Aquilegia flavescens
Aquilegia canadensis
yellow columbine
American columbine, ancolie du Canada, Canadian columbine, Colorado columbine, red columbine, wild columbine
20-70 cm.
15-90 cm.
2x-ternately compound, 8-30 cm, much shorter than stems;
leaflets green adaxially, to 14-42 mm, not viscid;
primary petiolules to 13-67 mm (leaflets not crowded), glabrous or pilose.
2x-ternately compound, 7-30 cm, much shorter than stems;
leaflets green adaxially, 17-52 mm, not viscid;
primary petiolules 17-93 mm (leaflets not crowded), glabrous or pilose, sometimes somewhat viscid.
nodding;
sepals perpendicular to floral axis, yellow or tinged with pink, elliptic-lanceolate to oblong, 12-22 × 4-10 mm, apex obtuse to acute or sometimes acuminate;
petals: spurs yellow, tips incurved, 10-18 mm, stout, evenly tapered from base or more abruptly narrowed near middle, blades cream colored, oblong, 7-10 × 4-8 mm;
stamens 12-17 mm.
pendent;
sepals divergent from floral axis, red or apex green, lance-ovate to oblong-ovate, 8-18 × 3-8 mm, apex broadly acute to acuminate;
petals: spurs red, straight, ± parallel to divergent, 13-25 mm, stout (at least proximally), abruptly narrowed near middle, blades pale yellow or yellow-green, oblong to rounded, 5-9 × 4-8 mm;
stamens 15-23 mm.
18-27 mm;
beak 8-10 mm.
15-31 mm;
beak 10-18 mm.
= 14.
Aquilegia flavescens
Aquilegia canadensis
Aquilegia flavescens sometimes forms hybrid swarms with A. formosa var. formosa, which grows at lower elevations through much of its range. Intermediate specimens having pinkish red flowers and petal blades 5-6 mm are occasionally found where these species grow together. The name A. flavescens var. miniana has sometimes been mistakenly applied to these intermediates, but the type of var. miniana is a typical, pink-sepaled plant of A. flavescens.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
P. A. Munz divided this species into five varieties, based on size of the plants, sepals, and leaflets and whether the leaves are 2-3×-ternately compound. The variation in size of these organs is not discontinuous or even bimodal, however, and I have not seen any material with 3×-ternately compound leaves. For this reason, no varieties are recognized here. The name Aquilegia canadensis var. hybrida Hooker has been misapplied to this species; the type specimen actually belongs to A. brevistyla (B. Boivin 1953).
Aquilegia canadensis has also been reported from New Brunswick, but the specimen has been destroyed and the species has never been recollected in the province.
Native Americans prepare infusions from various parts of plants of Aquilegia canadensis to treat heart trouble, kidney problems, headaches, bladder problems, and fever, and as a wash for poison ivy; pulverized seeds were used as love charms; and a compound was used to detect bewitchment (D. E. Moerman 1986).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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