Aquilegia canadensis L.
Red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine
Kingdom Plantae Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom Tracheobionta Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division Magnoliophyta Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class Magnoliopsida Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass Magnoliidae Includes magnolias, nutmeg, bay laurel, cinnamon, avocado, black pepper, and many others
Order Ranunculales Basal (evolved earlier) eudicots, also called “true dicots”
Family Ranunculaceae Buttercup family
Genus Aquilegia From Latin aquila, or “eagle,” for the flower’s resemblence to an eagle’s claw
Species canadensis “From Canada”
About plant names...
Red columbine, one of the prettiest darned flowers I’ve ever seen, is native to North America.
The genus Aquilegia means eagle-like, a reference to the talon-like spurs on the back
of each flower. Columbines are related to buttercups. They are found in dry woods.
Identification: Plants are 12-36" (30-91 cm) high, with red to green
stems.
Leaves are at the base, with a few along the stem, divided into progressively smaller groups of two or three. They
are up to 3" (7.6 cm) long. Leaves may be oval, but wider toward the ends; or rounded, with lobes or teeth.
A single flower hangs downward from each stem. The flower has five symmetrical parts, and is about
1¼-2" (3.2-5 cm) in length. They vary from light pink to deep red in color, with yellow centers, and
bloom from April to July. The spurs on the back of each flower are unique in shape, the best identifying characteristic. They favor forest floors and cliffs. See other columbines.
Edibility: Poisonous. The seeds and roots are highly poisonous, and the leaves of many other members of the buttercup
family are poisonous.
Online References:
Aquilegia canadensis on Earl J.S. Rook's Flora, Fauna, Earth, and Sky ...
The Natural History of the Northwoods
Aquilegia canadensis on Missouriplants.com
Aquilegia canadensis at Illinois Wildflowers
Aquilegia canadensis on the USDA Plants Database
Aquilegia canadensis at the University of Wisconsin's Robert W. Freckmann Herbarium
Aquilegia canadensis on Discover Life
References:
Newcomb, Lawrence, Morrison, Gordon (Illus.), Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide , Little, Brown and Company, 1977 , p. 228
Peterson, Roger Tory, McKenny, Margaret, Peterson Field Guides: A Field Guide to Wildflowers of Northeastern and North Central North America , Houghton Mifflin, 1968 , p. 216
Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest , Oxford University Press, 2006 , 90
6/4/2017 · Lockes Hill, Gilford, New Hampshire ≈ 4½ × 7" (12 × 18 cm)
5/12/2021 · Weber-Kelly Preserve, Georgetown, Maine ≈ 4 × 5" (10 × 13 cm)
5/12/2021 · Weber-Kelly Preserve, Georgetown, Maine ≈ 4 × 3" (10 × 8.1 cm)
5/11/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Pepperell, Massachusetts ≈ 4½ × 4" (12 × 10 cm)
5/27/2016 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Massachusetts
6/4/2017 · Lockes Hill, Gilford, New Hampshire ≈ 7 × 10" (16 × 24 cm)
6/2/2009 · Zion National Park, Utah ≈ 3½ × 4" (8.7 × 10 cm)
5/12/2021 · Weber-Kelly Preserve, Georgetown, Maine ≈ 3½ × 5" (9.0 × 13 cm)
Older scientific names
Aquilegia australis Small
Aquilegia canadensis L. var. australis (Small) Munz
Aquilegia canadensis L. var. coccinea (Small) Munz
Aquilegia canadensis L. var. eminens (Greene) B. Boivin
Aquilegia canadensis L. var. hybrida Hook.
Aquilegia canadensis L. var. latiuscula (Greene) Munz
Aquilegia coccinea Small
Aquilegia latiuscula Greene
Aquilegia phoenicantha Cory
Aquilegia canadensis description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 14 Aug 2021.
© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.
5/12/2021 · Weber-Kelly Preserve, Georgetown, Maine ≈ 3½ × 3½" (8.7 × 9 cm)
5/27/2016 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Massachusetts
9/28/2013 · Wild Gardens of Acadia, Acadia Naitonal Park, Bar Harbor, Maine ≈ 12 × 8" (31 × 21 cm)
5/11/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Pepperell, Massachusetts ≈ 8 × 5" (19 × 13 cm)
5/27/2016 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Massachusetts
5/23/2016 · Wildflower Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hampshire
6/2/2014 · Big Bear Mountain, Brookline, Massachusetts ≈ 1 × 5" (2.6 × 12 cm)
5/16/2014 · Acton Arboretum, Action, Massachusetts ≈ 3½ × 3½" (9.8 × 9.8 cm)
5/7/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts ≈ 4 × 3½" (10 × 9.2 cm)
6/2/2009 · Zion National Park, Utah ≈ 1½ × 1¾" (3.9 × 4.7 cm)
5/9/2012 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts ≈ 3½ × 4" (9.2 × 10 cm)
Range: Zones 3-8:
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