Chelidonium majus L. Greater celandine, celandine
This native of Eurasia was introduced to North America, where it is now widespread. Plants: Greater celandine reaches 1½-2′ (45-60 cm) in height, with ribbed stems. Leaves contain an irritating yellow-orange sap. Leaves: Leaves are up to 8″ (20 cm) long and 3″ (7.6 cm) wide, compound in groups of 5 to 9, green with a slight bluish tint. Flowers: About ¾″ (1.9 cm) around, with four yellow non-overlapping petals, a stiff green central style, and multiple yellow stamens. Fruits: Seed capsules look like thin beans, ¾-2½″ (1.9-6.3 cm) long, with black seeds. Sometimes these are confused: |
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Stylophorum diphyllum |
Ranunculus ficaria |
You are here Chelidonium majus |
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Common Name | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Plant | Plants reach 1-1½′ (30-45 cm). Stems and leaves exude a bright yellow-orange sap when cut. | Low-growing, 4-14″ (10-35 cm) in height. It is a perennial that stores energy in numerous white finger-like tubers. | Greater celandine reaches 1½-2′ (45-60 cm) in height, with ribbed stems. Leaves contain an irritating yellow-orange sap. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Flowers | Each flower has four partially overlapping yellow petals, two sepals (which fall away early after flowering), a knobby stigma, and multiple yellow-orange stamens. They appear in groups of one to four, and are 1¼-2″ (3.2-5.7 cm) around. Flowers May-June. | Up to 1″ (2.5 cm) around, with 7-12 glossy yellow petal-like tepals, and 3 sepal-like tepals (confused yet?). They appear as early as February, or, further north, from April-May. | About ¾″ (1.9 cm) around, with four yellow non-overlapping petals, a stiff green central style, and multiple yellow stamens. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Leaves | This plant has basal leaves, as well as a pair of opposite leaves on the stem, both up to 6″ (15 cm) × 4″ (10 cm). Leaves are divided into 3-5 lobes which in turn are further divided, making them bipinnatifid. Leaf surfaces are dark green and hairless, while leaf undersides are pale as a result of fine hairs. Leaf stems (petioles) are up to 4″ (10 cm) long. | Thick, heart-shaped (cordate), spirally arranged, ¾-1½″ (1.9-3.8 cm), on long stems (petioles). Leaves are sometimes mottled with darker green patches. | Up to 8″ (20 cm) long and 3″ (7.6 cm) wide, compound in groups of 5 to 9, green with a slight bluish tint. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fruit | Bristly blue-green ovoid seed pods ¾-1″ (1.9-2.5 cm). | Achenes are spherical, up to ⅜″ (1.3 cm) around. | Seed capsules look like thin beans, ¾-2½″ (1.9-6.3 cm) long, with black seeds. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Range/ Zones | USDA Zones: 4-9 | USDA Zones: 4-8 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Habitats | Dry deciduous woodlands, bases of bluffs, and rocky stream banks. | It prefers damp shady areas, and weedy places. It often carpets large areas. | Moist or dry woods, thickets, fields, hedgerows, roadsides, railroads | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Type | Wild | Wild | Wild | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Occurrence | Common |
Edibility: Poisonous Stem juice is toxic and extremely irritating and allergenic. Paralysis, nausea, vomiting, coma, respiratory tract irritation, violent coughing, ulcers, and dyspnoea have been attributed to this plant.[1]. More recently, it has been implicated in liver disease as well.[2]
Medical: Greater celandine has been used for many different medical purposes historically (see footnotes 1 and 2), but I don't believe any of these uses have been confirmed with research.
Online References:
Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants
1For details, see Plants for a Future
Chelidonium majus description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.
Range: Zones 4-8: