Search / Plant Profile / Sabatia kennedyana

Plant Profile

Plymouth Rose-gentian (Sabatia kennedyana)

The flowers of Sabatia kennedyana are showy and large (to 5 cm in diameter), with 9 to 11 pink petals surrounding a yellow center bordered with red. Photo Credit: Dorothy Long

Global Rank: G3 - Vulnerable
Legal Status: N/A
Family: Gentianaceae
State: MA, NC, NS, RI, SC, VA
Nature Serve ID: 153435
Lifeform: Forb/herb
Date Inducted in National Collection:

Description:

Sabatia kennedyana is a perennial, herbaceous plant bearing gorgeous, pink, daisy-like flowers on tall stems. It forms colonies along the shores of coastal plain ponds from Nova Scotia south to South Carolina. The population densities and reproduction of this species are tightly tied to fluctuating water levels in these ponds, and as such, are affected by water quality and quantity in these ponds. Populations of Sabatia kennedyana are at risk throughout its range, as humans increasingly encroach on these ponds, pollute their shores, and withdraw water. Research and Management Summary: A number of individuals and institutions have studied this species. Management activities are also underway to help protect and preserve Sabatia kennedyana. Plant Description: Sabatia kennedyana can form rhizomatous colonies, with vertical, few-branched stems reaching 65 cm (25 inches) in height. Its 2 to 5 cm-long leaves are narrow and arrayed oppositely along the stem. The flowers, which appear from July to mid-September, are showy and large (to 5 cm in diameter), with 9 to 11 pink petals surrounding a yellow center bordered with red. The capsules are cylindrical and measure 7 to 11 mm in length.

Where is Plymouth Rose-gentian (Sabatia kennedyana) located in the wild?

Habitat:

Sabatia kennedyana is a specialized inhabitant of coastal plain pond shores along the east coast of North America. It is known from """"sandy, peaty soils and cobble beaches of streams and lakes"""" in the Tusket Valley of Nova Scotia, where there are at least 8 populations (Newell 1999, COSEWIC 2001). Periodic water level fluctuations tend to exclude competitively superior shrubs and other plants (Keddy 1985, Keddy et al. 1994). Ice scour and wave action also help to prevent the establishment of more invasive plant species (COSEWIC 2001). Absent from the coasts of Maine, New Brunswick, and New Hampshire, the species next appears in southeastern Massachusetts, where it attains the highest population densities in its range along sandy to peaty shores of freshwater ponds on the coastal plain (U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service 2001, MANHESP 1985). There, it occurs with other restricted members of the coastal plain plant guild, including: Eleocharis melanocarpa, Drosera filiformis, Fuirea pumila, Gratiola aurea, and Coreopsis rosea. The species occurs in similar habitats in Rhode Island (Enser 1999). The species next occurs disjunctly in Virginia and the Carolinas along river and pondshores with variable water levels. It is regarded as an obligate wetland species (USDA 2001).

Distribution:

Sabatia kennedyana exhibits a patchy distribution, occurring only in Nova Scotia, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. It is reportedly historic in Connecticut (

States & Provinces:

Plymouth Rose-gentian can be found in Massachusetts, North Carolina, Nova Scotia, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Virginia

Which CPC Partners conserve Plymouth Rose-gentian (Sabatia kennedyana)?

Native Plant Trust

Conservation Actions

09/27/2020

This showy plant is propagated and sold by the Lazy S'S Farm Nursery in Barboursville, Virginia and by Plant Delights Nursery, Raleigh, North Carolina.

09/27/2020

Graduate student, Lelia Orrell (University of Massachusetts at Boston), is performing extensive research on the metapopulation dynamics, reproduction, and population genetics of Sabatia kennedyana.

09/27/2020

The Norcross Sanctuary in Monson, Massachusetts, also has Sabatia kennedyana in its rare plant collection

09/27/2020

The New England Wild Flower Society has found, through germination trials, that freshly collected seed in dry , cold storage will germinate readily as long as the seed is not covered after sowing.

Nature Serve Biotics

05/02/2017

Sabatia kennedyana is known from Nova Scotia, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and North Carolina and South Carolina. It occurs most abundantly in Massachusetts. Threats to this taxon include development, trampling, and off-road vehicles.

Elizabeth J. Farnsworth

01/01/2010

As articulated by MANHESP 1985, McHorney 1996, Enser 2001, NatureServe 2001, Orrell 2001, and COSEWIC 2001: Increased recreational use of pondshores, leading to trampling and habitat destruction Increased water withdrawal by expanding coastal popu

Elizabeth J. Farnsworth

01/01/2010

Nine sites in Nova Scotia are known, encompassing approximately 3500 plants (COSEWIC 2001). Approximately 112 occurrences in 5 counties are verified in Massachusetts as of 1985 (MANHESP 1985), with 37 additional historic occurrences. The species is reported from 4 counties in Rhode Island, 1 county in South Carolina, and 1 county in North Carolina (USDA 2001). The global population is problematic to estimate, because plant numbers fluctuate widely depending upon pond water levels, but may range to approximately 10,000.

Elizabeth J. Farnsworth

01/01/2010

The New England Wild Flower Society has found, through germination trials, that freshly collected seed in dry , cold storage will germinate readily as long as the seed is not covered after sowing. COSEWIC is monitoring populations of the plant and conducting general research on the ecology of coastal plain ecosystems (COSEWIC 2001). Detailed hydrological studies of the coastal plain ponds of Barnstable are underway at The Massachusetts Chapter of The Nature Conservancy (McHorne 1996) The Norcross Sanctuary in Monson, Massachusetts, also has Sabatia kennedyana in its rare plant collection Graduate student, Lelia Orrell (University of Massachusetts at Boston), is performing extensive research on the metapopulation dynamics, reproduction, and population genetics of Sabatia kennedyana. Professor Paul Keddy, now with Southeastern Louisiana University, has published several papers on the status and ecology of Sabatia kennedyana in Nova Scotia. Graduate student, Stephen Craine (Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts) is conducting research on factors influencing the invasion of coastal plain ponds by pitch pine on Cape Cod. Graduate student Nina Coleman (University of Massachusetts at Amherst) is studying the effects of removing the invasive grass, Phragmites australis from coastal plain ponds on Cape Cod in terms of the recovery of several rare plant species This showy plant is propagated and sold by the Lazy S'S Farm Nursery in Barboursville, Virginia and by Plant Delights Nursery, Raleigh, North Carolina.

Elizabeth J. Farnsworth

01/01/2010

Plant Conservation Volunteers and Task Force members of the New England Wild Flower Society (Framingham, Massachusetts) regularly monitor populations of Sabatia kennedyana. COSEWIC and partner conservation organizations in Nova Scotia are developing landowner education programs to encourage protection of coastal plain ponds and more sensitive use of these critical areas by all-terrain vehicles (Wilson 1997, Phinney 1999, COSEWIC 2001) The town of Fall River, which supports an occurrence of Sabatia kennedyana and numerous coastal plain ponds, has developed an Open Space and Recreation Plan that can serve as a potential model for other communities with similar conservation concerns.

Elizabeth J. Farnsworth

01/01/2010

Long-term demographic studies are needed to inform population viability analyses

Elizabeth J. Farnsworth

01/01/2010

Studies of the effects of long-term seed bank storage are needed.