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Oxalis montana Raf.

Common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel

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
SubclassRosidaeRoses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more
OrderGeranialesBalsams, mustards, geraniums, wood sorrels, nasturtiums, others
FamilyOxalidaceaeWood sorrels
GenusOxalisWood sorrels (Oxalis means “sour”)
Speciesmontana“Of the mountains”

About plant names...

Wood sorrel’s name is an English distortion of sorrel de boys, a Middle French expression meaning “sour,” a reference to the taste of the leaves. Oxalic acid, the agent responsible for the sour taste, was first isolated from members of this genus, hence the acid’s name. Wood sorrel is found on forest floors, especially hemlock and spruce fir forests, in rich and somewhat moist soils, and can tolerate shade. It spreads by extending rhizomes (roots) or stolons (essentially above-ground roots).

Plants: Woodsorrels are less than 4″ (10 cm) high, and evergreen.

Leaves: Leaves are basal, in groups of three heart-shaped leaflets that resemble clover. The leaves are stemless, emerging directly from the roots. They fold and unfold slowly in response to sunlight.

Flowers: Delicate and beautiful, white or pink, with darker pink veins and five petals, about ¾″ (1.9 cm) around.

Fruits: A round capsule.

Edibility: Wood sorrel is mildly poisonous, though its sharp sour taste is likely to dissuade anyone from eating it by accident.

Online References:

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

Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants

The USDA Plants Database

The Connecticut Botanical Society's Connecticut wildflowers site

The USDA Forest Service's Fire Effects Information Database

Wildflowers of the United States

References:

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

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

6/13/2021 · Cathance River Nature Preserve, Topsham, Maine · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (16 × 11 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

7/12/2015 · Bingham Falls, Smuggler’s Notch State Park, Cambridge, Ver­mont · ≈ 8 × 6″ (20 × 14 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

7/12/2015 · Bingham Falls, Smuggler’s Notch State Park, Cambridge, Ver­mont · ≈ 9 × 6″ (22 × 15 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

8/19/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 15 cm) ID is uncertain

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

A missing leaf ... or a green butterfly? · 9/4/2020 · Widgeon Cove Trail, Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 4½ × 3″ (11 × 7.9 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

9/21/2023 · Borestone Mountain, Elliotsville, Maine · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (18 × 12 cm)

Oxalis acetosella auct. non L.

Oxalis acetosella L. ssp. montana (Raf.) Hultén ex D. Löve

Oxalis acetosella L. var. rhodantha (Fernald) R. Knuth

 

Oxalis montana description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 17 Oct 2023.

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Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

8/16/2020 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 10 × 6″ (24 × 16 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

9/28/2013 · Wild Gardens of Acadia, Acadia Naitonal Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 8 × 6″ (20 × 14 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

7/12/2015 · Bingham Falls, Smuggler’s Notch State Park, Cambridge, Ver­mont · ≈ 10 × 7″ (25 × 16 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

6/19/2021 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 10 × 7″ (25 × 16 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

A natural variegated form. · 7/11/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, near NH Line, Dunstable, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (17 × 11 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

8/28/2020 · Jack’s and Litchfield Trails, Chase Reserve, Brunswick, Maine · ≈ 6 × 4″ (16 × 11 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

10/6/2023

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

8/16/2015 · Table Rock Hike, Appalacian Trail, Grafton Notch State Park · ≈ 6 × 9″ (15 × 22 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

6/19/2021 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (17 × 11 cm)

Oxalis montana (common wood sorrel, mountain woodsorrel, wood shamrock, white woodsorrel, wood sorrel)

Several plants are missing a leaflet, making green butterflies. · 9/4/2020 · Widgeon Cove Trail, Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 8 × 5″ (20 × 13 cm)

Range:

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