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- Dicentra eximia
Dicentra eximia — wild bleeding-heart
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Facts
Wild bleeding-heart is native to the Appalachian region of the northeast. In New England, it has been collected in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Vermont and may be garden escapes in the latter two states. Look for frilly, dissected leaves, and rose pink, tubular flowers that bloom in May and are pollinated by bees. It prefers rich soils and partly shaded habitats.
Habitat
Anthropogenic (man-made or disturbed habitats)
New England distribution
Adapted from BONAP data
Native: indigenous.
Non-native: introduced (intentionally or unintentionally); has become naturalized.
County documented: documented to exist in the county by evidence (herbarium specimen, photograph). Also covers those considered historical (not seen in 20 years).
State documented: documented to exist in the state, but not documented to a county within the state. Also covers those considered historical (not seen in 20 years).
Note: when native and non-native populations both exist in a county, only native status is shown on the map.
Found this plant? Take a photo and post a sighting.
Characteristics
- Habitat
- terrestrial
- New England state
-
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Flower petal color
- pink to red
- Leaf type
- the leaves are compound (made up of two or more discrete leaflets
- Leaf arrangement
- basal: the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant
- Leaf blade edges
- the edge of the leaf blade has lobes, or it has both teeth and lobes
- Flower symmetry
- there is only one way to evenly divide the flower (the flower is bilaterally symmetrical)
- Number of sepals, petals or tepals
- there are four petals, sepals, or tepals in the flower
- Fusion of sepals and petals
-
- both the petals and sepals are separate and not fused
- the petals or the sepals are fused into a cup or tube
- Stamen number
- 6
- Fruit type (general)
- the fruit is dry and splits open when ripe
- Fruit length
- 16–25 mm
-
Clonal plantlets
- Bulbils
- the plant does not appear to have bulbils
- Bulblets replace flowers
- there are no bulblets where the flowers are located
-
Flowers
- Anther spurs
- the anthers do not have spurs on them
- Calyx symmetry
- there are two or more ways to evenly divide the calyx (the calyx is radially symmetrical)
- Carpels fused
- the carpels are fused to one another
- Cleistogamous flowers
- there are no cleistogamous flowers on the plan
- Corolla palate
- no
- Corona lobe length
- 0 mm
- Epicalyx
- the flower does not have an epicalyx
- Epicalyx number of parts
- 0
- Flower description
- the flower has a superior ovary, and lacks a hypanthium
- Flower petal color
- pink to red
- Flower reproductive parts
- the flower has both pollen- and seed-producing parts
- Flower symmetry
- there is only one way to evenly divide the flower (the flower is bilaterally symmetrical)
- Flowers sunken into stem
- no
- Form of style
- the style is lobed at the tip, and unbranched
- Fused stamen clusters
- there are two clusters of fused stamens
- Fusion of sepals and petals
-
- both the petals and sepals are separate and not fused
- the petals or the sepals are fused into a cup or tube
- Horns in hoods (Asclepias)
- NA
- Hypanthium
- the flower does not have a hypanthium
- Inflorescence one-sided
- the flowers are all or nearly all arrayed on one side of the inflorescence axis or branches of the inflorescence
- Inner tepals (Rumex)
- NA
- Nectar spur
- the flower has one or more nectar spurs
- Number of carpels
- 2
- Number of pistils
- 1
- Number of sepals, petals or tepals
- there are four petals, sepals, or tepals in the flower
- Number of styles
- 1
- Ovary position
- the ovary is above the point of petal and/or sepal attachment
- Petal and sepal arrangement
-
- the flower includes only one cycle of petals or sepals
- the flower includes two cycles of petal- or sepal-like structures
- Petal and sepal colors
- pink to red
- Petal appearance
- the petals are thin and delicate, and pigmented (colored other than green or brown)
- Petal hairs (Viola)
- NA
- Petal length
- 10–25 mm
- Petal nectaries
- the petals have at least one nectary
- Petal number
- 4
- Petal tips (Cuscuta)
- NA
- Scales inside corolla
- no
- Sepal and petal color
- the sepals are different from the petals
- Sepal appendages
- the sepals do not have appendages on them
- Sepal appendages (Oenothera)
- NA
- Sepal number
- 2
- Stamen attachment
- the stamens are not attached to the petals or tepals
- Stamen number
- 6
- Stamen position relative to petals
- the stamens are lined up with the petals
- Stamens fused
- the stamens are attached to one another at or near their bases
- Staminodes
- there are no staminodes on the flower
- Style petal-like
- the styles are not petal-like
- Umbel flower reproductive parts
- NA
- Upper lip of bilabiate corolla
- NA
-
Fruits or seeds
- Achene relative orientation
- NA
- Achene shape
- NA
- Achene surface (Polygonum)
- NA
- Achene type
- NA
- Berry color
- NA
- Capsule color (Viola)
- NA
- Fruit (pyxis) dehiscence
- NA
- Fruit features (Brassicaceae)
- NA
- Fruit length
- 16–25 mm
- Fruit locules
- one
- Fruit type (general)
- the fruit is dry and splits open when ripe
- Fruit type (specific)
- the fruit is a capsule (splits along two or more seams, apical teeth or pores when dry, to release two or more seeds)
- Legumes (Fabaceae)
- NA
- Mericarp length
- 0 mm
- Mericarp segment shape (Desmodium)
- NA
- Other markings on berry
- NA
- Ovary stipe
- the ovary or fruit does not have a stipe
- Placenta arrangement
- the plant has parietal placentation, where ovules develop on the wall or slight outgrowths of the wall forming broken partitions within a compound ovary
- Rows of seeds in fruit (Brassicaceae)
- NA
- Schizocarpic fruit compression
- NA
- Schizocarpic fruit segments
- 0
- Septum in fruit (Brassicaceae)
- NA
- Wings on fruit
- the fruit does not have wings on it
- prickles on fruits
- the fruits do not have thorn-like defensive structures
-
Glands or sap
- Glands on leaf blade
- the leaf blades do not have glandular dots or scales
- Sap
- the sap is clear and watery
- Sap color
- the sap is clear
-
Growth form
- Growth form
- the plant is an herb (it has self-supporting stems)
- Horizontal rooting stem
- the plant does not have stolons
- Lifespan
- the plant lives more than two years
- Parasitism
- the plant is not parasitic
- Plant color
- the leaves or young stems of the plant are green
- Spines on plant
- the plant has no spines
- Underground organs
- the plant has a rhizome (a horizontal underground stem with roots growing from it)
-
Leaves
- Bracteole number (Apiaceae)
- 0
- Bracts in plantain (Plantago)
- NA
- Hairs on underside of leaf
- the underside of the leaf is not hairy, or it has very few hairs
- Hairs on upper side of leaf
- the upper side of the leaf is not hairy, or it has very few hairs
- Leaf arrangement
- basal: the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant
- Leaf blade base
- the leaf has a distinct leaf stalk (petiole)
- Leaf blade base shape
-
- NA
- the base of the leaf blade is truncate (ends abruptly in a more or less straight line as though cut off)
- Leaf blade edges
- the edge of the leaf blade has lobes, or it has both teeth and lobes
- Leaf blade length
- 50–250 mm
- Leaf blade shape
- the leaf blade is ovate (widest below the middle and broadly tapering at both ends)
- Leaf blade surface colors
- the upper side of the leaf blade is relatively uniform in color
- Leaf blade width
- Up to 300 mm
- Leaf duration
- the leaves drop off in winter (or they whither but persist on the plant)
- Leaf form
- the leaves are green, with an expanded blade and a leaf-like texture
- Leaf spines
- there are no spines on the leaf edges
- Leaf stalk
- the leaves have leaf stalks
- Leaf stalk attachment to leaf
- the petiole attaches at the basal margin of the leaf blade
- Leaf stalk base
- the petiole base is narrow where it attaches to the stem
- Leaf type
- the leaves are compound (made up of two or more discrete leaflets
- Leaf variation
- NA
- Leaves per node
- the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant (i.e., basal)
- Specific leaf type
-
- the leaf has a row of two or more lobes on each side of the central axis, and each lobe itself has rows of lobes on each side of the lobe's central axis
- the leaf has lobes that themselves have lobes, and these secondary lobes also have lobes; there may be more than three levels of lobes
- Stipule features
- NA
- Stipules
- there are no stipules on the plant
-
Place
- Habitat
- terrestrial
- New England state
-
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Specific habitat
- man-made or disturbed habitats
-
Stem, shoot, branch
- Branched tendrils
- NA
- Flowering stem cross-section
-
- NA
- the flowering stem is circular, or with lots of small angles so that it is roughly circular
- Hair between stem nodes
- the stem has no hairs between the nodes
- Leaves on stem
- the flowering stem has no leaves above the base
- Plant height
- Up to 50 cm
- Stem roughness between nodes
-
- NA
- the stem does not feel rough
- Tendril origin
- NA
- Tendrils
- the plant does not have tendrils
Wetland status
Not classified
In New England
Distribution
- Connecticut
- present
- Maine
- absent
- Massachusetts
- present
- New Hampshire
- absent
- Rhode Island
- present
- Vermont
- present
Conservation status
Exact status definitions can vary from state to state. For details, please check with your state.
- Massachusetts
- not applicable (S-rank: SNA)
From Flora Novae Angliae dichotomous key
3. Dicentra eximia (Ker-Gawl.) Torr. E
wild bleeding-heart. Bicuculla eximia (Ker-Gawl.) Millsp.; Capnorchis eximia (Ker-Gawl.) Planch.; Fumaria eximia Ker-Gawl. • CT, MA, RI, VT. Fields, roadsides, gardens, banks, rocky slopes, ledges.
Native to North America?
Yes and no (some introduced)
Sometimes confused with
- Lamprocapnos spectabilis:
- stems leafy and corolla 30-50 mm long (vs. D. eximia, with stems scapose and corolla 15-30 mm long).
- Dicentra formosa:
- apex of inner petals not exserted beyond the outer petals and often partly concealed, and plant forming interconnected colonies by rhizome growth (vs. D. eximia, with apex of inner petals exserted beyond the outer petals and often conspicuous, and plants not colonial).
Synonyms
- Bicuculla eximia (Ker-Gawl.) Millsp.
- Capnorchis eximia (Ker-Gawl.) Planch.
- Fumaria eximia Ker-Gawl.