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Hepatica nobilis Schreb. var. obtusa (Pursh) Steyerm.

Round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf

ParentsUnknownGenus is not in the current taxonomy
GenusHepaticaNamed for the resemblence of the leaves to a liver
SpeciesnobilisNoble
var.obtusaWith obtuse leaves

About plant names...

Round-lobed hepatica is widespread in North America, a native plant. There is also a sharp-lobed variety, Hepatica nobilis var. acuta. These are inconspicuous until you start looking for them. I'll be hiking along and notice a single, lavendar-colored blossom, poking up through the leaf litter a couple of inches, often with no visible leaves or any other evidence that there is a whole plant in there somewhere. At other times of the year, I occasionally notice a couple of small leaves, flush with the ground. Took awhile to put them together. Once I did, I started noticing them a lot more often, among the first flowers in the spring.

Identification: Leaves are basal, just above (or even below) the leaf litter. They are evergreen, heart-shaped at the base, with three rounded lobes, vaguely resembling a liver, hence the common name. They turn splotchy and then deep red in the winter. In early spring, fuzzy stems 4-6″ (10-15 cm) high each support a delicate white, pink, blue, or lavendar flower. Each flower is ½-1″ (1.3-2.5 cm) around, with 5-20 sepals (usually six). Behind each flower are three oval-shaped large hairy bracts.

Online References:

The U.S. Forest Service Celebrating Wildflowers site

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Minnesota Wildflowers

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/29/2015 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 9.1 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/29/2015 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 4½ × 3″ (12 × 8 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/29/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 11 × 7″ (26 × 17 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/29/2015 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 3½ × 5″ (8.7 × 13 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/22/2015 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 9.1 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/29/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 8 × 6″ (20 × 14 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

5/15/1979 · Virginia · By Tim Chandler

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/16/2016 · Jason’s Cutoff/Nichols Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (18 × 12 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

5/14/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 16 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/22/2016 · Wildflower Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (16 × 11 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

7/29/2023 · Selkirk, New York · By John W. Kent

Anemone americana (DC.) H. Hara

Anemone hepatica L.

Hepatica americana (DC.) Ker Gawl.

Hepatica hepatica (L.) Karst., nom. inval.

Hepatica triloba Chaix var. americana DC.

 

Hepatica nobilis var. obtusa description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 7 Sep 2023.

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Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

8/12/2023 · Highlands Trail via Pismire Bluffs Trail, Raymond Community Forest, Raymond, Maine · ≈ 12 × 8″ (31 × 20 cm) ID is uncertain

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

8/14/2017 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Old Long Loop, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 10 × 6″ (24 × 16 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/22/2015 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 3½ × 5″ (8.7 × 13 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

9/17/2014 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 16 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/22/2015 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 8.7 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/22/2016 · Wildflower Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 4½ × 7″ (11 × 16 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/22/2016 · Wildflower Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 12 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

5/14/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 16 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/29/2015 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 8.7 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/16/2016 · Jason’s Cutoff/Nichols Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 4½ × 7″ (12 × 18 cm)

Hepatica nobilis (round-lobed hepatica, hepatica, liverleaf)

4/29/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 8 × 6″ (20 × 14 cm)

Range: Zones 5-8:

About this map...