Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Read about Actaea and Cimicifuga from Alan Weakley and the Southern Appalachian Botanical Society.
Learn more about Common Black Cohosh from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
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Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Ranunculales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA (11/30/12):
Actaea racemosa
FAMILY
Ranunculaceae
INCLUDING
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Actaea racemosa +
FAMILY
Ranunculaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 076-09-001:
Cimicifuga racemosa
FAMILY
Ranunculaceae
COMMON NAME:
Common Black Cohosh, Early Black Cohosh, Black Snakeroot
To see a detailed map, click here
Look for it in rich cove forests, other mesic & moderately to very fertile forests, per Weakley's Flora
Forb
Perennial
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Documented growing wild in
GA
NC
SC
Common (rare in Coastal Plain of NC)
LEAVES:
Complexly compound, with 2+ levels of pinnate and/or ternate compoundness
Alternate & basal
FLOWER:
Spring/Summer
White
4 sepals (usually)
Petals absent
Superior ovary
FRUIT:
Spring/Summer
Follicle
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
Actaea racemosa FAMILY Ranunculaceae
Common Black Cohosh, Early Black Cohosh, Black Snakeroot
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Read about Actaea and Cimicifuga from Alan Weakley and the Southern Appalachian Botanical Society.
Click the thumbnails to see larger pictures.
JK Marlow jkm120330_277
March Pickens County SC
Terminal leaflet with 3 major veins arising from the base, per Weakley's Flora.
JK Marlow jkm060508_087
May Macon County NC
Nantahala National Forest: Wayah Ranger District
Black Cohosh on the left; Blue Cohosh on the right
JK Marlow jkm0506e_15
June Rutherford County NC
Chimney Rock Park
Leaflets broad, coarsely toothed; terminal leaflet generally 3-lobed, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians.
COMPARE
compound leaves of woodland herbs, with toothed margins
Tim Spira tps_aracemosa
June
Flower stalks 3-8' tall w tassel-like flowers in long narrow arching racemes, per Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont.
COMPARE
Cohosh, Doll's-eyes, and Goatsbeard
JK Marlow jkm0407i_03
July Haywood County NC
Corneille Bryan Native Garden
The petals are absent, but the flowers have numerous showy white stamens, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians.
JK Marlow jkm0308s_35
August Haywood County NC
Corneille Bryan Native Garden
Follicles 5-8mm long, 4-5mm broad, broadly ellipsoid, pubescent, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas.
JK Marlow jkm0509f_31
September Greenville County SC
SC Native Plant Society Plant Sale
The numerous stamens give the long narrow inflorescence its fuzzy appearance, per Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont.
JK Marlow jkm0509f_32
September Greenville County SC
SC Native Plant Society Plant Sale
The sepals fall off as the flower opens, per Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont.
JK Marlow jkm111008_940
October Jackson County NC
Balsam Mountain Preserve
Petiole of basal leaves terete, not grooved (or with an early shallow groove), per Weakley's Flora.