Mountain St. John’s wort Mountain St. John’s wort

Shrubs, decumbent, spreading and rooting, wiry, branches ascending to erect, forming compact mats, 0.5–4.5 dm. Stems: internodes 4-lined. Leaf blades oblong or elliptic to obovate, 4–25 × 2–12 mm, base not articulated, cuneate, margins plane, apex rounded, midrib with 2–4 pairs of branches. Inflorescences 1(–5)-flowered. Flowers 20–25 mm diam.; sepals persistent, not enclosing capsule, 5, broadly elliptic to elliptic-spatulate or obovate, subequal, 4–5 × 2.5–3 mm; petals 5, golden yellow, oblanceolate, 6–10.5 mm; stamens persistent, 100; ovary 3-merous. Capsules ovoid to ovoid-cylindric, 8–12 × 5 mm. Seeds narrowly to broadly carinate, 1.5–2 mm; testa finely foveolate-reticulate.

Flowering early–mid summer (Jun–Jul). Seepage areas, moist rock crevices, ditches, road embankments; 900–1600 m; Ga., N.C., S.C.

Hypericum buckleyi is found throughout the southern Appalachian Mountains.

The decumbent habit and persistent sepals and stamens distinguish Hypericum buckleyi from its nearest relative, H. prolificum.