''Hypericum gentianoides'' is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the St. John's wort family

Hypericaceae Hypericaceae is a plant family in the order Malpighiales, comprising six to nine genera and up to 700 species, and commonly known as the St. John's wort family. Members are found throughout the world apart from extremely cold or dry habitats. '' ...

. Its common names include orangegrass and pineweed. Native to eastern

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

, it ranges from Ontario; Nova Scotia and Maine south to Florida, west to Texas, and north to Missouri and Minnesota. It is an annual herb typically growing 10–40 cm tall. The leaves are repressed against the stem, 1-3mm long, and scale-like; an adaptation to reduce

transpiration Transpiration is the process of water movement through a plant and its evaporation from aerial parts, such as leaves, stems and flowers. Water is necessary for plants but only a small amount of water taken up by the roots is used for growth a ...

in exposed environments. The flowers are no more than 3mm across, with five to ten

stamens 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 ...

, and three styles. It commonly grows in nutrient poor soil, sand, and on exposed sites, but is also known to occur in wetter areas such as coastal plain

marshes A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

. The name orangegrass refers to the citrus smell that is released when it is crushed. Chemical extracts of H. gentianoides have been found to inhibit the contraction of

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...

References

gentianoides Flora of North America {{Hypericum-stub