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NC Native Plant Society:
Plant Details

Saururus cernuus

Lizard's-tail, Water-dragon, American Swamp Lily

Scientific Name:

Saururus cernuus

Genus:

Saururus

Species Epithet:

cernuus

Common Name:

Lizard's-tail, Water-dragon, American Swamp Lily

Plant Type

Herb/Wildflower

Life Cycle

Perennial

Plant Family

Saururaceae (Lizards-Tail Family)

Native/Alien:

NC Native

Invasive Status:

(*Key)

Size:

1-3 ft., 3-6 ft.

Bloom Color(s):

White

Light:

Sun - 6 or more hours of sun per day, Part Shade - 2 to 6 hours of sun per day, Less than 2 hours of sun per day

Soil Moisture:

Moist, Wet

Bloom Time:

May, June, July, August, September

Growing Area:

Mountains, Piedmont, Sandhills, Coastal Plain

Habitat Description:

Swamps, overwash pools in stream floodplains, freshwater and oligohaline tidal marshes, semipermanently inundated rocky bars and shores, beaver ponds, ditches, usually where water ponds seasonally or periodically. Common in the coastal plain and most of the piedmont; less common in w. Piedmont and rare in the Mountains.

Leaf Arrangement:

Alternate

Leaf Retention:

Deciduous

Leaf Type:

Leaves veined, not needle-like or scale-like

Leaf Form:

Simple

Life Cycle:

Perennial

Wildlife Value:

Has some wildlife value

Landscape Value:

Suitable for home landscapes

State Rank:

S5: Secure (*Key)

Global Rank:

G5 - Secure (*Key)

Notes:

Colonial and can spread aggressively.

Growing by a stream

Orange County, NC

The Scientific Name is Saururus cernuus. You will likely hear them called Lizard's-tail, Water-dragon, American Swamp Lily. This picture shows the Growing by a stream of Saururus cernuus

Bettina Darveaux

Inflorescence emerges from a lower node

water garden in Orange County, NC

The Scientific Name is Saururus cernuus. You will likely hear them called Lizard's-tail, Water-dragon, American Swamp Lily. This picture shows the Inflorescence emerges from a lower node  of Saururus cernuus

Bettina Darveaux

The inflorescence is a very dense raceme of tiny white flowers in a narrow spire, having a distinctly drooping tip. The progression of flower opening is from the base upwards.

Garden in Orange County, NC

The Scientific Name is Saururus cernuus. You will likely hear them called Lizard's-tail, Water-dragon, American Swamp Lily. This picture shows the  The inflorescence is a very dense raceme of tiny white flowers in a narrow spire, having a distinctly drooping tip. The progression of flower opening is from the base upwards. of Saururus cernuus

Bettina Darveaux

Can form large colonies over time.

Pitt Co., NC

The Scientific Name is Saururus cernuus. You will likely hear them called Lizard's-tail, Water-dragon, American Swamp Lily. This picture shows the Can form large colonies over time. of Saururus cernuus

Bettina Darveaux

Links:

USDA PLANTS Database Record

https://auth1.dpr.ncparks.gov/flora/plant_list.php
 

https://nc.audubon.org/conservation/bird-friendly-communities/bird-friendly-native-plants
 

https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/saururus-cernuus/
 

https://gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org/species/saururus/cernuus/
 



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