Tag: Bloodroot

“Flowers are love’s truest language.”  
–  Park Benjamin 

 

 

In early spring one of the most beautiful sights is the that of the spring ephemerals.  Those wildflowers that bloom and fade just a memory on the wind as summer rolls around.  One of the first and most lovely and unusual is bloodroot or  Sanguinaria canadensis part of the Poppy Family (Papaveraceae).  It is one of my favorites and I thought I had done a profile of this plant already.   I realized a few weeks ago that I hadn’t so I thought I would make up for that oversight and write about it now.  And what better way to spend my birthday, than to dream about a flower that has just bloomed (especially since I won’t be out and about or in the garden much while I am recuperating).

Sanguinaria canadensis has been called bloodwort, red puccoon root and has also been known as tetterwort.

This fleeting spring flower stays clasped in the curled leaf until ready to bloom in full sun.  Then it rises from the center of the leaf.  Once the flower is pollinated, the petals litter the ground.  The generic name of bloodroot comes from the Latin, sanguinarius, which means bleeding.

I am linking in with Gail@Clay and Limestone for her Wildflower Wednesday meme as I profile this wonderful native  plant.

And I am also joining forces with a local native plant nursery, Amanda’s Garden, to purchase plants for my garden, like the one I am profiling in this post.  The owner, Ellen Folts, specializes in woodland, prairie and wetland native perennials.

 

 

 

 

Growing Conditions

Sanguinaria canadensis, grows 7-10 inches tall.  The flower and leaf grow on separate stems.  The plant flowers in early spring resembling a water lily, and leaves only the foliage until it goes dormant in summer under the shade of trees.

It grows from seed and rhizome creating a colony.  Seeds should be planted immediately after collection as they cannot be allowed to dry out.  If planting by rhizome it should be done in fall or early spring.  The sap in the rhizome is orange-red giving the plant its name.  Wear gloves when handling this plant’s roots.

Sanguinaria canadensis receives sun in spring as the trees are bare.  It will also grow in part shade but the moisture of the soil is more important than the sun.  It requires moist to wet soil that does not dry out and is humus rich.  They are prized as a native ground cover as they naturally occur as such at the base of trees in the wild much like trillium.

Bloodroot opens in the sun and closes on cloudy days and at night.

There is a double flowering bloodroot that many gardeners grow as its flowers are even showier and last longer.  I do not grow these.

 

 

 

 

Benefits to Wildlife

Bloodroot does not provide nectar, but does provide pollen for some bees primarily mining bees.  Once seeds are formed, ants disperse the seeds by taking them back to their nests.  The ants in my garden have done a nice job creating other stands of  bloodroot throughout the garden.

If the flowers bloom too early, before pollinators are out and about, this flower can self pollinate.

Small birds and critters like to utilize the cover of the leaves.  They say deer will feed on the bloodroot although I have never seen them eat mine.

Bloodroot is the larval host plant for 2 Lepidoptera Butterfly species.

 

 

 

 

Where Are They Found

This native plant is found throughout eastern North America from Canada to Florida and west to the Great Lakes down to Arkansas.

Look for it in rich loamy woods and near the edges of streams and on slopes.  They do not like to grow in disturbed soil or in open areas like meadows.

 

 

 

 

Uses

The sap from the roots is poisonous so be cautious in ingesting or handling this plant.

Bloodroot extract was approved for use commercially in dental hygiene products as an antibacterial or anti-plaque agent. There is controversy, however, as to whether it may cause cancer.  I try to be careful about the toothpaste I use, and look for those without a lot of chemicals.

 

 

 

 

Folklore and Tales