Lesser Celandine

Biological Name:

Lesser-Celandine: Ranunculus ficaria

Natural Habitat:

The natural habitat of Lesser-Celandine is likely moist, shaded areas, such as forests and meadows, in temperate regions.

Description:

Lesser-Celandine is a perennial herb that is native to Europe and Asia. It has showy, yellow or white flowers and heart-shaped leaves. It is often found in moist, shaded areas and is used in traditional medicine.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: Why is lesser celandine a problem?
A: Lesser celandine (Ranunculus ficaria) emerges earlier in the spring than many native plants, allowing it to overtake areas quickly. This advantage allows lesser celandine to form dense patches displacing native plants, destroying wildlife habitat and ruining lawns.
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Q: Is celandine good for wildlife?
A: Value to wildlife As one of the first flowers to appear after winter, they provide an important nectar source for queen bumblebees and other pollinators emerging from hibernation, and other early insects.
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Q: Is lesser celandine toxic?
A: Is Lesser Celandine Poisonous? Lesser Celandine, like other plants in the buttercup family, is poisonous if ingested raw. It is potentially fatal to grazing animals, such as sheep, horses, and cows.
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Q: Is lesser celandine an invasive species?
A: While the lifecycle of lesser celandine may be short, its early emergence and ability to grow and spread in a variety of habitats make it an aggressive invasive species to look out for.
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Q: Is lesser celandine good for bees?
A: Lesser celandine is a perennial member of the buttercup family. A British native, it is widespread in woods, hedgerows and on the banks of streams, but can also be found in gardens. It provides an early source of pollen and nectar for emerging bumblebees, small flies and small beetles.
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Q: Is lesser celandine good for wildlife?
A: Value to wildlife As one of the first flowers to appear after winter, they provide an important nectar source for queen bumblebees and other pollinators emerging from hibernation, and other early insects.
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Q: What celandine is good for?
A: Greater celandine is used for various problems with the digestive tract including upset stomach, gastroenteritis, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), constipation, loss of appetite, stomach cancer, intestinal polyps, and liver and gallbladder disorders.
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Q: Can I mow lesser celandine?
A: Repeated, early season mowing may reduce or stay growth of lesser celandine, but risks dispersing aerial bulbils. Glyphosate based herbicides may also be effective, and will require far less soil disturbance than manual removal.
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Q: What is lesser celandine used for?
A: Lesser celandine is sometime applied directly to the skin for bleeding wounds and gums, swollen joints, warts, scratches, and hemorrhoids. In food, fresh leaves of lesser celandine are sometimes used in salads.
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Q: What is the difference between lesser celandine and greater celandine?
A: While lesser celandine is a member of the buttercup family, celandine poppy is a member of the poppy family. The common name is derived from greater celandine (Chelidonium majus), a closely related European plant with similarly shaped leaves and similarly colored and shaped flowers.
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Q: What kills lesser celandine?
A: The only current reliable method of killing lesser celandine is to use glyphosate. As you all know we only use herbicides when it is absolutely necessary, and then in the minimum amount required.
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Q: Is celandine poisonous to humans?
A: As a member of the generally toxic buttercup family (ranunculaceae), lesser celandine contains small amounts of pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PA’s), a family of plant compounds produced as a defense mechanism against insect herbivores, but often also hepatoxic (causing liver damage) in humans.
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Q: Is lesser celandine poisonous?
A: Do not eat lesser celandine raw. Protoanemonin, which is the toxic compound in the plant is destroyed by cooking and drying. As a member of the buttercup family, lesser celandine may cause contact dermatitis in humans and animals.
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Q: Should I get rid of lesser celandine?
A: It may look like a pretty flower, but you should dig up and get rid of this invasive plant called lesser celandine. Photo courtesy Mike Fabrizio. I’ve been noticing the pretty yellow blooms of lesser celandine all over my neighborhood. It’s pretty, but it can take over your lawn.
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Q: Does anything eat lesser celandine?
A: To top it off, lesser celandine has no (or few) natural enemies here in America, where it is so far outside of its native home range. On its home turf, there are myriad insects, animals, fungi, bacteria, parasites, and diseases that attack or feed on lesser celandine and keep its population in check.
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About the author

Samuel is a gardening professional and enthusiast who has spent over 20 years advising homeowners and farm owners on weed identification, prevention and removal. He has an undergraduate degree in plant and soil science from Michigan State University.