clustered black snakeroot

not listed

N5 - Secure

SNR - Unranked

not listed

FAC - Facultative

FAC - Facultative

FAC - Facultative

Basal and lower stem leaves are palmately divided into 5 leaflets. The lateral leaflets may be shallowly lobed but rarely deeply enough to look like additional leaflets — “5 looks like 5”.

The flowers are greenish-yellow. Some flower clusters have 3 perfect (containing both male and female parts) and 12 to 25 male flowers, others have all male flowers. The perfect flowers are stalked. The male flowers are short-stalked and are concealed by the perfect flowers. The outer floral bracts (sepals) are much shorter than the petals. The styles are conspicuous, much longer than the bristles. They curve backward but persist in fruit.

12″ to 32″

Greenish-yellow

The number of leaflets on the basal and lower stem leaves of black snakeroots (Sanicula spp.) is an important identifying feature. However, the lateral leaflets are often deeply lobed, often to the base, appearing to be two separate leaflets.

Canadian black snakeroot (Sanicula canadensis var. canadensis) basal and lower stem leaves are 3-parted with two deeply cut — “3 looks like 5”. There are only 2 to 7 flowers in each flower cluster. The flowers are white. The sepals are longer than the petals. The styles are inconspicuous, shorter than the bristles.

Large-fruited black snakeroot (Sanicula trifoliata) is much less common, mostly restricted to the southeastern counties. Basal and lower stem leaves are 3-parted, sometimes with with two deeply cut — “3 looks like 3 (or 5)”. There are only 2 to 7 flowers in each flower cluster. All flower clusters include both perfect and male flowers. The flowers are white. Perfect flowers are stalkless. Male flowers are long-stalked, rising above the perfect flowers. The sepals in flower are longer than the petals. The fruits are ¼″ to 5 ⁄16″ long. The styles are inconspicuous, shorter than the bristles. The sepals in fruit converge, forming a beak as long or longer than the bristles.

Long-styled black snakeroot (Sanicula canadensis var. grandis) basal and lower stem leaves are 3-parted with two deeply cut — “3 looks like 5”. There are only 2 to 7 flowers in each flower cluster. The flowers are white. The sepals are longer than the petals. The styles are inconspicuous, shorter than the bristles.

Maryland black snakeroot (Sanicula marilandica) is sometimes a taller plant, up to 48″ in height. Basal and lower stem leaves are 5-parted with two deeply cut — “5 looks like 7”. The flowers are greenish-white. Perfect flowers are stalkless. Male flowers are long-stalked, rising above the perfect flowers. The sepals are as long or only nearly as long as the petals.

Moist. Woodlands. Partial sun to medium shade.

June to August

Sources

2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 28, 29, 30.

Native

Common

Subfamily
NCBI, the APG IV system, and iNaturalist place the genus Sanicula in the subfamily Saniculoideae. GRIN places it in the subfamily Apioideae. At least two recent molecular DNA studies of the subfamily Saniculeae maintain the placement of Sanicula within the subfamily Saniculoideae. No discussion of moving the genera could be found. ITIS, GBIF, USDA Plants, World Flora Online, and Plants of the World Online do not recognize a subfamily. If the placement in the subfamily Apioideae is an error, that error is repeated on Wikipedia.