Hydrastis canadensis (Golden Seal)
Also known as: | |
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Genus: | Hydrastis |
Family: | Ranunculaceae (Buttercup) |
Life cycle: | perennial |
Origin: | native |
Status: |
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Habitat: | part shade, shade; rich woods, ravines, thickets |
Bloom season: | May |
Plant height: | 6 to 20 inches |
Wetland Indicator Status: | none |
MN county distribution (click map to enlarge): | |
National distribution (click map to enlarge): |
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Detailed Information
Flower:
A single flower at the tip of the stem, ½ to ¾ inch across, no petals but with about 50 spreading, white stamens with pale yellow to green tips surrounding a small mound of green carpels. The 3 pale sepals drop away when the flower opens.
Leaves and stems:
A single basal leaf withers away by flowering time. A pair of alternate stem leaves is just below the flower. Leaves are up to 4 inches across at flowering time, expanding to 10 inches across in fruit, deeply palmately lobed with 5 or more primary lobes which may be further lobed. Leaf edges are singly or double toothed.
The uppermost leaf is stalkless or nearly so, the lower stem leaf has a stalk up to 2 inches long. Stems are erect and unbranched. Stems and leaf surfaces are covered in spreading hairs. Small colonies may be formed from thick, yellow, spreading rhizomes.
Fruit:
Fruit is a round cluster, up to ½ inch diameter, of red berries, each berry containing 1 or 2 seeds.
Notes:
A rare species in Minnesota, Golden Seal reaches the northwest edge of its range in our southeast counties and the yellow, knotty roots are a hot commodity in the herbal medicine trade. While it has never been common in the state, according to the DNR, wild populations are diminishing across its range, partly from habitat destruction, but also due to exploitation from illegal harvesting. It was listed as a MN Endangered Species in 1984 and is currently listed as Special Concern in Wisconsin. It is easily identified by the pair of hairy, palmately lobed leaves and the single, petal-less flower or raspberry-like fruit at the tip of the stem.
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More photos
Photos courtesy Peter M. Dziuk taken in a private garden in Anoka County. Photos courtesy Christopher David Benda taken in Illinois.
Comments
Have you seen this plant in Minnesota, or have any other comments about it?
on: 2020-06-24 11:46:14
Golden seal colony is growing in my backyard! One plant first sighted in 2018, now expanding exponentially. Do not reveal the location!
on: 2023-06-21 12:24:16
I didn't believe it when my iPhone photo app identified my photo as goldenseal, but it matches your description and photos.
on: 2023-06-21 12:30:51
Freddie, if you check the distribution maps you'll see golden seal's natural range doesn't extend as far north as Jay Cooke SP, so you more likely have a different species.
on: 2023-06-21 14:48:58
Well, that's what I thought. And comparing my photo to yours, again, I wonder how on earth I decided my iPhone was right. This is why amateurs should never eat wild mushrooms!