''Thalictrum'' () is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of 120-200 species of

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 ...

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 ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s in the buttercup family,

Ranunculaceae Ranunculaceae (, buttercup or crowfoot family; Latin "little frog", from "frog") is a family (biology), family of over 2,000 known species of flowering plants in 43 genera, distributed worldwide. The largest genera are ''Ranunculus'' (600 spec ...

, native mostly to

temperate regions In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (approximately 23.5° to 66.5° N/S of the Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ran ...

. Meadow-rue is a common name for plants in this genus. ''Thalictrum'' is a taxonomically difficult genus with poorly understood species boundaries; it is in need of further taxonomic and field research for clarification. Despite their common name of "meadow-rue", ''Thalictrum'' species are not closely related to the true

rue ''Ruta graveolens'', commonly known as rue, common rue or herb-of-grace, is a species of the genus '' Ruta'' grown as an ornamental plant and herb. It is native to the Mediterranean. It is grown throughout the world in gardens, especially for i ...

(family

Rutaceae The Rutaceae () is a family (biology), family, commonly known as the rueRUTACEAE
in Bo ...

), but resemble its members in having compound leaves twice or thrice divided.

Description

Meadow-rue

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

are alternate, bipinnately compound, and commonly glaucous blue-green in colour. The flowers are small and apetalous (no petals), but have numerous long

stamen The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s, often brightly white, yellow, pink or pale purple, and are produced in conspicuous dense inflorescences. In some species (e.g. '' T. chelidonii'', '' T. tuberosum''), the

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 Etymology The term ''sepalum'' ...

s are large, brightly coloured and petal-like, but in most they are small and fall when the flower opens or soon after.

Habitat and distribution

Meadow-rues are usually found in shaded or damp locations, with a sub- cosmopolitan range throughout most of the Northern Hemisphere and also south to southern

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and tropical

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

, but absent from

Australasia Australasia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising Australia, New Zealand (overlapping with Polynesia), and sometimes including New Guinea and surrounding islands (overlapping with Melanesia). The term is used in a number of different context ...

. They are most common in

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (approximately 23.5° to 66.5° N/S of the Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ran ...

regions of the world; twenty-two species are found in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

Ecology

Anemophily Anemophily or wind pollination is a form of pollination whereby pollen is distributed by wind. Almost all gymnosperms are anemophilous, as are many plants in the order Poales, including grasses, sedges, and rushes. Other common anemophilous ...

(wind pollination) is a characteristic of some members this genus, as seen in '' Thalictrum fendleri'' and '' Thalictrum dioicum''. Others, such as '' Thalictrum sparsiflorum'', are entomophilous (pollinated by insects). ''Thalictrum'' species are used as food plants by the

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

e of some

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) or lepidopterans is an order (biology), order of winged insects which includes butterflies and moths. About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera have been described, representing 10% of the total described species of living organ ...

species including the Setaceous Hebrew Character moth.

Chemical constituents

In addition to

alkaloid Alkaloids are a broad class of natural product, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. Some synthetic compounds of similar structure may also be termed alkaloids. Alkaloids are produced by a large varie ...

s, ''Thalictrum'' species produce many other classes of

metabolite In biochemistry, a metabolite is an intermediate or end product of metabolism. The term is usually used for small molecules. Metabolites have various functions, including fuel, structure, signaling, stimulatory and inhibitory effects on enzymes, c ...

s, including

triterpenoid Triterpenes are a class of terpenes composed of six isoprene units with the molecular formula C30H48; they may also be thought of as consisting of three terpene units. Animals, plants and fungi all produce triterpenes, including squalene, the pre ...

s and triterpenoid

glycoside In chemistry, a glycoside is a molecule in which a sugar is bound to another functional group via a glycosidic bond. Glycosides play numerous important roles in living organisms. Many plants store chemicals in the form of inactive glycosides. ...

flavonoid Flavonoids (or bioflavonoids; from the Latin word ''flavus'', meaning yellow, their color in nature) are a class of polyphenolic secondary metabolites found in plants, and thus commonly consumed in the diets of humans. Chemically, flavonoids ...

cyanogenic glycoside In chemistry, a glycoside is a molecule in which a sugar is bound to another functional group via a glycosidic bond. Glycosides play numerous important roles in living organisms. Many plants store chemicals in the form of inactive glycosides. ...

hydrocarbon In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons are examples of group 14 hydrides. Hydrocarbons are generally colourless and Hydrophobe, hydrophobic; their odor is usually fain ...

alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...

s with high

molecular weight A molecule is a group of two or more atoms that are held together by Force, attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions that satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemi ...

fatty acid In chemistry, in particular in biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid with an aliphatic chain, which is either saturated and unsaturated compounds#Organic chemistry, saturated or unsaturated. Most naturally occurring fatty acids have an ...

s, phenolic compounds and

sterol A sterol is any organic compound with a Skeletal formula, skeleton closely related to Cholestanol, cholestan-3-ol. The simplest sterol is gonan-3-ol, which has a formula of , and is derived from that of gonane by replacement of a hydrogen atom on ...

s. Typical

natural product A natural product is a natural compound or substance produced by a living organism—that is, found in nature. In the broadest sense, natural products include any substance produced by life. Natural products can also be prepared by chemical s ...

s found in this genus are benzylisoquinoline alkaloids, such as magnoflorine, hernandezine, and the structurally related alkaloid

berberine Berberine is a Quaternary ammonium cation, quaternary ammonium salt from the protoberberine group of benzylisoquinoline alkaloids, occurring naturally as a secondary metabolite in some plants including species of ''Berberis'', from which its name ...

Selected species

* '' Thalictrum alpinum'' – alpine meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum aquilegiifolium'' – greater meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum chelidonii'' * '' Thalictrum cooleyi'' – Cooley's meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum coreanum'' * '' Thalictrum clavatum'' - mountain meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum dasycarpum'' * '' Thalictrum delavayi'' – Chinese meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum dioicum'' – early meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum fendleri'' – Fendler's meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum filamentosum'' * '' Thalictrum flavum'' – yellow or common meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum heliophilum'' – cathedral meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum kiusianum'' – Kyushu meadow-rue, dwarf meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum minus'' – lesser meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum occidentale'' – western meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum pubescens'' * '' Thalictrum revolutum'' - waxyleaf meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum rochebruneanum'' – lavender mist meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum sparsiflorum'' – fewflower meadow-rue * '' Thalictrum speciosissimum'' * '' Thalictrum thalictroides'' – rue-anemone (syn. ''Anemonella thalictroides'') * '' Thalictrum tuberosum'' * '' Thalictrum urbainii''

Cultivation

''Thalictrum'' species are valued as ornamental garden plants, with their sprays of flowers in delicate shades. The following

cultivar A cultivar is a kind of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and which retains those traits when Plant propagation, propagated. Methods used to propagate cultivars include division, root a ...

s, with mixed or unknown parents, have received the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr ...

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. It includes the full range of cultivated p ...

: *'Black Stockings' *'Elin' *'Splendide White' (Fr21034) *'Tukker Princess'

Gallery

Thalictrum aquilegifolium, RBGE 2010, 3.jpg, ''Thalictrum aquilegiifolium'' Thalictrum chelidonii03.jpg, ''Thalictrum chelidonii'' Thalictrum coreanum2.jpg, ''Thalictrum coreanum'' Thalictrum dasycarpum 1-eheep (5098007362).jpg, ''Thalictrum dasycarpum'' Thalictrum delavayi.jpg, ''Thalictrum delavayi'' flowers Thalictrum dioicum (1).jpg, Early meadow-rue (''Thalictrum dioicum'') Thalictrum filamentosum 1.jpg, ''Thalictrum filamentosum'' Thalictrum flavum1.jpg, ''Thalictrum flavum'' leaves Thalictrum glaucum0.jpg, ''Thalictrum glaucum'' flowers Thalictrum kiusianum1.jpg, ''Thalictrum kiusianum'' Thalictrumoccidentale1.jpg, Female flowers of ''Thalictrum occidentale'' Thalictrum rochebrunnianum.jpg, ''Thalictrum rochebrunnianum'' Thalictrum thalictroides - Rue Anemone.jpg, Rue-anemone (''Thalictrum thalictroides'') Thalictrum tuberosum 1.JPG, ''Thalictrum tuberosum'' Thalictrum urbainii1.jpg, ''Thalictrum urbainii''

References

{{Authority control Ranunculaceae genera Taxa named by Joseph Pitton de Tournefort