Species spotlight - Salicornia bigelovii

Dwarf Saltwort
Courtesy of David Lemke at TAMU

Dwarf saltwort
Salicornia bigelovii

Description: Glassworts are succulent, fleshy plants with opposite leaves that extremely small, scale-like, and simple. They have jointed stems and are found in saline environments. The yellow flowers are tiny and are sunken into the stem. Dwarf glasswort has ascending stems and pointed scales. The inflorescence is wider than the stem.

Life History: Flowers in summer and early fall.

Habitat: Coastal salt marshes and tidal wetlands.

Distribution: The Atlantic seaboard from Nova Scotia down to Texas and Mexico. Also in California.

Resources:

Maine Department of Conservation

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Palustrine Scrub / Shrub Wetland

Palustrine Scrub/Shrub Wetland - Includes all tidal and non tidal wetlands dominated by woody vegetation less than 5 meters in height, and all such wetlands that occur in tidal areas in which salinity due to ocean-derived salts is below 0.5 percent. Total vegetation coverage is greater than 20 percent. The species present could be true shrubs, young trees and shrubs, or trees that are small or stunted due to environmental conditions (Cowardin et al. 1979).

Characteristic species: Alders (Alnus spp.), willows (Salix spp.), buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis), red osier dogwood (Cornus stolonifera), honeycup (Zenobia pulverenta), spirea (Spiraea douglassii), bog birch (Betula pumila), and young trees such as red maple (Acer rubrum) and black spruce (Picea mariana).

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