Hypericum humifusum L.
trailing St John's wort
Glabrous perennial herb; stems prostrate or decumbent, to c. 30 cm long, slender, generally 2-lined; rootstock ± woody. Lvs variable, sessile or occasionally short-petiolate, 4-14 × 0.5-6 mm, lanceolate or narrow-elliptic to suborbicular, with black, often scattered intramarginal glands; pellucid glands usually 0 below; base broad-cuneate or rounded; apex slightly emarginate, obtuse or mucronulate. Infl. terminal, few-flowered. Sepals very unequal, 2 broad and 3 narrow, 2-4-(5) mm long, broad-ellipsoid to narrow-oblong or elliptic, with black glands at margin or scattered over surface, entire or irregularly toothed in upper part, occasionally marginal glands stalked; apex obtuse or mucronulate. Corolla 5-12 mm diam., = or > calyx, yellow; petals lanceolate, oblanceolate or obovate, nearly always black glandular-ciliate, at least towards apex. Stamens in 3 bundles, < petals. Styles 3, < ovary. Capsule 6-10 mm long, ovoid, dry. Seeds c. 0.5 mm long, broadly short-cylindric, reticulate.
N.; S.: widely distributed, but more frequent in the North Id.
W. and C. Europe, Macaronesia 1867
A wide range of habitats, especially poorer pastures and tussock grasslands on hill slopes to c.500 m, on dry stony roadsides and banks, as well as on wet heavy soils in open, but particularly shady areas.
FL Dec-Feb.
H. humifusum superficially resembles, and sometimes grows in similar habitats to, the indigenous H. japonicum and H. gramineum, but these spp. do not have black glands on lvs or fls. H. humifusum can always be distinguished from depauperate H. perforatum by the stems which are never erect, and the very unequal sepals.
