Prenanthes trifoliolata (Gall of the earth)

Prenanthes trifoliolata (Cass.) Fernald

Gall of the earth, three-leaved rattlesnake-root

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	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Asterales	Flowering plants with a central disk flower and surrounding petals, like daisies
Family	Asteraceae	The aster family, which also includes daisies and sunflowers; from the Greek ἀστήρ, “star,” for the star-shaped flowers
Genus	Prenanthes	From Greek prenes, “prone, prostrate, with face downward,” and anthos, “flower”
Species	trifoliolata	“Three-leaved”

About plant names...

Gall-of-the-earth is a North American native. It favors dry woodlands.

Plants: 12-59" (30-150 cm) high, with green stems sometimes mottled with purple. They often branch into multiple flower stalks at the top.

Leaves: 1-4½" (3-12 cm) × ⅜-6" (1-15 cm), deltate, hastate, or ovate. No two leaves look the same. The leaves have fairly long petioles, and the portion of the stem close to each leaf is winged.

Flowers: Cream-colored, sometimes tinged with green or pink. Maybe it is just coincidence, but every time I see them, the flowers look kind of frumpy. They are trumpet-shaped and nodding, like little bells. Flowers appear from September to October.

Online References:

Prenanthes trifoliolata on Discover Life

Prenanthes trifoliolata on www.jeffpippen.com

Prenanthes trifoliolata on the Connecticut Botanical Society's Connecticut wildflowers site

Prenanthes trifoliolata at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Prenanthes trifoliolata on nametheplant.net (Native & Naturalized Plants of the Carolinas and Georgia)

Prenanthes trifoliolata on eFloras

References:

Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest, Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 294

7/20/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts
≈ 2½ × 3½" (6.6 × 9.7 cm) ID is uncertain

7/25/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 7 × 5" (18 × 13 cm)

7/20/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts
≈ 10 × 15" (26 × 39 cm) ID is uncertain

8/14/2010 · Nashua River Boat Ramp, Rte. 119, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 6 × 6" (15 × 15 cm) ID is uncertain

8/28/2021 · Otter Brook Preserve, Harpswell, Maine
≈ 2½ × 3½" (6.5 × 8.8 cm)

8/2/2010 · Beaver Brook Association Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 2½ × 3½" (6.6 × 9.8 cm) ID is uncertain

8/28/2021 · Otter Brook Preserve, Harpswell, Maine
≈ 9 × 6" (22 × 14 cm)

8/2/2010 · Beaver Brook Association Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 7 × 9" (18 × 21 cm) ID is uncertain

8/14/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, East Pepperell, Massachusetts
≈ 8 × 12" (20 × 31 cm)

6/2/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 7 × 8" (16 × 19 cm)

9/7/2013 · Beech Hill, Dublin, New Hampshire
≈ 2 × 2½" (5.9 × 6.5 cm)

7/31/2015 · Willard Brook State Park, Blue Trail, Ashby, Massachusetts
≈ 6 × 7" (15 × 18 cm)

7/31/2015 · Willard Brook State Park, Blue Trail, Ashby, Massachusetts
≈ 8 × 5" (20 × 13 cm)

8/14/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, East Pepperell, Massachusetts
≈ 6 × 8" (15 × 19 cm)

8/14/2010 · Nashua River Boat Ramp, Rte. 119, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 4 × 4½" (10 × 11 cm) ID is uncertain

Nabalus trifoliolatus Cass.

Prenanthes trifoliolata description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 7 Oct 2021.

9/7/2013 · Beech Hill, Dublin, New Hampshire
≈ 6 × 5" (16 × 13 cm)

6/4/2021 · Robert P. Tristram Coffin Wild Flower Reservation, Woolwich, Maine
≈ 8 × 5" (20 × 13 cm)

9/7/2013 · Beech Hill, Dublin, New Hampshire
≈ 2½ × 2½" (7.3 × 7.0 cm)

7/20/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts
≈ 3 × 4½" (7.9 × 11 cm) ID is uncertain

8/2/2010 · Beaver Brook Association Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 9 × 14" (23 × 35 cm) ID is uncertain

7/20/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts
≈ 6 × 9" (14 × 22 cm) ID is uncertain

7/25/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 6 × 5" (16 × 12 cm)

9/4/2016 · Willard Brook State Park, Blue Trail, Ashby, Massachusetts ID is uncertain

9/7/2013 · Beech Hill, Dublin, New Hampshire
≈ 3½ × 3" (9.7 × 7.9 cm)

7/31/2015 · Willard Brook State Park, Blue Trail, Ashby, Massachusetts
≈ 6 × 7" (14 × 18 cm)

7/20/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts
≈ 8 × 9" (20 × 23 cm) ID is uncertain

6/4/2021 · Robert P. Tristram Coffin Wild Flower Reservation, Woolwich, Maine
≈ 7 × 5" (18 × 13 cm)

9/7/2013 · Beech Hill, Dublin, New Hampshire
≈ 7 × 6" (18 × 14 cm)

Range:

About this map...