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Hipp's cinquefoil, horse cinquefoil, potentille de Hipp, woolly cinquefoil

strawberry cinquefoil

Habit Plants tufted to cushion-forming; caudex branches short, stout, diam. 1–1.5(–2) cm, including old leaf bases.
Stems

(0.3–)2–4(–5) dm, lengths (1–)2–4 times basal leaves.

ascending to erect, 0.3–1.5(–2) dm, lengths 1–2 times basal leaves.

Basal leaves

pinnate to subpinnate, (3–)5–15(–25) cm;

petiole 1–10(–15) cm, long hairs abundant to dense, tightly appressed, 1–2.5 mm, stiff, short hairs absent or obscured, crisped-cottony hairs absent or sparse to common, glands absent or obscured;

leaflets not conduplicate, lateral ones evenly (to unevenly in argyrea phase) paired, (2–)3–6(–7) per side on distal (1/6–)1/5–1/2 of leaf axis, distal pairs ± decurrent, often confluent with terminal leaflet, larger leaflets oblanceolate or narrowly obovate to oblong, 1–5(–6) × 0.3–1.5 cm, distal (2/3–)3/4 to whole margin incised 1/2 or less (rarely more) to midvein, teeth (5–)7–12(–18) per side, 1–4 mm, surfaces ± to strongly dissimilar, abaxial white, long hairs abundant (mostly on, but not limited to, veins), 1–2 mm, stiff, short hairs absent or obscured, crisped-cottony hairs abundant to dense, glands absent or obscured, adaxial green to grayish, long hairs sparse to common, rarely absent, short or crisped to, sometimes, cottony hairs absent or sparse to common, glands sparse.

not in ranks, ternate, (1–)4–10(–15) cm;

stipules: apex acute to obtuse;

petiole (0.3–)2–11(–13) cm, long hairs abundant, ascending to spreading, 1–2.3 mm, soft, glands sparse to common;

leaflets 3, central obovate, 0.7–2.5 × 0.5–1.6 cm, petiolule 0–1 mm, margins revolute, not lobed, distal 1/2–2/3 evenly incised ± 1/3 to midvein, teeth 2–3(–4) per side, surfaces ± similar, green (paler abaxially), hairs common, 1–1.5 mm, glands common (sparser adaxially).

Cauline leaves

1–2(–3).

Inflorescences

10–30-flowered.

1–3-flowered.

Pedicels

0.3–3(–5) cm.

straight, 0.5–2 cm in flower, to 3.5 cm in fruit.

Flowers

epicalyx bractlets narrowly elliptic to lanceolate, rarely linear, 2–5 × 0.5–1.5 mm, (1/2–)2/3 as long as sepals, abaxial vestiture similar to or ± sparser than sepals, usually not glabrescent, straight hairs ± abundant, crisped to sometimes ± cottony hairs absent or sparse to abundant;

hypanthium 3–7 mm diam.;

sepals 4–5.5(–6.5) mm, apex acute to acuminate;

petals 4–8 × 4–7 mm;

filaments 0.5–2.5 mm, anthers 0.6–1.1 mm;

carpels (5–)10–30, styles 1.7–2.5 mm.

epicalyx bractlets oblong, 3–7 × 1.2–2.5 mm, margins revolute;

hypanthium 4–6 mm diam.;

sepals 4–6(–7) mm, apex broadly acute to obtuse;

petals yellow, 9–12 × 8–10 mm;

filaments (2–)2.8–3.2 mm, anthers 0.5–0.8 mm;

carpels 40–50, styles filiform, not or scarcely papillate-swollen proximally, 1.7–2 mm.

Achenes

1.4–1.8 mm, smooth to faintly rugose.

1.3–1.5.

2n

= 42, 70, 77, 84, 98.

= 42, 56 (Russian Far East).

Potentilla hippiana

Potentilla fragiformis

Phenology Flowering summer. Flowering late spring–summer.
Habitat Dry grasslands and meadows, in aspen and conifer woodlands or alpine tundra, disturbed sites Leymus-Potentilla sand dunes, coastal gravel bars, beach ridges
Elevation 500–3400 m (1600–11200 ft) 0–10 m (0–0 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; CO; ID; MI; MN; MT; ND; NE; NM; NV; SD; UT; WY; AB; BC; MB; NS; NT; ON; QC; SK
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AK; e Asia (Russian Far East)
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Potentilla hippiana is most common and distinctive in the Colorado Plateau and southern Rocky Mountains, with outliers in the mountains of Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico. Occurrences are more scattered in the northern Rocky Mountains and Great Plains, where intergradation with P. effusa is common. Among these intermediates are the argyrea phase and the single report from Idaho (B. C. Johnston 1980). Potentilla hippiana is probably adventive in Nova Scotia, eastern Ontario, Quebec, and Michigan, and possibly the Northwest Territories. The reported occurrence in central Alaska (E. Hultén 1968) is based on a specimen of P. pensylvanica (CAN).

Significant variation exists throughout the range of Potentilla hippiana, including dwarfism, leaf division, leaflet dissection, adaxial leaflet vestiture, and pedicel length. Some of this variation might merit taxonomic recognition upon further analysis, especially if correlated with ploidy level (6x through 12x). At present, the differences used to distinguish var. argyrea are not found to be sufficiently correlated with distribution to merit formal taxonomic recognition.

Complicating the infraspecific variation is a tendency for Potentilla hippiana to intergrade with other species, in particular P. effusa. Beyond sect. Leucophyllae, the frequency of hybrids with P. pulcherrima blurs the distinction between the two species; P. gracilis var. hippianoides S. L. Welsh & N. D. Atwood is probably one of the resultant intermediates.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Recent collections of Potentilla fragiformis in Alaska on the coast of the Bering and Chukchi seas have confirmed historical reports (P. A. Rydberg 1908d) of this Beringian species in North America. Dwarf plants from St. Lawrence Island are somewhat intermediate to P. nana but have the larger petals and longer styles of P. fragiformis.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 9, p. 162. FNA vol. 9, p. 191.
Parent taxa Rosaceae > subfam. Rosoideae > tribe Potentilleae > Potentilla > sect. Leucophyllae Rosaceae > subfam. Rosoideae > tribe Potentilleae > Potentilla > sect. Aureae
Sibling taxa
P. albiflora, P. ambigens, P. anachoretica, P. angelliae, P. anglica, P. anserina, P. arenosa, P. argentea, P. arizonica, P. basaltica, P. bicrenata, P. biennis, P. biflora, P. bimundorum, P. bipinnatifida, P. brevifolia, P. breweri, P. bruceae, P. brunnescens, P. canadensis, P. concinna, P. cottamii, P. crantzii, P. crebridens, P. crinita, P. cristae, P. demotica, P. drummondii, P. effusa, P. elegans, P. erecta, P. flabellifolia, P. fragiformis, P. furcata, P. glaucophylla, P. gracilis, P. grayi, P. hickmanii, P. holmgrenii, P. hookeriana, P. hyparctica, P. inclinata, P. intermedia, P. jepsonii, P. johnstonii, P. lasiodonta, P. litoralis, P. macounii, P. millefolia, P. modesta, P. morefieldii, P. multijuga, P. multisecta, P. nana, P. newberryi, P. nivea, P. norvegica, P. ovina, P. paucijuga, P. pedersenii, P. pensylvanica, P. plattensis, P. pseudosericea, P. pulchella, P. pulcherrima, P. recta, P. reptans, P. rhyolitica, P. rimicola, P. rivalis, P. robbinsiana, P. rubella, P. rubricaulis, P. sanguinea, P. saximontana, P. sierrae-blancae, P. simplex, P. sterilis, P. stipularis, P. subgorodkovii, P. subjuga, P. subvahliana, P. subviscosa, P. supina, P. thurberi, P. thuringiaca, P. tikhomirovii, P. townsendii, P. uliginosa, P. uschakovii, P. vahliana, P. verna, P. versicolor, P. villosa, P. villosula, P. vulcanicola, P. wheeleri
P. albiflora, P. ambigens, P. anachoretica, P. angelliae, P. anglica, P. anserina, P. arenosa, P. argentea, P. arizonica, P. basaltica, P. bicrenata, P. biennis, P. biflora, P. bimundorum, P. bipinnatifida, P. brevifolia, P. breweri, P. bruceae, P. brunnescens, P. canadensis, P. concinna, P. cottamii, P. crantzii, P. crebridens, P. crinita, P. cristae, P. demotica, P. drummondii, P. effusa, P. elegans, P. erecta, P. flabellifolia, P. furcata, P. glaucophylla, P. gracilis, P. grayi, P. hickmanii, P. hippiana, P. holmgrenii, P. hookeriana, P. hyparctica, P. inclinata, P. intermedia, P. jepsonii, P. johnstonii, P. lasiodonta, P. litoralis, P. macounii, P. millefolia, P. modesta, P. morefieldii, P. multijuga, P. multisecta, P. nana, P. newberryi, P. nivea, P. norvegica, P. ovina, P. paucijuga, P. pedersenii, P. pensylvanica, P. plattensis, P. pseudosericea, P. pulchella, P. pulcherrima, P. recta, P. reptans, P. rhyolitica, P. rimicola, P. rivalis, P. robbinsiana, P. rubella, P. rubricaulis, P. sanguinea, P. saximontana, P. sierrae-blancae, P. simplex, P. sterilis, P. stipularis, P. subgorodkovii, P. subjuga, P. subvahliana, P. subviscosa, P. supina, P. thurberi, P. thuringiaca, P. tikhomirovii, P. townsendii, P. uliginosa, P. uschakovii, P. vahliana, P. verna, P. versicolor, P. villosa, P. villosula, P. vulcanicola, P. wheeleri
Synonyms P. leucophylla, P. argyrea, P. effusa var. argyrea, P. hippiana var. argyrea, P. hippiana var. diffusa, P. propinqua
Name authority Lehmann: Nov. Stirp. Pug. 2: 7. (1830) — not Pallas 1773 D. F. K. Schlechtendal: Ges. Naturf. Freunde Berlin Mag. Neuesten Entdeck. Gesammten Naturk. 7: 294. (1816)
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