North Carolina Botanical Garden

Plant Index

Scientific Name:
Common Name:
Genus:
Family:

Thalictrum dioicum

Thalictrum dioicum L.

early meadow-rue, early meadowrue

Image ID: 17775
Image by: Sorrie, Bruce A.
Image Collection: NCBG Digital Library

PLANT INDEX

ID_PLANT: THDI
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Thalictrum dioicum
Include in WOTAS: 1
Publish to Web: 1
Last Modified: 2018-01-09

GENUS INDEX

GENUS CODE: THALI2
GENUS SCIENTIFIC: Thalictrum
GENUS AUTHORITY: L.
GENUS COMMON: Meadow-rue
GENUS SUMMARY: A genus of about 330 species, perennial herbs, of Eurasia, North America, South America, and Africa. Ro & McPheron (1997) corroborate via molecular phylogeny that Anemonella should be included in Thalictrum; in fact, T. thalictroides appears to form a basal subclade in Thalictrum with T. clavatum (and presumably T. mirabile).
GENUS IDENTIFICATION: Identification notes: Thalictrum thalictroides is superficially similar to Enemion biternatum, but can be distinguished by the following characters: fruit an achene (vs. fruit a follicle), petaloid sepals 5-10 (vs. 5).
GENUS REFERENCES: Park & Festerling in FNA (1997); Park (1992)=Z; Ro & McPheron (1997); Tamura in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993).

FAMILY INDEX

FAMILY CODE: RANUNC
FAMILY SCIENTIFIC: Ranunculaceae
FAMILY AUTHORITY: A.L. de Jussieu 1789
FAMILY COMMON: Buttercup Family
FAMILY SUMMARY: A family of about 62 genera and 2450 species, herbs, shrubs, and vines, primarily of temperate and boreal regions. Classsification of subfamilies and tribes follows Wang et al. (2009). Subfamilies and tribes follow Wang et al. (2009).
FAMILY REFERENCE: Whittemore & Parfitt in FNA (1997); Wang et al. (2009); Keener (1977); Tamura in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993). [also see HYDRASTIDACEAE]

NCBG DESCRIPTIVES

INTRO: An erect perennial found in seepages, shaded outcrops in moist to dryish forests and shell-marl ravines.
STEMS: Stems unbranched, smooth, pale or purplish-green, with a waxy coating.
LEAVES: Leaves alternate; long-petiolate; divided into 3 leaflets, which are again divided into 3â€“5 leaflets. The ultimate leaflets are round to kidney-shaped, round-lobed, drooping at flowering, pale to purplish green and smooth.
INFLORESCENCE:
FLOWERS: Flowers in terminal and axillary panicles, male and female flowers on separate plants. Flowers about Â¼ in. wide, male flowers with straw-colored to purple sepals and dangling yellowish-green stamens, and female flowers with greenish-purple sepals and spreading, slender, purple stigmas.
FRUITS: Fruit a cluster of 3-8 hook-beaked, ellipsoid achenes.
COMMENTS:
HEIGHT: 12-30 in.

DURATION: Perennial
HABIT: Herb

LEAF ARRANGEMENT: Alternate
LEAF COMPLEXITY:
LEAF RETENTION:

FLORAL CHARACTERISTICS
SYMMETRY: Radial (Actinomorphic)
BLOOM TIME: Apr-May

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
	x	x	x	x

BLOOM COLOR: Yellowish-green, purple

White	Red	Pink	Orange	Yellow	Green	Blue	Lavender	Purple	Violet	Brown	Not Applicable
x					x			x

FRUITING PERIOD:

DISTRIBUTION
HABITAT TYPE: Moist forests
NATIVE RANGE:

HORTICULTURAL
Plant Sale Text:

Bloom Table Text:

NCBG Location:

Cultural Notes:

SOIL MOISTURE: Dry, Average
LIGHT EXPOSURE: Part Shade, Shade
MINIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
MAXIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
GERMINATION CODE:
WILDLIFE VALUE:
DEER RESISTANCE:

GRIM ACCESSIONS

acc_id	acc_num	acc_dt	coll_id	Action
2135	1986-1940			View

GRIM PLANTINGS

plt_num	acc_id	loc_num	pers_num	inst_dt	Action
3637	2135	189	NCBG staff	1986-12-31	View

USDA PLANTS DATABASE

USDA Symbol: THDI
USDA Common Name: Early Meadow-rue
Native Status: L48 (N), CAN (N)
Distribution: USA (AL, AR, CT, DC, DE, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, VA, VT, WI, WV), CAN (ON, QC), FRA (SPM)
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: Forb/herb

NATIONAL WETLAND INDICATOR STATUS

Region:	AGCP	AK	AW	CB	EMP	GP	HI	MW	NCNE	WMVE
Status:	FAC				FAC	FACW		FACU	FACU	FACW

This information is derived from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 2016 National Wetland Plant List, Version 3.3 (Lichvar, R.W., D.L. Banks, W.N. Kirchner, and N.C. Melvin. 2016. The National Wetland Plant List: 2016 wetland ratings. Phytoneuron 2016-30: 1-17. Published 28 April 2016. ISSN 2153 733X). Regions: AGCP-Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain, AK-Alaska, AW-Arid West, CB-Caribbean, EMP-Eastern Mountains and Piedmont, GP-Great Plains, HI-Hawaii, MW-Midwest, NCNE-Northcentral and Northeast, WMCV-Western Mountains, Valleys & Coast

WEAKLEY FLORA

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Thalictrum dioicum
COMMON NAME: Early Meadowrue
SYNONYMY: [= C, F, FNA, G, GW, K, Mo, Pa, RAB, S, Va, W, WV]
PHENOLOGY: Apr-May.
HABITAT: Seepages, moist forests.
COMMENTS: ME, QC, and MN south to SC, c. GA, AL, and MO.
RANGE MAP: Thalictrum dioicum.png

Key to Map Symbols

ABOUT FAMILY (Weakley Flora)
Ranunculaceae A.L. de Jussieu 1789 (Buttercup Family)
SUMMARY: A family of about 62 genera and 2450 species, herbs, shrubs, and vines, primarily of temperate and boreal regions. Classsification of subfamilies and tribes follows Wang et al. (2009). Subfamilies and tribes follow Wang et al. (2009).
REFERENCE: Whittemore & Parfitt in FNA (1997); Wang et al. (2009); Keener (1977); Tamura in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993). [also see HYDRASTIDACEAE]

ABOUT GENUS (Weakley Flora)
Thalictrum L. (Meadow-rue)
SUMMARY: A genus of about 330 species, perennial herbs, of Eurasia, North America, South America, and Africa. Ro & McPheron (1997) corroborate via molecular phylogeny that Anemonella should be included in Thalictrum; in fact, T. thalictroides appears to form a basal subclade in Thalictrum with T. clavatum (and presumably T. mirabile).
REFERENCE: Park & Festerling in FNA (1997); Park (1992)=Z; Ro & McPheron (1997); Tamura in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993).

HERBARIUM RESOURCES

SERNEC: Find Thalictrum dioicum in Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)
UNC SERNEC: Find Thalictrum dioicum in University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Herbarium - Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)

WEB RESOURCES

USDA: Find Thalictrum dioicum in USDA Plants
NPIN: Find Thalictrum dioicum in NPIN Database
FNA: Find Thalictrum dioicum in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Thalictrum dioicum

IMAGE USE RECORDS

ID IMAGE: 17775 - Primary Image FloraQuest Plant Detail Page (Landscape Preferred)
ID IMAGE1: 17775 - Primary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE2: 17776 - Secondary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE3: 18963 - Primary Image Plant Sale Sign (Landscape Only)
ID IMAGE4: 0 - Primary Image New Plant Sale Label (Portrait Only)