Linnaea borealis (Twinflower)

Linnaea borealis L.

Twinflower

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Dipsacales	Includes viburnum, honeysuckle, snowberry, beautybush, twinflower, many others
Family	Linnaeaceae	30 species of shrubs and herbs native to the temperate regions of Southeast Asia and North America
Genus	Linnaea	Named for Carolus Linnaeus (1707-1778), founder of the modern system of binomial nomenclature
Species	borealis	Northern

About plant names...

Twinflower is found throughout the northern hemisphere. In fact, the scientific name borealis means northern. It prefers cool, dark forests, alpine zones, woodlands, and boggy or rocky shorelines.

Plants: Plants are evergreen, essentially a micro-shrub. They keep a very low profile, less than 4" (10 cm), up to about 6" (15 cm) when in flower, so they are easy to miss. They are evergreen. Fine hairy red-brown stems creep along the ground, rooting to start new plants.

Leaves: Opposite, shiny, oval, and unlobed. Larger leaves have a few small indentations along the edge. Leaves are ¼-⅝" (8.4-16 mm) × ¼-⅝" (6.3-16 mm).

Flowers: Delicate pink funnel-shaped flowers top small, hairy stems, from which they hang like bells. Flowers occur in pairs, hence the name “twinflower.” Each flower is up to ½" (1.3 cm) long, with five lobes and a hairy throat. They have a mild fragrance. Flowers appear from June to September.

Fruits: Small, dry, 3-celled pod with one seed.

Online References:

Linnaea borealis at the U.S. Forest Service Celebrating Wildflowers site

Linnaea borealis at Minnesota Wildflowers

Linnaea borealis on gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org

Linnaea borealis at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Linnaea borealis on Wikimedia Commons (Photos)

Linnaea borealis on depts.washington.edu

Linnaea borealis on botanyphoto.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca