Potentilla recta (Rough-fruited cinquefoil)

Potentilla recta L.

Rough-fruited cinquefoil, sulphur cinquefoil

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Rosidae	Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more
Order	Rosales	Rose family and eight others
Family	Rosaceae	Includes apples, apricots, plums, cherries, peaches, pears, raspberries, strawberries, almonds, roses, meadowsweets, photinias, firethorns, rowans, and hawthorns; many others
Genus	Potentilla	Latin for “powerful,” for the medicinal qualities of some species
Species	recta	“Upright, erect”

About plant names...

Rough-fruited cinquefoil is a Eurasian native. It was introduced to North America prior to 1900, and it has become widespread. It is considered a noxious weed in some localities.

Identification: Plants are up to 20" (50 cm) high, with hairy stems and palmlike leaf clusters. Each cluster has five to seven hairy leaflets, each 2-4" (5-10 cm) × ½-1" (1.3-2.5 cm), with many small teeth. Flowers have five petals and are about ½" (1.5 cm) in diameter. They are cream-colored, pale yellow, or yellow, with a yellow center and black spots on the anthers. Fruits are dark brown achenes (dried fruits) with branched ridges, hence the name “rough-fruited.”

This cinquefoil is found in grasslands, shrubby areas, open forest, roadsides, abandoned fields, and waste areas.

Online References:

Potentilla recta on Missouriplants.com

Potentilla recta on the Connecticut Botanical Society's Connecticut wildflowers site

Potentilla recta at Illinois Wildflowers

Potentilla recta at Minnesota Wildflowers

Potentilla recta on cwma.org

Potentilla recta on the USDA Forest Service's Fire Effects Information Database

Potentilla recta on spes.vt.edu

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

7/17/2014 · Amos Kendall Conservation Land, Dunstable, Massachusetts
≈ 5 × 4" (13 × 10 cm)

6/13/2016 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts

6/12/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, East Pepperell, Massachusetts
≈ 3 × 4½" (7.5 × 11 cm)

Potentilla recta L. var. obscura (Nestler) W.D.J. Koch

Potentilla recta L. var. pilosa (Willd.) Ledeb.

Potentilla recta L. var. sulphurea (Lam. & DC.) Peyr.

Potentilla recta description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

7/2/2017 · Wildlife Pond, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 5 × 8" (13 × 20 cm)

7/11/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, near NH Line, Dunstable, Massachusetts
≈ 6 × 8" (14 × 21 cm)

6/8/2010 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts
≈ 3½ × 3½" (8.8 × 9.2 cm)

7/11/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, near NH Line, Dunstable, Massachusetts
≈ 3½ × 4½" (9.5 × 11 cm)

7/2/2017 · Wildlife Pond, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 5 × 4½" (13 × 11 cm)

1/19/2021 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Massachusetts

6/8/2010 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts
≈ 7 × 5" (16 × 13 cm)

6/24/2015 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Ctr, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 9 × 6" (23 × 15 cm)

Range:

About this map...