Thalictrum thalictroides
| Thalictrum thalictroides | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Division: | Magnoliophyta |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| Order: | Ranunculales |
| Family: | Ranunculaceae |
| Genus: | Thalictrum |
| Species: | T. thalictroides |
| Binomial name | |
| Thalictrum thalictroides (L.) A. J. Eames & B. Boivin | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Anemone thalictroides L. | |
Thalictrum thalictroides (Rue-anemone) is a spring ephemeral plant in the buttercup family, prized for its white to pink flowers, native to woodland in eastern North America.
Description
T. thalictroides is a hairless plant growing from tuberous roots, with upright 10-30 cm tall, stems which end with flowers. The basal leaves have 10 to 30 cm long petioles and leaf blades that are 2×-ternately compound. The leaflets are widely rounded in shape and the ends are three lobed.
It flowers in early spring and the flowers are borne singularly, or in umbel-like inflorescences with 3 to 6 flowers. The flowers have short stems that hold the fully opened flowers above the foliage. The involucral bracts are 3-foliolate, and shaped like the leaves. The showy rounded flowers have many yellow stamens in the middle, and a cup of white to pinkish-lavender sepals.
In late spring, 3 to 4.5 mm long, ovoid to fusiform shaped fruits called achenes are released. The green achenes have 8 to 10 prominent veins and become dark brown when ripe.[1]
Taxonomy
Originally described as Anemone thalictroides by Linnaeus in 1753. It was transferred to a new, monospecific genus, Anemonella, by Édouard Spach in 1839.[2] Although similar to plants in the genus Thalictrum, Sprach considered the diminutive size, umbelliform inflorescence, and tuberous roots of this species to be distinctive enough to designate a new genus. JRB Boivin considered this distinction suspect, and transferred the species to the genus Thalictrum in 1957.[3] Molecular evidence supports the placement of the species within Thalictrum,[4] and this placement is accepted by several modern treatments.[5]
References
- ↑ Flora of North America
- ↑ Spach, E. 1839. Histoire naturelle des vegetaux Phanerogames, 7:186-409
- ↑ Eames A. J. & B. Boivin. 1957. Bull. Soc. Roy. Bot. Belgique. 89: 319.
- ↑ Ro K. and B. A. McPhearson. 1997. Biochemical Systematics and Ecology 25:445
- ↑ Park, M. M. and D. Festerling. 1997. Thalictrum. In: Flora of North America. Vol. 3
External links
Media related to Thalictrum thalictroides at Wikimedia Commons