The open plant encyclopedia
Snap a photo or search by any name to see how to care for it, where it comes from, whether it's safe, and a 3D model you can turn.
The plants people record most in your country, and ones that grow there wild.
Filter by what you want to do, shape, origin, country, care and safety.
Chelone obliqua
Also called Purple Turtlehead
Red turtlehead is a native North American perennial wildflower with tubular pink to purple flowers shaped like a turtle's head, blooming in mid to late summer. It thrives in consistently moist, rich soil, and is well suited to wet garden spots and streamsides.
Chelone obliqua, the red turtlehead, rose turtlehead or pink turtlehead, is a perennial flowering plant belonging to the family Plantaginaceae. This uncommon wildflower is endemic to the United States, where it is found in the Midwestern and southeastern states.
The three common names come from the bloom colors, yet they may even appear in other colors such as purple or white. When blooming, the flower is said to resemble the head of a turtle.
Chelone obliqua is cultivated as an ornamental plant. Optimal bloom period is within the months of July and August.
Dispersal of seeds can occur in the early spring, then divide in mid-spring and produce root soft-tip cuttings in the early summer. It is best grown in moist to wet, rich, humusy soils in full sun to partly shaded regions. C. obliqua is tolerant of clay soil, and may benefit from leaf mulch in total sunlight to prevent it from drying out. It can grow in any pH condition (neutral, alkaline, or acidic). Hence, it is mainly grown in moist woods, swampy areas and along streams.
Chelone obliqua is native to various states in the eastern and central parts of the country, including: Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Chelone obliqua by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
