''Floerkea'' is a monotypic genus of plants in the meadowfoam family containing the sole species ''Floerkea proserpinacoides'', which is known by the common names false mermaid, false mermaidweed, and floerkea. This tiny wildflower is native to many parts of North America, where it is found in moist areas such as shady forests. It is a fleshy, annual herb which grows short stems which may lie flat on the ground, tangle into a clump, or grow somewhat erect. The foliage is hairless and shiny. The leaves are divided into many oval-shaped, pointed leaflets up to long. The flower is a cup of pointed green

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

s containing three tiny white spoon-shaped petals and a bunch of

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s with yellow anthers. Growing in the center of the flower are the two to three fruits, which are bumpy, spherical nutlets. The logo for the Flora of North America is a ''Floerkea'' flower. The genus was named in honor of the German botanist,

Heinrich Gustav Flörke Heinrich Gustav Flörke (24 December 1764, in Altenkalden in Mecklenburg – 11 June 1835) was a German botanist and lichenologist. He initially studied theology and mathematics in Bützow, later studying medicine at the University of Jena. In ...

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at CalPhotos Limnanthaceae Monotypic Brassicales genera Flora of North America {{Brassicales-stub