The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

curled dock, curly dock, patience crépue, reguette, rumex crépu, sour dock, yellow dock

fiddle dock, fiddleleaf dock

Habit Plants perennial, occasionally biennial, glabrous or very indistinctly papillose normally only on veins of leaf blades abaxially, with fusiform, vertical rootstock. Plants perennial, glabrous or distinctly papillose especially on veins of leaf blades abaxially, with fusiform, vertical rootstock.
Stems

erect, branched distal to middle, 40–100(–150) cm.

erect, often flexuous in distal part, branched in distal 2/3, occasionally almost from base, 20–60(–70) cm.

Leaves

ocrea deciduous, rarely partially persistent at maturity;

blade lanceolate to narrowly lanceolate or lanceolate-linear, normally 15–30(–35) × 2–6 cm, base cuneate, truncate, or weakly cordate, margins entire to subentire, strongly crisped and undulate, apex acute.

ocrea deciduous or partially persistent at maturity;

blade oblong to ovate-oblong, sometimes broadly lanceolate or panduriform, contracted near middle or proximally, 4–10(–15) × (2–)3–5 cm, less than 4 times as long as wide, base normally truncate or weakly cordate, occasionally rounded, margins entire, flat or undulate, rarely slightly crisped, apex obtuse or subacute.

Inflorescences

terminal, occupying distal 1/2 of stem, dense or interrupted at base, narrowly to broadly paniculate, branches usually straight or arcuate.

terminal, occupying distal 2/3 of stem or more, usually lax and interrupted, broadly paniculate, branches usually divaricately spreading, forming angle of 60–90° with 1st-order stem.

Pedicels

articulated in proximal 1/3, filiform, (3–)4–8 mm, articulation distinctly swollen.

articulated in proximal 1/3 or occasionally near middle, thickened, not filiform, 2–5(–6) mm, articulation distinctly swollen.

Flowers

10–25 in whorls;

inner tepals orbiculate-ovate or ovate-deltoid, 3.5–6 × 3–5 mm, base truncate or subcordate, margins entire or subentire to very weakly erose, flat, apex obtuse or subacute;

tubercles normally 3, rarely 1 or 2, unequal, at least 1 distinctly larger, more than (1–)1.5 mm wide.

10–20 in rather dense whorls;

inner tepals ovate-triangular, deltoid, or oblong-deltoid, 3–6 × 2–3 mm (excluding teeth), normally ca. 1.5 times as long as wide, base truncate, margins usually distinctly dentate, rarely subentire, apex obtuse to subacute, straight, teeth 2–5(–9), normally on margins at each side, narrowly triangular, 0.3–2.5 mm, longer or shorter than width of inner tepals;

tubercles (1–)3, equal or unequal, usually verrucose (warty).

Achenes

usually reddish brown, 2–3 × 1.5–2 mm.

dark reddish brown to almost black, 2–2.8 × 1.3–2 mm.

2n

= 60.

= 20.

Rumex crispus

Rumex pulcher

Phenology Flowering late spring–early fall. Flowering late spring–summer.
Habitat Very broad range of ruderal, segetal, and seminatural habitats, disturbed soil, waste places, cultivated fields, roadsides, meadows, shores of water bodies, edges of woods Waste places, roadsides, shores, fields, meadows, moist to dry habitats
Elevation 0-2500 m (0-8200 ft) 0-1500 m (0-4900 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; AL; AR; AZ; CA; CO; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; NT; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT; SPM; Eurasia [Introduced in North America; introduced almost worldwide]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; AZ; CA; FL; GA; KY; LA; MA; MD; MO; MS; NC; NJ; NV; NY; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; VA; WV; s Europe; w Europe; sw Asia; n Africa [Introduced in North America; introduced elsewhere]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Rumex crispus (belonging to subsect. Crispi Rechinger f.; see K. H. Rechinger 1937) is the most widespread and ecologically successful species of the genus, occuring almost worldwide as a completely naturalized and sometimes invasive alien. It has not been reported from Greenland, but it probably occurs there.

Rumex crispus hybridizes with many other species of subg. Rumex. Hybrids with R. obtusifolius (Rumex ×pratensis Mertens & Koch) are the most common in the genus, at least in Europe, and have been reported for several localities in North America. Rumex crispus × R. patientia (Rumex ×confusus Simonkai) was reported from New York. According to R. S. Mitchell (1986, p. 47), “this hybrid is now spreading along highway shoulders, and it has replaced R. crispus in some local areas.” However, that information should be confirmed by more detailed studies since spontaneous hybrids between species of sect. Rumex usually are much less fertile and ecologically successful than the parental species. Hybrids of Rumex occuring in North America need careful revision.

Numerous infraspecific taxa and even segregate species have been described in the Rumex crispus aggregate. Many seem to represent minor variation of little or no taxonomic significance, but some are geographically delimited entities that may deserve recognition as subspecies or varieties. The typical variety has inner tepals with three well-developed tubercles; the less common var. unicallosus Petermann, with one tubercle, occurs sporadically in North America.

Some eastern Asian plants differ from typical Rumex crispus is having somewhat smaller inner tepals, longer pedicels, lax inflorescences with remote whorls, and narrower leaves that are almost flat or indistinctly undulate at the margins. These plants, originally described as R. fauriei Rechinger f., are now treated as R. crispus subsp. fauriei (Rechinger f.) Mosyakin & W. L. Wagner; the subspecies was recently reported from Hawaii (S. L. Mosyakin and W. L. Wagner 1998) and may be expected as introduced in western North America.

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

Rumex pulcher is an extremely polymorphic species consisting of five or six more or less distinct subspecies (K. H. Rechinger 1949, 1964). Three of these were reported by Rechinger (1937) from North America: subsp. pulcher; subsp. woodsii (De Not.) Arcangeli [= Rumex divaricatus Linnaeus]; and subsp. anodontus (Haussknecht) Rechinger f. Judging from herbarium specimens, subsp. woodsii seems to be the most common. However, J. E. Dawson (1979) noted that many North American specimens cannot easily be assigned to any subspecies.

Some records require confirmation, especially from the midwestern states, since Rumex pulcher often is confused with other species with dentate inner tepals. Records from Colorado (H. D. Harrington 1954) belong to R. stenophyllus (W. A. Weber and R. C. Wittmann 1992).

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

Source FNA vol. 5, p. 522. FNA vol. 5, p. 526.
Parent taxa Polygonaceae > subfam. Polygonoideae > Rumex > subg. Rumex > sect. Rumex Polygonaceae > subfam. Polygonoideae > Rumex > subg. Rumex > sect. Rumex
Sibling taxa
R. acetosa, R. acetosella, R. alpinus, R. altissimus, R. arcticus, R. beringensis, R. britannica, R. brownii, R. bucephalophorus, R. californicus, R. chrysocarpus, R. confertus, R. conglomeratus, R. crassus, R. cristatus, R. cuneifolius, R. densiflorus, R. dentatus, R. ellipticus, R. fascicularis, R. floridanus, R. fueginus, R. graminifolius, R. hastatulus, R. hesperius, R. hymenosepalus, R. kerneri, R. krausei, R. lacustris, R. lapponicus, R. longifolius, R. maritimus, R. mexicanus, R. nematopodus, R. obovatus, R. obtusifolius, R. occidentalis, R. orthoneurus, R. pallidus, R. palustris, R. paraguayensis, R. patientia, R. paucifolius, R. persicarioides, R. praecox, R. pseudonatronatus, R. pulcher, R. pycnanthus, R. salicifolius, R. sanguineus, R. sibiricus, R. spiralis, R. stenophyllus, R. subarcticus, R. thyrsiflorus, R. tomentellus, R. transitorius, R. triangulivalvis, R. utahensis, R. venosus, R. verticillatus, R. violascens
R. acetosa, R. acetosella, R. alpinus, R. altissimus, R. arcticus, R. beringensis, R. britannica, R. brownii, R. bucephalophorus, R. californicus, R. chrysocarpus, R. confertus, R. conglomeratus, R. crassus, R. crispus, R. cristatus, R. cuneifolius, R. densiflorus, R. dentatus, R. ellipticus, R. fascicularis, R. floridanus, R. fueginus, R. graminifolius, R. hastatulus, R. hesperius, R. hymenosepalus, R. kerneri, R. krausei, R. lacustris, R. lapponicus, R. longifolius, R. maritimus, R. mexicanus, R. nematopodus, R. obovatus, R. obtusifolius, R. occidentalis, R. orthoneurus, R. pallidus, R. palustris, R. paraguayensis, R. patientia, R. paucifolius, R. persicarioides, R. praecox, R. pseudonatronatus, R. pycnanthus, R. salicifolius, R. sanguineus, R. sibiricus, R. spiralis, R. stenophyllus, R. subarcticus, R. thyrsiflorus, R. tomentellus, R. transitorius, R. triangulivalvis, R. utahensis, R. venosus, R. verticillatus, R. violascens
Synonyms Lapathum crispum
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 335. (1753) Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 336. (1753)
Web links