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Aquilegia canadensis L.

Red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine

KingdomPlantaePlants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
SubkingdomTracheobiontaVascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
DivisionMagnoliophytaFlowering plants, also known as angiosperms
ClassMagnoliopsidaDicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
SubclassMagnoliidaeIncludes magnolias, nutmeg, bay laurel, cinnamon, avocado, black pepper, and many others
OrderRanunculalesBasal (evolved earlier) eudicots, also called “true dicots”
FamilyRanunculaceaeButtercup family
GenusAquilegiaFrom Latin aquila, or “eagle,” for the flower’s resemblence to an eagle’s claw
Speciescanadensis“From Canada”

About plant names...

Red columbine, one of the prettiest darned flowers I've ever seen, is native to North America. The genus Aquilegia means eagle-like, a reference to the talon-like spurs on the back of each flower. Columbines are related to buttercups. They are found in dry woods.

Identification: Plants are 1-3′ (30-91 cm) high, with red to green stems. Leaves are at the base, with a few along the stem, divided into progressively smaller groups of two or three. They are up to 3″ (7.6 cm) long. Leaves may be oval, but wider toward the ends; or rounded, with lobes or teeth. A single flower hangs downward from each stem. The flower has five symmetrical parts, and is about 1¼-2″ (3.2-5 cm) in length. They vary from light pink to deep red in color, with yellow centers, and bloom from April to July. The spurs on the back of each flower are unique in shape, the best identifying characteristic. They favor forest floors and cliffs. See other columbines.

Edibility: Poisonous. Skull & Crossbones The seeds and roots are highly poisonous, and the leaves of many other members of the buttercup family are poisonous.

Online References:

Earl J.S. Rook's Flora, Fauna, Earth, and Sky ... The Natural History of the Northwoods

Missouriplants.com

Illinois Wildflowers

The USDA Plants Database

The University of Wisconsin's Robert W. Freckmann Herbarium

Discover Life

References:

Newcomb, Lawrence, Morrison, Gordon (Illus.), Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide, Little, Brown and Company, 1977, p. 228

Peterson, Roger Tory, McKenny, Margaret, Peterson Field Guides: Wildflowers—Northeastern and North Central North America, Houghton Mifflin, 1968, p. 216

Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest, Oxford University Press, 2006, 90

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

6/4/2017 · Lockes Hill, Gilford, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 4½ × 7″ (12 × 18 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/12/2021 · Weber-Kelly Preserve, Georgetown, Maine · ≈ 8 × 5″ (20 × 13 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/12/2021 · Weber-Kelly Preserve, Georgetown, Maine · ≈ 6 × 4″ (16 × 11 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/11/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Pepperell, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 6 × 4″ (15 × 10 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/27/2016 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Mass­a­chu­setts

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

6/4/2017 · Lockes Hill, Gilford, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 6 × 10″ (16 × 24 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

6/2/2009 · Zion National Park, Utah · ≈ 3½ × 5″ (8.7 × 13 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/12/2021 · Weber-Kelly Preserve, Georgetown, Maine · ≈ 4½ × 7″ (12 × 18 cm)

Aquilegia australis Small

Aquilegia canadensis L. var. australis (Small) Munz

Aquilegia canadensis L. var. coccinea (Small) Munz

Aquilegia canadensis L. var. eminens (Greene) B. Boivin

Aquilegia canadensis L. var. hybrida Hook.

Aquilegia canadensis L. var. latiuscula (Greene) Munz

Aquilegia coccinea Small

Aquilegia latiuscula Greene

Aquilegia phoenicantha Cory

 

Aquilegia canadensis description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 14 Aug 2021.

© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.


 

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/12/2021 · Weber-Kelly Preserve, Georgetown, Maine · ≈ 4 × 6″ (11 × 16 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/27/2016 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Mass­a­chu­setts

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

9/28/2013 · Wild Gardens of Acadia, Acadia Naitonal Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 12 × 8″ (31 × 21 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/11/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Pepperell, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 13 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/27/2016 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Mass­a­chu­setts

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/23/2016 · Wildflower Trail, Beaver Brook C, Hollis, New Hamp­shire

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

6/2/2014 · Big Bear Mountain, Brookline, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 8 × 6″ (20 × 14 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/16/2014 · Acton Arboretum, Action, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 4½ × 7″ (11 × 16 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/7/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 9.2 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

6/2/2009 · Zion National Park, Utah · ≈ 1½ × 2″ (3.9 × 5.9 cm)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine, American columbine, Eastern columbine, Canada columbine, meetinghouses, rock bells, honeysuckle, rock lily, cluckies, jack-in-trousers, wild honeysuckle, granny’s bonnets, dancing fairies, wild columbine)

5/9/2012 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 3½ × 5″ (9.2 × 13 cm)

Range: Zones 3-8:

About this map...