Al Schneider's Rocky Mountains Plant Descriptions

Osha Root
Ligusticum porteri
Carrot family (Apiaceae)

Loveroot is common in the region, often growing in dense stands covering acres under Aspen and in . A mass of large, fern-like leaves arch upward 2-3' with flower stalks growing 3-6'. Loveroot puts on a fantastic flower show in late June when it combines in large numbers with Delphinium barbeyi and Heracleum lanatum under a of Aspens. The plant has multiple common names including Porter's Licorice Root, and Wild Parsley. Thomas C. Porter, 1822-1901, was a Professor of Botany and a Colorado botanist who collected this plant along the headwaters of the Platte in 1873. In 1870 he and John Coulter published the first Colorado flora, the "Synopsis of the Flora of Colorado". The name honors the Liguria region of Italy.


©2011 Jerry Friedman

Description

, 3-6' tall, with mass of large fern-like leaves and tall flower stalks. Flat-topped to rounded, umbrella-like flower clusters (compound ) of white flowers. Flower heads open to 4" across. are absent from flower clusters. Leaves are , with - with deeply-cut margins. are flattened, egg-shaped -like "," red to brown as the dry.

Field Marks

Tall white umbrella-like flowers and mass of compound leaves.

© Al Schneider

An umbel is a collection of flowers on short stalks which spread from a common point, somewhat like umbrella ribs. The arrangement can vary from being flat-topped to almost spherical.

A leaf is compound when multiple leaflets are on the same stem.

meadow -- Large grass and wildflower filled area with few, if any, trees.

A herb is a plant whose stems die back to the ground in the winter.

Bracts are modified leaves associated with a flower.

Involucre is the name given to the circle or spiral collection of bracts around a flower-cluster.

schizocarp -- a dry fruit formed from more than one carpel (a female reproductive organ) but breaking apart into individual carpels when ripe.

capsule -- a type of simple, dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. In most cases the capsule splits apart to release seeds.

fruit -- any seed-bearing structure in flowering plants. It is formed from the ovary after flowering.

pinnate -- A compound leaf with two rows of leaflets.

leaflets -- Each little leaf-like thing in a compound leaf is a leaflet.

canopy -- The foliage of a tree; the crown. Also the upper layer of a forest.

genus -- A subdivision of a botanical Family in which all members have a significant number of similar characteristics.

alternate -- leaves alternate along the main stem and are attached singly.

oblong -- Having an elongated form with somewhat parallel sides. Rectangular.

lanceolate -- Lance-shaped. Long, wider in the middle.

A perennial plant lives and blooms for many years.