Name: |
- Menyanthes, from the Greek, meis
(meis), "month", and 'anqew
(antheô), "bloom." From Linnaeus, it suggests that the
plant remains in flower for a month; though it often blooms May through
July.
- trifoliata, from the Latin, tri, "three", and foliatus,
"provided with or having leaves"; hence, "three leaved", which aptly
describes the form of this plant.
- Buckbean, probably from the resemblance of the foliage to that of
the beans grown in cottage gardens. At least, English herbalist John
Gerard (1545-1607) thought so.
- Other common names include: Bogbean, Marsh Trefoil, Water Trefoil,
Marsh Clover, Bukkeblad (Dan), BocksBoonan, (Dutch), Ubaleht,
Soouba, Jġeuba, Raakelehed, Allikakapsad (Est), Raate,
Raatteet (Fin), Trì-bhileach (Gaelic), Bocksbohne,
Fieberklee, Scharbocks-Klee (Ger), Kuanniisat, Qunguliusaq
(Greenland), Reiðingsgras (Is), Bukkeblad (Nor),
Vachta Trojlistá (Slovak), Vattenklöver, Bläcken
(Swe)
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Taxonomy: |
- Kingdom Plantae, the Plants
- Division Magnoliophyta, the Angiosperms (flowering plants)
- Class Magnoliopsida, the Dicotyledons
- Subclass Asteridae
- Order Solanales
- Family Menyanthaceae, the
- Genus Menyanthes, the Bogbeans
- Taxonomic Serial Number: 30102
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Description: |
- A glabrous hardy lakeshore perennial of shallow water.
- Leaves all basal, palmately trifoliate, with sheathing petiole
bases arranged alternately on the rhizomes. Leaflets oblong/elliptical,
of smooth edge, 2"-4" long and 1"-2" wide, on long, fleshy, striated
leaf stalks.
- Stem procumbent and creeping, covered by the sheaths of the
leaves.
- Roots creeping rootstock, rhizome thick, marked by old leaf
bases.
- Flower perfect and regular,outwardly rose/pink, inwardly white
and fringed, ¾" across; conspicuous on a thick spike, 6"-18"
high, rising above the leaves. Stamens red, usually 5.
- Fruit a round, corky-walled capsule, 1/4"-3/8" in diameter,
containing many shiny, yellow-brown seeds.
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Identification: |
- A waterside plant unlike any other, even when not in bloom.
- Fleshy, creeping stem and three part leaf are distinctive.
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Distribution: |
- Circumboreal; south in North.America to Delaware, Virginia, Ohio,
Missouri, South Dakota, and California.
- Found in suitable habitat across Europe; rather scarce in the south
of England, though common in the north and Scotland (see photo above).
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Habitat: |
- Fens and old bogs; edges of ponds and moist soils; shallow waters
- Common in sunny shallows near portage landings.
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Associates: |
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History: |
- Thought to be a remedy for scurvy, its German name, Scharbock,
is a corruption of the Latin scorbutus, an old name for the disease.
- Used as an herbal treatment of rheumatism, osteo-arthritis, and rheumatoid
arthritis.
- Used as herbal tea and herbal tobacco.
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Uses: |
- Though its centuries of use have generated a rather long list of herbal
and folk medicine applications, its primary use today is as a water
garden ornamental.
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Reproduction: |
- Reproduces by seed and vegetatively by rhizomes
- Flowers May to July; fruit ripens June/August.
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Propagation: |
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Cultivation: |
- Hardy to USDA Zone 3 (average minimum annual temperature -40ºF)
- Available by mail order from specialty suppliers or at local nurseries
- An easily grown water garden plant which will also do well in peat
if kept constantly moist.
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Links: |
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Comments: |
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Last updated on
26 February, 2004
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