Oxalis dillenii, the southern wood-sorrel, slender yellow woodsorrel, or Dillen's oxalis, is a species in the woodsorrel family. Like other Oxalis species, the leaves of this plant resemble clover leaves, with three leaflets. Oxalis dillenii can be confused with other small yellow flowered species in North America, such as Oxalis stricta and Oxalis florida. The flowers have five yellow petals that are in length. The leaflets are wide with pointed hairs. The fruits are rather brown and are . It is often considered a weed, and can be found worldwide, but likely originated in North America.
Taxonomy Oxalis dillenii was given its scientific name by Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin in 1794. It is part of the genus Oxalis within the family Oxalidaceae and it has synonyms.
Table of Synonyms Name Year Rank Notes Oxalis arborea 1881 species = het. Oxalis boreaui 1937 species = het., nom. superfl. Oxalis corniculata f. diffusa 1901 form = het. Oxalis corniculata proles diffusa 1897 proles = het. Oxalis corniculata var. dillenii 1897 variety ≡ hom. Oxalis corniculata var. lyonii 1831 variety = het. Oxalis diffusa 1857 species = het. Oxalis dillenii var. radicans 1956 variety ≡ hom. Oxalis florida subsp. prostrata 1979 subspecies = het. Oxalis lyonii 1813 species = het. Oxalis prostrata 1803 species = het. Oxalis recurva var. floridana 1925 variety = het. Oxalis sanguinolaria 1817 species = het. Xanthoxalis dillenii 1972 species ≡ hom. Xanthoxalis lyonii 1973 species ≡ hom. Notes: ≡ homotypic synonym ; = heterotypic synonym
Ecology
Oxalis dillenii is insect pollinated and is recorded to have been visited in northern Florida by Augochloropsis metallica, Bombus impatiens, Ceratina, Lasioglossum creberrimum, Lasioglossum pectorale, Lasioglossum tegulare/puteulanum, Lasioglossum vierecki,and Lasioglossum weemsi/leviense. Ulyshen, M. D., K. Robertson, S. Horn, and C. Dixon. 2024. Characterization of the bee community and pollination network in a southeastern U.S. pine savanna. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 12:1403602.
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