Pilea microphylla

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Distribution Map: Based on vouchered plant specimens only. View county names by placing the mouse cursor over a particular county.

Species Distribution Map
Family:URTICACEAE
Species:Pilea microphylla (L.) Liebm.
Common Name:Rockweed; Artillery Weed
Habitat:**
Associated Ecological Communities:**
Growth Habit:Herb
Duration:Perennial
Category:Vascular
USDA Symbol:PIMI2
Plant Notes:Artillery Weed is an introduced herbaceous perennial (annual in our area) in the Nettle family (Urticaceae). It is native from Florida south through Central and South America to Brazil. It has naturalized in tropical and subtropical areas worldwide. In Alabama in can be found statewide. Artillery Weed is a small plant rarely reaching more than a few inches tall. The stems are succulent, light green in color, glabrous, and many branched. The stems are arching or erect. Leaves are opposite, petiolate, spatulate to obovate in outline, glabrous, with entire margins. Flowers are produced in compact axillary cymes. The unisexual flowers are produced in the same cyme. Staminate flowers have 4 yellowish-green tepals and 4 stamens. Pistillate flowers have 3 yellowish-green tepals. Pollen is explosively discharged into the air, giving this plant the common name of “Artillery Weed”. The fruit is an achene. Artillery Weed is sometimes cultivated as a terrarium plant or as a warm season ground cover. It is readily available from nurseries. Artillery Weed prefers a moist, peaty soil and a semi-shaded location. It is often a greenhouse weed and occurs frequently in pots with other ornamentals.--A. Diamond
Taxonomic Notes:**
Status:Not Native
References:**
Specimen: View specimen details in the Alabama Herbarium Consortium Specimen Database

** Not applicable or data not available.

Classification

FamilyURTICACEAE - Nettle family
Genus Pilea
Species Pilea microphylla (L.) Liebm. - Rockweed; Artillery Weed

Citation

Citation Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann, Kongel. Danske Vidensk. Selsk. Skr., Naturvidensk. Math. Afd., ser. 5, 2: 296. 1851.
Basionym: Parietaria microphylla L. 1759.
Type: Without data (lectotype: LINN 1220.8). Lectotypified by de Rooij in Lanjouw & Stoffers (ed.), Fl. Suriname 5(1) : 314. 1975.

** Not applicable or data not available.

Synonyms

SynonymFull CitationBasionymType
Adicea microphylla Adicea microphylla (Linnaeus) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 622. 1891.Parietaria microphylla Linnaeus 1759. 
Adicea microphylla var. trianthemoides Adicea microphylla (Linnaeus) Kuntze, var. trianthemoides (Swartz) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 622. 1891.Urtica trianthemoides Swartz 1797. 
Parietaria microphylla Parietaria microphylla Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. 10. 1308. 1759. JAMAICA: Without data (lectotype: Sloane, Voy. Jamaica t. 93(2). 1707). Lectotypified by R. A. Howard, Fl. Less. Antill., Dicot. 1: 84. 1988.
Pilea microphylla var. trianthamoides Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann, var. trianthamoides (Swartz) Grisebach, Fl. Brit. W.I. 155. 1859.Urtica trianthemoides Swartz 1797. 
Pilea muscosa Pilea muscosa Lindley, Coll. Bot. t. 4. 1821, nom. illegit..Parietaria microphylla Linnaeus 1759. 
Pilea muscosa var. trianthemoides Pilea muscosa Lindley, var. trianthemoides (Swartz) Weddell, Arch. Mus. Hist. Nat. Paris 9: 174. 1856.Urtica trianthemoides Swartz 1797. 
Pilea trianthemoides Pilea trianthemoides (Swartz) Lindley, Coll. Bot. sub t. 4. 1821.Urtica trianthemoides Swartz 1797. 
Pilea trianthemoides var. microphylla Pilea trianthemoides (Swartz) Lindley, var. microphylla (Linnaeus) Weddell, in de Candolle, Prodr. 16(1): 107. 1869.Parietaria microphylla Linnaeus 1759. 
Urtica microphylla Urtica microphylla (Linnaeus) Swartz, Kongl. Vetensk. Acad. Nya Handl. 8: 66. 1787.Parietaria microphylla Linnaeus 1759. 
Urtica trianthemoides Urtica trianthemoides Swartz, Kongl. Vetensk. Acad. Nya Handl. 8: 66. 1797. "Hispaniola", without data, Swaretz s.n. (holotype: S; iostype: BM).

Specimens and Distribution

This species has been reported in the following counties by the herbaria listed. An overview of the individual specimens are provided in the table that follows. Click on the accession number to view details; click on column headers to sort; choose a county or herbaria to filter the specimen data.

Counties included on distribution map: Baldwin, Coffee, Dale, Houston, Jefferson, Lee, Mobile, Montgomery, Morgan, Pike, Tuscaloosa

Counties represented by specimen data listed below:

Herbaria represented by specimen data listed below: ALNHS, AUA, JSU, TROY, UNA, UWAL, UWFP

Range of years during which specimens were collected: 1962 - 1962

Barcode / Accession No. County Coll. Date Collector &
Collection No.		 Herbarium &
Herbarium Name Used		 Image
JSU136445 Jefferson 22 Sep 1999 Spaulding, Daniel D.
10733		 JSU
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
ALNHS00004290 Houston 02 Nov 2016 Barger, T. Wayne
SP#2711		 ALNHS
Pilea microphylla (L.) Liebm.
TROY000042626 Coffee 19 Jun 2015 Diamond, Alvin R.
26502		 TROY
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
ALNHS00002468 Lee 02 Oct 2013 Barger, T. Wayne
SP#1270		 ALNHS
Pilea microphylla (L.) Liebm.
TROY000044247 Houston 03 Dec 2015 Diamond, Alvin R.
27097		 TROY
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
UWAL0016952 Morgan 26 Jun 2012 England, J. Kevin
3797		 UWAL
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
UWAL0033755 Mobile 09 Aug 2014 Horne, Howard E.
2694		 UWAL
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
UWAL0033188 Houston 03 Dec 2015 Diamond, Alvin R.
27097		 UWAL
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
UWFP018115 Baldwin 29 Sep 2013 James R. Burkhalter
24405		 UWFP
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
UWAL0035287 Mobile 17 Jul 2016 Horne, Howard E.
3380		 UWAL
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
TROY000052132 Dale 12 Mar 2021 Diamond, Alvin R.
29544		 TROY
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
UNA00031202 Tuscaloosa 29 May 1962 Deramus, Rebecca
216		 UNA
Pilea microphylla (L.) Liebm.
ALNHS00005720 Montgomery 05 Dec 2017 Barger, T. Wayne
SP#3557		 ALNHS
Pilea microphylla (L.) Liebm.
UWFP018116 Mobile 02 Nov 2003 James R. Burkhalter
19703		 UWFP
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
TROY000043583 Baldwin 29 Sep 2013 Burkhalter, James R.
24405		 TROY
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
UWFP018114 Baldwin 16 Nov 2003 James R. Burkhalter
19740		 UWFP
Pilea microphylla (Linnaeus) Liebmann
AUA_ACC_56617 Pike 7 Oct 1995 Diamond, Alvin R.
10033		 AUA
Pilea Microphylla (L.) Liebm.
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