OregonFlora: Asarum caudatum vs. Asarum

	Asarum caudatum	Asarum
	long-tailed wild ginger, western wild ginger	wild ginger
Habit	Plants semi-evergreen.	Herbs deciduous or semi-evergreen, usually aromatic, from underground rhizomes.
Rhizomes	horizontal, shallowly buried; internodes (5)15–65 mm.
Leaves	blades cordate; (1.5)3–8.5 × (2)4.5–12.5 cm, not variegated; marginal hairs perpendicular to margin or curved toward tip; tips usually obtuse, occasionally broadly acute, abaxially sparsely appressed-hirsute; at least proximally, adaxially glabrous or sparsely appressed-hirsute; petioles 6–19 cm.	cauline and basal, alternate, with both foliage leaves and sessile triangular scales; foliage blades reniform; surfaces pubescent at least on lower surface and on margins; petioles present.
Inflorescences		terminal; solitary flowers; bracts absent.
Pedicels	15–50 mm.
Flowers	calyx tubes cylindric, externally dark red to brownish purple, rarely green; hispid, internally white, usually with median purple stripes, with purple or rarely white hairs; lobes spreading or weakly reflexed at anthesis; (11)30–75 mm; tips filiform-attenuate, abaxially purple or greenish, sparsely hispid, adaxially purple, puberulent with crisped purple hairs.	sepals touching and forming a false tube; tubes straight; vestigial petals present or lacking; stamens 12; distinct.
Fruits		fleshy.
Seeds		ovoid, with fleshy appendage.
2n		=26.

	Asarum caudatum	Asarum
Distribution	[WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]	[BONAP county map]
Discussion	Mesic or wet places in conifer forests or rocky areas. Flowering Mar–Aug. 0–1800 m. BW, Casc, CR, Est, Sisk, WV. CA, ID, WA; north to British Columbia, northeast to MT. Native.	Temperate Northern Hemisphere. ~75 species; 3 species treated in Flora. The flowers of Asarum are mostly self-pollinated, but they are occasionally visited by mycotrophic flies. The fatty appendages (elaiosomes) on the seeds attract ants, which help disperse the seeds. Despite its common name, Asarum is not closely related to the culinary species of ginger (Zingiber officinale). The name is derived from the ginger-like odor of the rhizomes. Asarum should not be consumed due it its high aristolochic acid content. Asarum hartwegii has been collected only once, on the Little Chinquapin Mountain in Jackson County. Its variegated leaves are similar to those A. marmoratum, but the inner surfaces of its calyx tubes are white with red stripes while those of A. marmoratum are red-brown without stripes.
Source	Flora of Oregon, volume 2, page 150 Christian Feuillet	Flora of Oregon, volume 1
Sibling taxa	A. hartwegii, A. marmoratum, A. wagneri
Subordinate taxa		A. caudatum, A. hartwegii, A. marmoratum, A. wagneri
Synonyms	Asarum caudatum var. caudatum
Web links	Local floras: BC, CA, OR, WA Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos, Flora NW, PNW Herbaria, Turner Photog. WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search	Local floras: CA, OR, WA Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos, Flora NW, PNW Herbaria, Turner Photog. WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Asarum

long-tailed wild ginger, western wild ginger

wild ginger

Habit

Plants semi-evergreen.

Herbs deciduous or semi-evergreen, usually aromatic, from underground rhizomes.

Rhizomes

horizontal, shallowly buried;

internodes (5)15–65 mm.

Leaves

blades cordate; (1.5)3–8.5 × (2)4.5–12.5 cm, not variegated; marginal hairs perpendicular to margin or curved toward tip;

tips usually obtuse, occasionally broadly acute, abaxially sparsely appressed-hirsute; at least proximally, adaxially glabrous or sparsely appressed-hirsute;

petioles 6–19 cm.

cauline and basal, alternate, with both foliage leaves and sessile triangular scales;

foliage blades reniform;

surfaces pubescent at least on lower surface and on margins;

petioles present.

Inflorescences

terminal; solitary flowers;

bracts absent.

Pedicels

15–50 mm.

Flowers

calyx tubes cylindric, externally dark red to brownish purple, rarely green; hispid, internally white, usually with median purple stripes, with purple or rarely white hairs;

lobes spreading or weakly reflexed at anthesis; (11)30–75 mm;

tips filiform-attenuate, abaxially purple or greenish, sparsely hispid, adaxially purple, puberulent with crisped purple hairs.

sepals touching and forming a false tube;

tubes straight;

vestigial petals present or lacking;

stamens 12; distinct.

Fruits

fleshy.

Seeds

ovoid, with fleshy appendage.

=26.

Asarum

Distribution

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

Discussion

Mesic or wet places in conifer forests or rocky areas. Flowering Mar–Aug. 0–1800 m. BW, Casc, CR, Est, Sisk, WV. CA, ID, WA; north to British Columbia, northeast to MT. Native.

Temperate Northern Hemisphere. ~75 species; 3 species treated in Flora.

The flowers of Asarum are mostly self-pollinated, but they are occasionally visited by mycotrophic flies. The fatty appendages (elaiosomes) on the seeds attract ants, which help disperse the seeds. Despite its common name, Asarum is not closely related to the culinary species of ginger (Zingiber officinale). The name is derived from the ginger-like odor of the rhizomes. Asarum should not be consumed due it its high aristolochic acid content. Asarum hartwegii has been collected only once, on the Little Chinquapin Mountain in Jackson County. Its variegated leaves are similar to those A. marmoratum, but the inner surfaces of its calyx tubes are white with red stripes while those of A. marmoratum are red-brown without stripes.

Source

Flora of Oregon, volume 2, page 150
Christian Feuillet

Flora of Oregon, volume 1

Sibling taxa

A. hartwegii, A. marmoratum, A. wagneri

Subordinate taxa

A. caudatum, A. hartwegii, A. marmoratum, A. wagneri

Synonyms

Asarum caudatum var. caudatum

Web links