Helleborus viridis

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Helleborus viridis
Helleborus viridis 003.JPG
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Ranunculales
Family: Ranunculaceae
Genus: Helleborus
Species:
H. viridis
Binomial name
Helleborus viridis
L.

Helleborus viridis, commonly called green hellebore, [1] [2] is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native to Central and Western Europe, including southern England. All parts of the plant are poisonous. [3]

It was one of many plants first described by Linnaeus in volume one of the 1753 (tenth) edition of his Species Plantarum . [4] The Latin species epithet viridis means "green".

Two subspecies are recognised:

Other common names recorded include bastard hellebore, bear's foot and boar's foot. [6]

Growing to around 60 cm (24 in) tall, the green hellebore is a semi-evergreen perennial plant. The flowers appear in spring (February to April). [3] They have five large green oval sepals with pointed tips, and seven to twelve much smaller petals. The roots are rhizomatous. [7] Subspecies viridis has flowers of 4–5 cm (1.6–2.0 in) diameter and leaves covered with fine hairs, while the flowers of subspecies occidentalis are smaller (3–4 cm diameter) and its leaves are smooth. [8]

The green hellebore is found in Western and Central Europe, east to eastern Austria and south to northern Italy. [5] It grows on limestone and chalk-based soils in the south of England. [3]

It has become invasive in North America, Scandinavia, the Netherlands, and northern Germany. [7]

Consumption of any part of the plant can lead to severe vomiting and seizures. [3]

Related Research Articles

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<i>Nymphaea alba</i> Species of water lily

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<i>Coriaria</i> Genus of flowering plants

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<i>Raphanus raphanistrum</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Scilla peruviana</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Heracleum sphondylium</i> Species of flowering plant in the celery family Apiaceae

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<i>Helleborus foetidus</i> Species of plant

Helleborus foetidus, known variously as stinking hellebore, dungwort, setterwort and bear's foot, is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native to the mountainous regions of Central and Southern Europe and Asia Minor. It is found wild in many parts of England, especially on limestone soil.

<i>Montia fontana</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Prunus lusitanica</i> Species of flowering plant

Prunus lusitanica, the Portuguese laurel cherry or Portugal laurel, is a species of flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae, native to the Iberian Peninsula, Morocco, the Macaronesian archipelagos, and the French Basque Country.

<i>Helleborus niger</i> Species of flowering plant

Helleborus niger, commonly called Christmas rose or black hellebore, is an evergreen perennial flowering plant in the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae. It is one of about 20 species from the genus Hellebore. It is a poisonous cottage garden favourite because it flowers in the depths of winter.

<i>Echinops sphaerocephalus</i> Species of flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae

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<i>Equisetum hyemale</i> Species of horsetail plant

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<i>Sambucus racemosa</i> Species of plant

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<i>Asplenium trichomanes</i> Species of fern in the family Aspleniaceae

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<i>Thalictrum flavum</i> Species of flowering plant

Thalictrum flavum, known by the common names common meadow-rue, poor man's rhubarb, and yellow meadow-rue, is a flowering plant species in the family Ranunculaceae. It is a native to Caucasus and Russia (Siberia). Growing to 100 cm (39 in) tall by 45 cm (18 in) broad, it is an herbaceous perennial producing clusters of fluffy yellow fragrant flowers in summer.

<i>Helleborus orientalis</i> Species of plant

Helleborus orientalis, the Lenten rose, is a perennial flowering plant and species of hellebore in the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae, native to Greece and Turkey.

<i>Alnus alnobetula</i> Species of tree

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<i>Doronicum plantagineum</i> Species of flowering plant

Doronicum plantagineum, the plantain-leaved leopard's-bane or plantain false leopardbane, is a European plant species in the sunflower family. It is native to southeastern Europe from Greece and Italy to Ukraine and the Czech Republic. There are reports of the species being naturalized in the State of Oregon in the northwestern United States.

<i>Crepis vesicaria</i> Species of flowering plant

Crepis vesicaria is a European species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae with the common name beaked hawk's-beard. It is native to the Western and Southern Europe from Ireland and Portugal east as far as Germany, Austria, and Greece. It became naturalized in scattered locations in North America.

<i>Heracleum sibiricum</i> Species of flowering plant

Heracleum sibiricum is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae. It is native to Europe and western Asia, ranging from France and Italy to western Siberia and Mongolia.

References

  1. BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  2. USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Helleborus viridis". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 4 North, Pamela Mildred (1967). Poisonous plants and fungi in color. London: Blandford Press. p. 117. OCLC   955264.
  4. Linnaeus, Carl (1753). "Tomus I". Species Plantarum (in Latin). Vol. 1. Stockholm: Laurentii Salvii. p. 558.
  5. 1 2 "Helleborus viridis L". Flora Europaea. Royal Botanical Garden Edinburgh. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  6. Wagstaff, D. Jesse (2008). International Poisonous Plants Checklist: An Evidence-Based Reference. CRC Press. p. 188. ISBN   9781420062533.
  7. 1 2 Moss, Charles Edward (1914). The Cambridge British Flora. Cambridge University Press. p. 108.
  8. Servettaz, O.; Colombo, M. L.; Tomè, F. (1988). "Taxonomical investigations on Helleborus viridis s. l. (Ranunculaceae) in Northern Italy". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 160 (3–4): 181–88. doi:10.1007/BF00936045. S2CID   30745075.