''Heracleum maximum'', commonly known as cow parsnip, is the only member of the genus ''
Heracleum'' native to
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the C ...
. It is also known as American cow-parsnip,
Satan celery, Indian celery, Indian rhubarb
or pushki.
Description
Cow parsnip is a tall
herbaceous
Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials.
Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous"
The fourth edition o ...
perennial plant,
reaching heights of .
The stems are hollow and densely hairy.
The
leaves
A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...
are very large, up to across and divided into three lobes.
Cow parsnip has the characteristic flower
umbel
In botany, an umbel is an inflorescence that consists of a number of short flower stalks (called pedicels) that spread from a common point, somewhat like umbrella ribs. The word was coined in botanical usage in the 1590s, from Latin ''umbella'' "p ...
s of the carrot family (
Apiaceae
Apiaceae or Umbelliferae is a family of mostly aromatic flowering plants named after the type genus '' Apium'' and commonly known as the celery, carrot or parsley family, or simply as umbellifers. It is the 16th-largest family of flowering plant ...
), blooming from February to September.
The umbels can reach across,
flat-topped or rounded, and composed of small white flowers. Sometimes the outer flowers of the umbel are much larger than the inner ones. The seeds are long and wide.
Similar species
It is commonly confused with ''
Heracleum mantegazzianum
''Heracleum mantegazzianum'', commonly known as giant hogweed, is a monocarpic perennial herbaceous plant in the carrot family Apiaceae. ''H. mantegazzianum'' is also known as cartwheel-flower, giant cow parsley, giant cow parsnip, or hogsb ...
'' (giant hogweed),
a much larger plant that typically has purplish spots on the stems, as well as more sharply serrated leaves.
Other tall invasive ''
Heracleum'' species include ''
H. mantegazzianum'', ''
H. sosnowskyi'', and ''
H. persicum''. Other similar species include
wild carrot
''Daucus carota'', whose common names include wild carrot, European wild carrot, bird's nest, bishop's lace, and Queen Anne's lace (North America), is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae. It is native to temperate regions of the Old World ...
,
cow parsley
''Anthriscus sylvestris'', known as cow parsley, wild chervil, wild beaked parsley, Queen Anne's lace or keck, is a herbaceous biennial or short-lived perennial plant in the family Apiaceae (Umbelliferae), genus '' Anthriscus''. It is also some ...
,
poison hemlock
''Conium maculatum'', colloquially known as hemlock, poison hemlock or wild hemlock, is a highly poisonous biennial herbaceous flowering plant in the carrot family Apiaceae, native to Europe and North Africa. A hardy plant capable of living in a ...
, wild
parsnip
The parsnip (''Pastinaca sativa'') is a root vegetable closely related to carrot and parsley, all belonging to the flowering plant family Apiaceae. It is a biennial plant usually grown as an annual. Its long taproot has cream-colored skin an ...
, and species of the genus ''
Angelica
''Angelica'' is a genus of about 60 species of tall biennial and perennial herbs in the family Apiaceae, native to temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere, reaching as far north as Iceland, Lapland, and Greenland. They grow t ...
''.
Taxonomy
The Plant List
The Plant List was a list of botanical names of species of plants created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the Missouri Botanical Garden and launched in 2010. It was intended to be a comprehensive record of all known names of plant species ...
(which was last updated in 2013) classified ''H. maximum'', ''H. lanatum'', and
''H. sphondylium'' subsp. ''montanum'' as distinct species.
According to both the
Integrated Taxonomic Information System
The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) is an American partnership of federal agencies designed to provide consistent and reliable information on the taxonomy of biological species. ITIS was originally formed in 1996 as an interagenc ...
(ITIS) or the
National Plant Germplasm System
The U.S. National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS) is a network of institutions and agencies (federal, state and private) led by the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in the effort to conserve and facilitate t ...
(NPGS), ''H. lanatum'' and ''H. maximum'' are synonyms for ''H. sphondylium'' subsp. ''montanum'',
a name proposed by Brummitt in 1971.
According to the Plant List and
Plants of the World Online
Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was launched in March 2017 with the ultimate aim being "to enable users to access information on all the world's known seed-bearing plants by ...
, ''H. lanatum'' and ''H. maximum'' are both accepted names, the latter with no infraspecific taxa.
On the other hand, neither are recognized as accepted names by either the ITIS or NPGS. Besides ''H. lanatum'' and ''H. maximum'', various scientific names have been attributed to this species.
Synonyms of the grouping previously classified ''H. lanatum'' include:
* ''Heracleum montanum''
* ''Heracleum sphondylium'' subsp. ''lanatum''
* ''Heracleum sphondylium'' var. ''lanatum''
* ''Heracleum sphondylium'' subsp. ''montanum''
Synonyms listed at Plants of the World Online include:
As ''H. lanatum'', it is listed as having the
variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
''asiaticum''.
The genus name ''Heracleum'' (from "
Heracles
Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive ...
") refers to the very large size of all parts of these plants.
Distribution and habitat
The species is native to North America, being distributed throughout most of the continental
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
(except the
Gulf Coast
The Gulf Coast of the United States, also known as the Gulf South, is the coastline along the Southern United States where they meet the Gulf of Mexico. The coastal states that have a shoreline on the Gulf of Mexico are Texas, Louisiana, Mississ ...
and a few neighboring states), ranging from the
Aleutian Islands and
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
in the far northwest to
Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...
on the east coast, extending south as far as
California,
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex
, Offi ...
,
Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the w ...
,
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
, and
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
. It occurs from sea level to elevations of about .
It is especially prevalent in Alaska, where it is often found growing amongst plants like
devil's club
Devil's club or devil's walking stick (''Oplopanax horridus'', Araliaceae; syn. ''Echinopanax horridus'', ''Fatsia horrida'') is a large understory shrub native to the rainforests of the Pacific Northwest, but also disjunct on islands in Lake Su ...
, which is nearly identical in size and somewhat similar in appearance, and
monkshood
''Aconitum'' (), also known as aconite, monkshood, wolf's-bane, leopard's bane, mousebane, women's bane, devil's helmet, queen of poisons, or blue rocket, is a genus of over 250 species of flowering plants belonging to the family Ranunculaceae. ...
, a very toxic flower. In
Canada, it is found in every province and territory except
Nunavut
Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the '' Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act'', w ...
. It is listed as "
Endangered
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and invas ...
" in
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to ...
and "Special Concern" in
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to t ...
.
The plant is also found in
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...
,
East Asia
East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea and ...
, and the
Kuril Islands
The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands (; rus, Кури́льские острова́, r=Kuril'skiye ostrova, p=kʊˈrʲilʲskʲɪjə ɐstrɐˈva; Japanese: or ) are a volcanic archipelago currently administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast in the ...
.
Ecology
The species is widely recognized as a valuable pasture plant for cows, sheep, and goats. It is also known to be important in the diets of numerous wild animals, especially bears, both grizzly bears and black bears.
It is a host plant for the black swallowtail butterfly (''
Papilio polyxenes
''Papilio polyxenes'', the (eastern) black swallowtail, American swallowtail or parsnip swallowtail, is a butterfly found throughout much of North America. It is the state butterfly of Oklahoma and New Jersey. An extremely similar-appearing spec ...
''), short-tailed swallowtail butterfly (''
Papilio brevicauda''), old world swallowtail butterfly (''
Papilio machaon
''Papilio machaon'', the Old World swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. The butterfly is also known as the common yellow swallowtail or simply the swallowtail (a common name applied to all members of the family, but this speci ...
''), anise swallowtail butterfly (''
Papilio zelicaon''), and the moths ''
Eupithecia tripunctaria'', ''
Papaipema harrisii'', ''
Papaipema impecuniosa'', ''
Agonopterix clemensella'', ''
Agonopterix flavicomella'', and ''
Depressaria pastinacella
The parsnip moth or parsnip webworm (''Depressaria radiella'') is a moth of the family Depressariidae. It is found in most of Europe, except Portugal and most of the Balkan Peninsula. This species has also been introduced into New Zealand.
The wi ...
''.
Toxicity
The plant contains
furanocoumarin
The furanocoumarins, or furocoumarins, are a class of organic chemical compounds produced by a variety of plants. Most of the plant species found to contain furanocoumarins belong to a handful of plant families. The families Apiaceae and Rutacea ...
s such as
xanthotoxin
Methoxsalen, sold under the brand name Oxsoralen among others, is a medication used to treat psoriasis, eczema, vitiligo, and some cutaneous lymphomas in conjunction with exposing the skin to ultraviolet (UVA) light from lamps or sunlight. Methox ...
,
angelicin
Angelicin is the parent compound in a family of naturally occurring organic compounds known as the angular furanocoumarins. Structurally, it can be considered as benzapyra-2-one fused with a furan moiety in the 7,8-position. Angelicin is commonly ...
,
pimpinellin and
isopimpinellin,
isoimperatorin,
bergapten
Bergapten (5-methoxypsoralen) is a naturally-occurring organic chemical compound produced by numerous plant species, especially from the carrot family Apiaceae and the citrus family Rutaceae. For example, bergapten has been extracted from 24 ...
and
isobergapten, , and
sphondin.
In one study, the young leaves did not contain xanthotoxin, but older, senescing leaves contained "substantial amounts".
Some of these furanocoumarins found in cow parsnip are known to have
antimicrobial
An antimicrobial is an agent that kills microorganisms or stops their growth. Antimicrobial medicines can be grouped according to the microorganisms they act primarily against. For example, antibiotics are used against bacteria, and antifungals a ...
properties and are responsible for a rash producing erythematous vesicles (burn-like blisters) and hyperpigmentation that occurs after getting the clear sap onto one's skin.
They are photosensitive, with the rash occurring only after exposure to ultraviolet light.
Because of this,
phytophotodermatitis
Phytophotodermatitis, also known as berloque dermatitis or margarita photodermatitis, is a cutaneous phototoxic inflammatory reaction resulting from contact with a light-sensitizing botanical agent followed by exposure to ultraviolet light (from t ...
causing skin blistering may occur after coming into contact with the sap on a sunny day.
The scars and pigmentation from these blisters caused by some ''Heracleum'' species can last for months or years.
Uses
The thick flower stems, coming into season in early summer, can be peeled and eaten cooked when young, as was done by Native Americans.
Caution should be taken as the flowers resemble those of the extremely poisonous ''
Cicuta maculata
''Cicuta maculata'' is a highly poisonous species of flowering plant in the carrot family known by several common names, including spotted water hemlock, spotted parsley, spotted cowbane, and the suicide root by the Iroquois. It is native to nea ...
''.
Indigenous North Americans have had a variety of uses for cow parsnip, often traveling long distances in the spring— or more—to find the succulent plant shoots.
The young stems and leafstalks were peeled and usually eaten raw, while early
American settlers cooked the plant.
In terms of taste, texture, and nutrients, the peeled stalks resembled celery, which gave rise to the common name "Indian celery". The natives were aware of the toxic effects of the plant, knowing that if the outer skin were not removed, one would get an "itchy mouth" or blistering skin.
Pregnant women were warned away from the flower bud stalks to prevent newborns from
asphyxiating
Asphyxia or asphyxiation is a condition of deficient supply of oxygen to the body which arises from abnormal breathing. Asphyxia causes generalized hypoxia, which affects primarily the tissues and organs. There are many circumstances that can ...
when crying.
At least seven native groups in North America used the plant as a dermatological aid.
It could be an ingredient in
poultice
A poultice, also called a cataplasm, is a soft moist mass, often heated and medicated, that is spread on cloth and placed over the skin to treat an aching, inflamed, or painful part of the body. It can be used on wounds, such as cuts.
'Poultice ...
s applied to bruises or sores.
A poultice prepared from the roots of cow parsnip was applied to swellings, especially of the feet.
The dried stems were used as drinking straws for the old or infirm, or made into
flute
The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...
s for children. An infusion of the flowers can be rubbed on the body to repel flies and
mosquito
Mosquitoes (or mosquitos) are members of a group of almost 3,600 species of small flies within the family Culicidae (from the Latin ''culex'' meaning "gnat"). The word "mosquito" (formed by ''mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish for "litt ...
es. A yellow
dye
A dye is a colored substance that chemically bonds to the substrate to which it is being applied. This distinguishes dyes from pigments which do not chemically bind to the material they color. Dye is generally applied in an aqueous solution and ...
can be made from the roots.
References
Footnotes
Citations
External links
''Jepson Manual'' species treatment*
''Plants for a Future'' report on the species
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2896924
Apioideae
Flora of North America
Plants used in traditional Native American medicine