Potentilla recta L. var. pilosa (Willd.) Ledeb.
Potentilla recta L. var. sulphurea (Lam. & DC.) Peyr.
Potentilla recta L.
Rough-fruited cinquefoil, sulphur cinquefoil
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.
Plants: up to 1½′ (50 cm) high, with hairy stems and palmlike leaf clusters.
Leaves: Each palmate cluster has five to seven hairy leaflets, each 2–4 ⨉ ½–1″ (5–10 ⨉ 1.3–2.5 cm), with many small teeth.
Flowers: 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: Dark brown achenes (dried fruits) with branched ridges, hence the name “rough-fruited.”
Habitats: This cinquefoil is found in grasslands, shrubby areas, open forest, roadsides, abandoned fields, and waste areas.
Online References:
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 L. var. pilosa (Willd.) Ledeb.
Potentilla recta L. var. sulphurea (Lam. & DC.) Peyr.
7/17/2014 · Amos Kendall Conservation Land, Dunstable, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 4″ (13 × 10 cm) 
6/13/2016 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Groton, Massachusetts 
6/12/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, East Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 3 × 4½″ (7.5 × 11 cm) 
6/30/2025 · Buck's Ledge Community Forest, Bethel, Maine · ≈ 4½ × 5″ (11 × 13 cm) 
6/30/2025 · Buck's Ledge Community Forest, Bethel, Maine · ≈ 4½ × 4″ (11 × 10 cm) 
7/2/2017 · Wildlife Pond, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hampshire · ≈ 5 × 8″ (13 × 20 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) 
6/8/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 8 × 7″ (20 × 17 cm) 
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 × 16 cm) 
6/30/2025 · Buck's Ledge Community Forest, Bethel, Maine · ≈ 4 × 3″ (10 × 7.9 cm) 
6/30/2025 · Buck's Ledge Community Forest, Bethel, Maine · ≈ 6 × 5″ (14 × 13 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| 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” |
Potentilla recta description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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