Thalictrum thalictroides (rue anemone)

Thalictrum thalictroides (L.) Eames & B. Boivin

Anemonella thalictroides (L.) Spach

Syndesmon thalictroides (L.) Hoffmanns. ex Britton

Rue anemone

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	Magnoliidae	Includes magnolias, nutmeg, bay laurel, cinnamon, avocado, black pepper, and many others
Order	Ranunculales	Basal (evolved earlier) eudicots, also called “true dicots”
Family	Ranunculaceae	Buttercup family
Genus	Thalictrum	From Greek qaliktron (thaliktron), a “plant with divided leaves”
Species	thalictroides

About plant names...

Rue anemone is native to woodlands in eastern North America. It is a relative of the buttercup family. Thalictrum means “divided leaves;” so does thalictroides(!)

Identification: Plants are 4-12" (10-30 cm) tall. Leaves are rounded in shape, split into three lobes near the tips, about 1-1½" (2.5-3.8 cm) around. White to pinkish flowers with yellow stamens appear in groups of 1-6, supported by thin red-brown stems. Each flower has 5-10 petals, and is ¼-1¼" (8.5-31 mm) around. Fruits appear in late spring and are ¹/₁₆-⅛" (3-4.5 mm) long.