtica_dioica |website=Flora of North America |access-date=31 May 2023 |date=6 November 2020}}</ref> It spreads both by wind borne seeds and by [[rhizome]]s, often forming dense stands in favorable conditions.<ref name="Ohio" /> Plants can be between 50 centimeters and 3 meters in height with stems that can be simple or branched.<ref name="FNA Urtica dioica" /> Stems will vary in between being smooth and covered in stiff hairs ([[Glossary of botanical terms#glabrous|glabrous]] to [[Glossary of botanical terms#strigose|strigose]]), but have few of the stinging hairs the plant is known for.<ref name="FNA U. gracilis">{{cite web |last1=Boufford |first1=David E. |title=''Urtica dioica'' subsp. ''gracilis'' - FNA |url=http://beta.floranorthamerica.org/Urtica_dioica_subsp._gracilis |website=Flora of North America |access-date=31 May 2023 |date=5 November 2020}}</ref> |
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The leaves of ''Urtica gracilis'' are variable, [[Glossary of leaf morphology#elliptic|elliptic]], [[Glossary of leaf morphology#lanceolate|lanceolate]], or [[Glossary of leaf morphology#ovate|ovate]], and 6–20 cm long by 2–13 cm across, with a base that can either be rounded or shaped like a heart ([[Glossary of leaf morphology#rounded|rounded]] to [[Glossary of leaf morphology#cordate|cordate]]). The leaf edges have coarse teeth, sometimes with smaller teeth within each larger tooth ([[Glossary of leaf morphology#doubly serrate|doubly serrate]]) and the ends are pointed.<ref name="FNA Urtica dioica" /> The underside of the leaves are covered in the stinging hairs that the species is so well known for, but the upper surface only rarely has a few stinging hairs and is more often smooth or covered in non-stinging fine hairs ([[trichome|puberulent]]).<ref name="FNA U. gracilis" /> |
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''Urtica gracilis'' has a flowering [[panicle]], a much branched flowering stem with multiple flowers on sort stems. The flowers are [[dioecy#In_botany|unisexual]], each one only having either female [[Gynoecium|pistils]] or male [[stamen]]s. Mostly plants will have both genders of flowers.<ref name="FNA U. gracilis" /> The flowers are not large or showy.<ref name="FNA Urtica dioica" /> |
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==Taxonomy== |
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The first scientific description of ''Urtica gracilis'' was published by [[William Aiton]] in 1789.<ref name="POWO gracilis" /> While this was accepted for a time the visual similarity caused botanical sources like George Neville Jones's 1945 ''Flora of Illinois'' to only list ''Urtica dioica''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jones |first1=George Neville |title=Flora of Illinois, containing keys for the identification of the flowering plants and ferns |date=1945 |publisher=The University Press, Notre Dame |location=Indiana |page=113 |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/23492#page/123 |access-date=1 June 2023}}</ref> In 2014 the paper "Weeding the Nettles II" was published in the journal ''Phytotaxa''. It showed the North American nettles to be a unified group that is genetically distinct |
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<ref name="Nettles II">{{cite journal | last1 = Henning | first1 = T. | last2 = Quandt | first2 = D. | last3 = Große-Veldmann | first3 = B. | last4 = Monro | first4 = A.K. | last5 = Weigend | first5 = M. | date = 2014 | title = Weeding the Nettles II: A delimitation of {{'}}''Urtica dioica'' L.' (Urticaceae) based on morphological and molecular data, including a rehabilitation of ''Urtica gracilis'' Ait. | url = https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260815095 | journal = Phytotaxa | volume = 162 | issue = 2 | pages = 61–83 | doi = 10.11646/phytotaxa.162.2.1 }}</ref> As of 2023 the major botanical source [[Plants of the World Online]] (POWO) lists ''Urtica gracilis'' as a valid species. However, the USDA [[Natural Resources Conservation Service]] PLANTS database (PLANTS) continues to list it as the subspecies ''Urtica dioica'' ssp. ''gracilis'' credited to Sten Selander.<ref>{{cite usda plants|symbol=URDIG |title=Urtica dioica L. ssp. gracilis (Aiton) Seland. |date=31 May 2023}}</ref> |
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===Subspecies=== |
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There are 5 recognized subspecies or varieties of ''Urtica gracilis'' according to POWO as of 2023. Four of them were formerly recognized at different times as other subspecies, varieties, or species.<ref name="POWO gracilis" /> |
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{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible" |
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!Scientific name |
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!Authority |
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!Synonyms |
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|''Urtica gracilis'' subsp. ''aquatica'' |
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|(Liebm.) Weigend |
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|''Urtica aquatica'', ''Urtica mexicana'', ''Urtica serra''<ref>{{cite POWO |id=77138670-1 |title=''Urtica gracilis'' subsp. ''aquatica'' (Liebm.) Weigend |access-date=8 June 2023}}</ref> |
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|''Urtica gracilis'' subsp. ''gracilis'' |
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|''Urtica californica'', ''Urtica cardiophylla'', ''Urtica dioica'' var. ''angustifolia'', ''Urtica dioica'' var. ''californica'', ''Urtica dioica'' var. ''lyallii'', ''Urtica dioica'' var. ''procera'', ''Urtica gracilis'' var. ''latifolia'', ''Urtica lyallii'', ''Urtica lyallii'' var. ''californica'', ''Urtica procera'', ''Urtica strigosissima'', ''Urtica viridis''<ref>{{cite POWO |id=77225175-1 |title=''Urtica gracilis'' subsp. ''gracilis'' |access-date=8 June 2023}}</ref> |
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|''Urtica gracilis'' subsp. ''holosericea'' |
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|(Nutt.) W.A.Weber |
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|''Urtica breweri'', ''Urtica dioica'' subsp. ''holosericea'', ''Urtica dioica'' var. ''holosericea'', ''Urtica gracilis'' var. ''holosericea'', ''Urtica dioica'' var. ''occidentalis'', ''Urtica gracilis'' f. ''densa'', ''Urtica gracilis'' var. ''densa'', ''Urtica gracilis'' var. ''greenei'', ''Urtica gracilis'' f. ''greenei'', ''Urtica holosericea'', ''Urtica trachycarpa''<ref>{{cite POWO |id=286576-2 |title=''Urtica gracilis'' subsp. ''holosericea'' (Nutt.) W.A.Weber |access-date=8 June 2023}}</ref> |
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|''Urtica gracilis'' subsp. ''incaica'' |
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|Weigend |
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|''Urtica gracilis'' subsp. ''mollis'' |
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|(Steud.) Weigend |
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|''Urtica buchtienii'', ''Urtica dioica'' var. ''mollis'', ''Urtica dioica'' var. ''diplotricha'', ''Urtica diplotricha'', ''Urtica mollis''<ref>{{cite POWO |id=77138672-1 |title=''Urtica gracilis'' subsp. ''mollis'' (Steud.) Weigend |access-date=8 June 2023}}</ref> |
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==Range== |
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''Urtica gracilis'' is native to the Americas and is recorded by POWO as growing in most of North America including every state of Mexico, every province and territory of Canada except [[Nunavut]], and all but four states, Hawaii, Florida, South Carolina, and Arkansas in America.<ref name="POWO gracilis" /> In Central America it is only recorded as growing in Guatemala. In South America it limited to the more temperate areas in the countries of Peru, Chile, and Argentina.<ref name="POWO gracilis" /> |
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==Uses== |
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===Culinary=== |
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''Urtica gracillis'' has a flavor similar to [[spinach]] when cooked. Young plants were harvested by [[indigenous peoples of the Americas]] and used as a cooked plant in spring when other food plants were scarce.<ref name="Tilford">Gregory L. Tilford, ''Edible and Medicinal Plants of the West'', {{ISBN|0-87842-359-1}}</ref> Soaking stinging nettles in water or cooking removes the stinging chemicals from the plant, which allows them to be handled and eaten without injury.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Nyerges |first1=Christopher |title=Foraging Wild Edible Plants of North America: More than 150 Delicious Recipes Using Nature's Edibles |date=2016 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-1-4930-1499-6 |page=130 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RwDHCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA130}}</ref> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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*{{Commons category-inline|Urtica dioica ssp. gracilis|''Urtica dioica'' ssp. ''gracilis''}} |
*{{Commons category-inline|Urtica dioica ssp. gracilis|''Urtica dioica'' ssp. ''gracilis''}} |
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{{Taxonbar|from1=Q40034281|from2=Q16993348}} |
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{{Urticaceae-stub}} |
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[[Category:Flora of Argentina]] |
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[[Category:Flora of Guatemala]] |
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[[Category:Flora of Peru]] |
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[[Category:Plants described in 1789]] |
Urtica gracilis | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Rosales |
Family: | Urticaceae |
Genus: | Urtica |
Species: |
U. gracilis
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Binomial name | |
Urtica gracilis | |
Synonyms[1] | |
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Urtica gracilis, commonly known as the slender nettle, tall nettle, or American stinging nettle, is a perennial plant without woody stems that is well known for the unpleasant stinging hairs on its leaves and stems.[2] It is native to much of the North America from Guatemala northwards and temperate areas of South America.[1] It is easily confused with the visually very similar Eurasian species Urtica dioica and is still listed in some resources as a subspecies of this plant. However, genetic analysis and experiments show that they are genetically distinct.
Urtica gracilis is a perennial plant, one that regrows for many years, with stems that die back the ground in winter (herbaceous plant).[3] It spreads both by wind borne seeds and by rhizomes, often forming dense stands in favorable conditions.[2] Plants can be between 50 centimeters and 3 meters in height with stems that can be simple or branched.[3] Stems will vary in between being smooth and covered in stiff hairs (glabroustostrigose), but have few of the stinging hairs the plant is known for.[4]
The leaves of Urtica gracilis are variable, elliptic, lanceolate, or ovate, and 6–20 cm long by 2–13 cm across, with a base that can either be rounded or shaped like a heart (roundedtocordate). The leaf edges have coarse teeth, sometimes with smaller teeth within each larger tooth (doubly serrate) and the ends are pointed.[3] The underside of the leaves are covered in the stinging hairs that the species is so well known for, but the upper surface only rarely has a few stinging hairs and is more often smooth or covered in non-stinging fine hairs (puberulent).[4]
Urtica gracilis has a flowering panicle, a much branched flowering stem with multiple flowers on sort stems. The flowers are unisexual, each one only having either female pistils or male stamens. Mostly plants will have both genders of flowers.[4] The flowers are not large or showy.[3]
The first scientific description of Urtica gracilis was published by William Aiton in 1789.[1] While this was accepted for a time the visual similarity caused botanical sources like George Neville Jones's 1945 Flora of Illinois to only list Urtica dioica.[5] In 2014 the paper "Weeding the Nettles II" was published in the journal Phytotaxa. It showed the North American nettles to be a unified group that is genetically distinct [6] As of 2023 the major botanical source Plants of the World Online (POWO) lists Urtica gracilis as a valid species. However, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS database (PLANTS) continues to list it as the subspecies Urtica dioica ssp. gracilis credited to Sten Selander.[7]
There are 5 recognized subspecies or varieties of Urtica gracilis according to POWO as of 2023. Four of them were formerly recognized at different times as other subspecies, varieties, or species.[1]
Scientific name | Authority | Synonyms |
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Urtica gracilis subsp. aquatica | (Liebm.) Weigend | Urtica aquatica, Urtica mexicana, Urtica serra[8] |
Urtica gracilis subsp. gracilis | Urtica californica, Urtica cardiophylla, Urtica dioica var. angustifolia, Urtica dioica var. californica, Urtica dioica var. lyallii, Urtica dioica var. procera, Urtica gracilis var. latifolia, Urtica lyallii, Urtica lyallii var. californica, Urtica procera, Urtica strigosissima, Urtica viridis[9] | |
Urtica gracilis subsp. holosericea | (Nutt.) W.A.Weber | Urtica breweri, Urtica dioica subsp. holosericea, Urtica dioica var. holosericea, Urtica gracilis var. holosericea, Urtica dioica var. occidentalis, Urtica gracilis f. densa, Urtica gracilis var. densa, Urtica gracilis var. greenei, Urtica gracilis f. greenei, Urtica holosericea, Urtica trachycarpa[10] |
Urtica gracilis subsp. incaica | Weigend | |
Urtica gracilis subsp. mollis | (Steud.) Weigend | Urtica buchtienii, Urtica dioica var. mollis, Urtica dioica var. diplotricha, Urtica diplotricha, Urtica mollis[11] |
Urtica gracilis is native to the Americas and is recorded by POWO as growing in most of North America including every state of Mexico, every province and territory of Canada except Nunavut, and all but four states, Hawaii, Florida, South Carolina, and Arkansas in America.[1] In Central America it is only recorded as growing in Guatemala. In South America it limited to the more temperate areas in the countries of Peru, Chile, and Argentina.[1]
Urtica gracillis has a flavor similar to spinach when cooked. Young plants were harvested by indigenous peoples of the Americas and used as a cooked plant in spring when other food plants were scarce.[12] Soaking stinging nettles in water or cooking removes the stinging chemicals from the plant, which allows them to be handled and eaten without injury.[13]
Urtica gracilis |
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Urtica dioica subsp. gracilis |
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