Orange Milkwort
Common Name(s):
Bog Cheetos
Candy Weed
Orange Milkwort
Red-hot Poker
Yellow Milkwort
Phonetic Spelling pol-ee-GAH-luh LOO-tee-uh
Description: This variety of the wildflower milkwort is commonly found growing in wet sandy soil and bogs as well as moist pine or hardwood forests and roadside ditches. It is native to the coastal plains, Long Island south to Florida and west to Louisiana.
In North Carolina, it is commonly found along the coast, rare in the Piedmont.
Orange milkwort, produces a cylindrical head of flowers on a stalk interior to the leaves. Although blooming is most common in the early summer, it may be found in bloom well into fall. As the common names implies, the flowers are bright orange in color and extremely showy.
The Orange Milkwort is an indicator species for that of carnivorous plants which share the same preference in habitat.
When dried, the flowers turn yellow. Differing from other varieties of milkwort, this plant has brilliant orange flowers.
The Seminoles used orange milkwort as medicine to treat heart palpitations, yellow skin, shortness of breath and swollen parts of the body. They made an infusion to treat chronic conditions. The Choctaw made a poultice using dried flowers and used it to swollen parts of the body.
Conservation The Orange Milkwort is an indicator species found when identifying a wetland. The biggest threat to our wetlands is human driven development. While there is legislation in place the protect wetlands from development through the Army Corp of Engineers. More needs to be done to combat fragmentation. The Orange Milkwort is tolerable to natural disturbances, like fire, which will allow the plant to grow without competing against other shrubs and forbs. More research needs to be done to find out about the time span between the natural disturbances for optimum growth.
Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plant
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Rosidae
Order: Polygalales
Family: Polygalaceae – Milkwort family
Genus: Polygala L. - polygala
Species: Polygala lutea L. – orange milkwort
Common Name: Orange Milkwort, Red Hot Poker
The Orange Milkwort is a member of the Polygala genus, it is different from other typical milkworts that are commonly pink, yellow or white. The plant is also related to Candyroot which has been used for medicinal purposes in native tribes.
Niche and Habitat
The Orange Milkwort is found primarily in the lower 48 states, ranging from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. The Orange Milkwort requires full sun and blooms from anytime from April through October and it serves as an indicator species for identifying wetlands. In North Carolina the Orange Milkwort can be found in the coastal plain area in places such as pocosins, pine barrens, and bogs with wet sandy acidic peat soils. Carolina Beach State Park is located in the coastal plain of southeastern North Carolina. The park has an abundance of species diversity within its many ecosystems, such as Xeric Sandhill Scrub, Pine Savanna, Swamps, and Lime Sinks. The Orange Milkwort is found mostly in the Pine Savanna, where the park ignites prescribed burns for the fire loving ecosystem of Long-leaf Pines, Pond Pines,Wire Grass, and carnivorous plants such as Venus Flytraps, Sundews, Butterworts, and Yellow Pitcher Plants.
Life Cycle The Orange Milkwort is a biennial, which means, the plant accomplishes its life cycle over two growing seasons. Butterflies usually pollinate the Orange Milkwort. The first season the plant only grows its foliage. The second season allows flowers form that produce seeds allowing the mother plant to die. This is a very important feature of the plant because in an area such as Carolina Beach State Park where fire is and important part of the ecosystem the biennial life cycle will allow the plant to survive and regenerate during succession without competition of other plant species.
Commenti