Rue Anemone

Rue Anemone
Thalictrum thalictroides

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Many early spring flowers are small and white. This one is easy to confuse with true Anemone (usually called Wood Anemone). Note the leaves, however. Rue-Anemone leaflets are much shorter, blunter, and with only a couple of "teeth" near the end. Also, though it's hard to tell from this photo, the edges of these leaves have a fine, dark purplish line. The true Anemone has only one flower per plant. Rue-Anemones may have several. True Anemones almost always have 5 "petals", while the Rue-Anemone often has seven or even nine. As with true Anemone, the petals are actually sepals.

A note on the nomenclature (naming conventions) on this site: Scientific names and classifications are constantly being argued and changed, and it drives me nuts. Although I use many different sources for knowledge, for naming consistency I use the "Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas" by Radford, Ahles and Bell, 1968 edition. This book is a well-established authority for the plants of our region and I've been using it for years. If for some reason I must use a different source for a particular plant, I will make note of it within the descriptive text. Don't like it? Tough!

fdudley@weaversites.com

Fiona Dudley
Weaversites
986 Reems Creek Road
Weaverville NC 28787

828-231-1501