North Carolina Wildflowers, Shrubs, & Trees

by Jeffrey S. Pippen | Back to Jeff's Plant Page | Jeff's Nature Pages

Plantaginaceae > Chelone (turtlehead)
	White Turtlehead (Chelone glabra) Quebec,Canada 5 Aug 2005 Statewide and uncommon to fairly common in NC, Turtleheads were formerly classified in the Scrophulariaceae and grow in moist soils along streams, swamps, etc. Turtleheads are the caterpillar host plant for the spectacular Baltimore Checkerspot butterfly, which is rare and apparently declining in NC.

Annotated habitat and distribution information listed above is from Radford, Ahles, & Bell. 1968. Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas. UNC Press; Alan Weakley's Flora of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Georgia; and from personal observations and discussions with Will Cook, Harry LeGrand, and Bob Wilbur. Supplemental resources include USDA plants website, and NatureServe.