Conradina glabra is a rare species of shrub

Shrub

A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...

 known by the common name Apalachicola rosemary. It is endemic to Liberty County, Florida

Liberty County, Florida

Liberty County is a county located in the state of Florida. Its population was estimated in 2005 as 7,733. Its most populous incorporated area and county seat is Bristol....

, where it is known from about ten populations. It is found only in a small area and it is threatened by habitat destruction

Habitat destruction

Habitat destruction is the process in which natural habitat is rendered functionally unable to support the species present. In this process, the organisms that previously used the site are displaced or destroyed, reducing biodiversity. Habitat destruction by human activity mainly for the purpose of...

. It is a federally listed endangered species

Endangered species

An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...

.

Habitat

This plant is limited to the sandhill

Sandhill

A sandhill is a type of ecological community or xeric wildfire-maintained ecosystem. It is not the same as a sand dune. It features very short fire return intervals, one to five years. Without fire, sandhills undergo ecological succession and become more oak dominated.Entisols are the typical...

s and forest habitat of northern Liberty County in the Florida Panhandle

Florida Panhandle

The Florida Panhandle, an informal, unofficial term for the northwestern part of Florida, is a strip of land roughly 200 miles long and 50 to 100 miles wide , lying between Alabama on the north and the west, Georgia also on the north, and the Gulf of Mexico to the south. Its eastern boundary is...

, where it grows among oak

Oak

An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...

s and longleaf pines (Pinus palustris). It had previously been reported from Santa Rosa County

Santa Rosa County, Florida

Santa Rosa County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, the population was 117,743, while a July 1, 2005, estimate placed the population at 143,105, an 18% increase making it the 84th fastest growing county in the United States between 2000 and 2005. ...

, as well, but these specimens proved to be Conradina canescens. Several of the remaining populations are within the bounds of Torreya State Park

Torreya State Park

Torreya State Park is a 12,000 acre Florida State Park, U.S. National Natural Landmark and historic site thirteen miles north of Bristol. It is located north of S.R 12 on the Apalachicola River, in northwestern Florida, at 2576 N.W. Torreya Park Road...

.

Characteristics

This is an aromatic shrub growing to a maximum height of 80 centimeters to one meter. The branches are lined with linear, needlelike, mint-scented leaves up to 1.5 centimeters long. The inflorescence

Inflorescence

An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...

 is two or three flowers borne in the leaf axils, each flower between 1 and 2 centimeters in length. The double-lipped flower is pale lavender in color with darker purple spotting on the lower lip. The plant reproduces sexually

Sexual reproduction

Sexual reproduction is the creation of a new organism by combining the genetic material of two organisms. There are two main processes during sexual reproduction; they are: meiosis, involving the halving of the number of chromosomes; and fertilization, involving the fusion of two gametes and the...

 by seed and vegetatively

Vegetative reproduction

Vegetative reproduction is a form of asexual reproduction in plants. It is a process by which new individuals arise without production of seeds or spores...

 by sprouting from its base.

Endangered status

This species is mainly threatened by the loss and degradation of its habitat. The land on which it grows has been drastically altered by the conversion of land to agriculture

Agriculture

Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...

, particularly silviculture

Silviculture

Silviculture is the practice of controlling the establishment, growth, composition, health, and quality of forests to meet diverse needs and values. The name comes from the Latin silvi- + culture...

. Starting in the 1950s large strips of the native pine forests in the area were removed and replaced with plantations of slash pine (Pinus elliottii). The rare plant can sometimes be found on the margins of these plantations. It is not certain how abundant the shrub was before the habitat was altered because it was not even discovered until the silviculture operations had begun.

External links

• USDA Plants Profile
• Conradina glabra. Center for Plant Conservation.