Plant specimen: Rosaceae B. Juss. Spirea Chamaedrifolia L. Common name germander meadowsweet or elm-leaved spirea

Natural History Specimen - 11.5 x 16.5 in. (29.21 x 41.91 cm.)

Rosaceae B. Juss. Spirea Chamaedrifolia L. Common name germander meadowsweet or elm-leaved spirea. Plant specimen collected by N.E. Hansen, 1924. Spiraea chamaedryfolia is a shrub reaching a height of 1–1.5 meters (3 feet 3 inches–4 feet 11 inches). Branchlets are brownish or red-brown. Leaves are simple, oblong or lance-shaped, toothed on the edges, 40–60 millimeters (1.6-2.4 inches) long and 10-30 millimeters (0.39-1.18 inches) wide, with a petiole of 4-7 millimeters. The white flowers of 6-9 millimeters in diameter grow in spike-like clusters at the ends of the branches. Flowering period extends from May to September. N.E. Hansen (1866-1950) was a Danish-American horticulturist and botanist who was a pioneer in plant breeding. Hansen came to South Dakota in 1895 and became the first head of the Horticultural Department of South Dakota State College. He also served as agricultural explorer for the United States Department of Agriculture. He searched for hardy grasses, fruits, and other plants throughout Europe and Asia and brought them back to the United States to raise or crossbreed with American varieties to produce hardy plants. Specimen is mounted on an 11.5 x 16.5 inch herbarium sheet accompanied by a label printed in Russian in Cyrillic letter with hand-written notation in black ink.

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