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Sanguinaria
Sanguinaria canadensis, bloodroot, is a perennial, herbaceous flowering plant native to eastern North America. It is the only species in the genus Sanguinaria, included in the poppy family Papaveraceae, and is most closely related to Eomecon of eastern Asia.
Sanguinaria canadensis is sometimes known as Canada puccoon, bloodwort, redroot, red puccoon, and black paste. Plants are variable in leaf and flower shape, and have been separated as a different subspecies due to these variable shapes, indicating a highly variable species.
In bloodroot, the sap is red and poisonous. Products made from sanguinaria extracts, such as black salve, are escharotic and can cause permanent disfiguring scarring. If applied to the skin, the extract sanguinarine may cause a massive scab of dead flesh where it killed the cells, called an eschar.
Although there are laboratory studies indicating that sanguinaria may have potential in cancer therapy, clinical studies are lacking, and use is not recommended due to significant off-target toxicity.
Bloodroot grows from 20 to 50 cm (8 to 20 in) tall. It has one large basal leaf, up to 25 cm (10 in) across, with five to seven lobes. The leaves and flowers sprout from a reddish rhizome with bright orange to red sap. The color of the sap is the reason for the genus name Sanguinaria, from Latin sanguinarius "bloody". The rhizomes grow longer each year, and branch to form colonies. Plants start to bloom before the foliage unfolds in early spring. After blooming, the leaves unfurl to their full size. Plants go dormant in mid to late summer, later than some other spring ephemerals.
The flowers bloom from March to May depending on the region and climate. They have 8–12 delicate white petals, many yellow stamens, and two sepals below the petals, which fall off after the flowers open. Each flower stem is clasped by a leaf as it emerges from the ground. The flowers open when they are in sunlight and close at night. They are pollinated by small bees and flies. Seeds develop in green pods 4 to 6 cm (1+1⁄2 to 2+1⁄4 in) long, and ripen before the foliage goes dormant. The seeds are round and black to orange-red when ripe, and have white elaiosomes, which are eaten by ants. The Latin specific epithet canadensis means of Canada.
Bloodroot is native to eastern North America from Nova Scotia to Florida, and west to the Great Lakes and down the Mississippi embayment.
Sanguinaria canadensis grows in moist to dry woods and thickets, often on floodplains and near shores or streams on slopes. They grow less frequently in clearings and meadows or on dunes, and are rarely found in disturbed sites.
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Sanguinaria
Sanguinaria canadensis, bloodroot, is a perennial, herbaceous flowering plant native to eastern North America. It is the only species in the genus Sanguinaria, included in the poppy family Papaveraceae, and is most closely related to Eomecon of eastern Asia.
Sanguinaria canadensis is sometimes known as Canada puccoon, bloodwort, redroot, red puccoon, and black paste. Plants are variable in leaf and flower shape, and have been separated as a different subspecies due to these variable shapes, indicating a highly variable species.
In bloodroot, the sap is red and poisonous. Products made from sanguinaria extracts, such as black salve, are escharotic and can cause permanent disfiguring scarring. If applied to the skin, the extract sanguinarine may cause a massive scab of dead flesh where it killed the cells, called an eschar.
Although there are laboratory studies indicating that sanguinaria may have potential in cancer therapy, clinical studies are lacking, and use is not recommended due to significant off-target toxicity.
Bloodroot grows from 20 to 50 cm (8 to 20 in) tall. It has one large basal leaf, up to 25 cm (10 in) across, with five to seven lobes. The leaves and flowers sprout from a reddish rhizome with bright orange to red sap. The color of the sap is the reason for the genus name Sanguinaria, from Latin sanguinarius "bloody". The rhizomes grow longer each year, and branch to form colonies. Plants start to bloom before the foliage unfolds in early spring. After blooming, the leaves unfurl to their full size. Plants go dormant in mid to late summer, later than some other spring ephemerals.
The flowers bloom from March to May depending on the region and climate. They have 8–12 delicate white petals, many yellow stamens, and two sepals below the petals, which fall off after the flowers open. Each flower stem is clasped by a leaf as it emerges from the ground. The flowers open when they are in sunlight and close at night. They are pollinated by small bees and flies. Seeds develop in green pods 4 to 6 cm (1+1⁄2 to 2+1⁄4 in) long, and ripen before the foliage goes dormant. The seeds are round and black to orange-red when ripe, and have white elaiosomes, which are eaten by ants. The Latin specific epithet canadensis means of Canada.
Bloodroot is native to eastern North America from Nova Scotia to Florida, and west to the Great Lakes and down the Mississippi embayment.
Sanguinaria canadensis grows in moist to dry woods and thickets, often on floodplains and near shores or streams on slopes. They grow less frequently in clearings and meadows or on dunes, and are rarely found in disturbed sites.