1. Ranunculaceae the Buttercup Family BUTTERCUP Family
Ca3-X Co0-A G[1,3,5]

2. Preliminary Plant Collection Review
Nomenclature needs to be current. Check every name in Go Botany or Gilman’s Label must give state, county, and town.
Each specimen must include underground parts and flowers, fruits, or sporangia.
Label must give state, county, and town
Remember to include the AUTHORITY after the binomial name

3. Leaves palmately veined, lobed, or divided Leaf bases sheathing
Vegetative Features
Herbs
Leaves alternate
Leaves palmately veined, lobed, or divided
Leaf bases sheathing
Sheathing leaf base
Palmately divided
leaf of tall buttercup

4. Reproductive Features
Start here on October 5
Flowers radially symmetrical
Androecium of many stamens
Gynoecium of many simple pistils

5. Flower parts are commonly inserted on an elongate receptacle

6. Gynoecium of many simple pistils
Fruit an achene

7. Other fruit types in the Ranunculaceae ...
Fruit a berry
(doll’s eyes)
Fruit a follicle
(monkshood)

8. Economic importance:
This family is not particularly significant economically, but many are toxic to both humans and livestock
Golden seal is much used in herbal medicine
Some are popular ornamentals, e.g., monkshood, clematis, larkspur
Columbine is the state flower of Colorado

9. Aconitum napellus
monkshood, aconite, or wolfsbane
Poisonous!
Monkshood has a long history of use
as an ornamental, in witchcraft, and
in medicinal botany. The active
component is the alkaloid aconitine.

11. Clematis

12. Japanese anemone

13. Local flora
Aquilegia
Ranunculus
Thalictrum
Anemone