''Ranunculus flammula'', the lesser spearwort, greater creeping spearwort or banewort, is a species of

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

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 of ...

plants in the genus ''

Ranunculus ''Ranunculus'' is a large genus of about 1750 species of flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae. Members of the genus are known as buttercups, spearworts and water crowfoots. The genus is distributed worldwide, primarily in temperate an ...

'' (buttercup), growing in damp places throughout the Boreal Kingdom. It flowers June/July. ''Ranunculus flammula'' is poisonous. It is very closely related to '' R. reptans'', which is distinguished by prostrate and more slender stems, narrower leaves and smaller flowers and is sometimes included within ''R. flammula''

sensu lato ''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular co ...

as a variety (''R. flammula'' var. ''reptans'' (L.) E. Meyer). In addition to other forms of pollination, this plant is adapted to rain-

pollination Pollination is the transfer of pollen from an anther of a plant to the stigma (botany), stigma of a plant, later enabling fertilisation and the production of seeds. Pollinating agents can be animals such as insects, for example bees, beetles or bu ...

Gallery

Image:RanunculusFlammula4.jpg Image:ranunculus_flammula.jpeg Image:RanunculusFlammula.jpg File:Ranunculus flammula Prague 2012 2.jpg

Illustrations

Image:Ranunculus flammula - Sturm.png, ''Ranunculus flammula''
Illustration in:
Jakob Sturm: ''"Deutschlands Flora in Abbildungen"'',
Stuttgart (1796) Image:Ranunculus flammula Sturm46.jpg, ''Ranunculus flammula'' var ''reptans''
Illustration in:
Jakob Sturm: ''"Deutschlands Flora in Abbildungen"'',
Stuttgart (1796) Image:Nsr-slika-029.png, Žgoča zlatica. (''Ranúnculus Flámmula''.)
Illustration #29 in: Martin Cilenšek: '' Naše škodljive rastline'', Celovec (1892)

References

External links

* flammula Flora of Europe Flora of North Africa Flora of Northern America Flora of temperate Asia Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{ranunculaceae-stub