Bloodroot

Scientific Name: Sanguinaria canadensis. The genus, Sanguinaria, derives from sanguis, the Latin word for blood. The species name, canadensis, means “of Canada”. Yes, you can find it growing in central and eastern Canada too!

Common Name: Bloodroot. What do you think you would see if you examined the roots? It may be no surprise to learn that the roots and other parts of the plant have an orange-red juice. Bloodroot has a wide variety of other names associated with it including red puccoon, sweet slumber, tetterwort – all of which refer to ways in which the plant was used. The name puccoon comes from an Algonquian name for dye and is used in common names of several other unrelated plants of the genus Lithospermum.¹

Family: Papaveraceae (Poppy family) Why do you think scientists place it in this family? Do you see any similarities between this plant and the poppies you might have in your garden? Plants in the poppy family typically have a juice which is milky, watery, or colored. In addition, they often have one medium to large flower and many stamens to attract insect pollinators but typically lack nectar. The seeds are usually numerous and small and are contained in a capsule. There are only five plants in the poppy family which grow in the wild in Virginia – and bloodroot is one of only two that are native. The other is the celandine poppy (Stylophorum diphyllum) which is rare in the mountains of SW Virginia.²

Average Height: around 4-12”

Description: A perennial plant with a single large basal leaf which is 2-8” wide. The leaves are irregularly lobed in a hand-like pattern with 5-9 lobes and prominent venation. The upper surface is light green while the underside is a pale whitish green. The basal leaf curls around the single flower stem which grows 2-6” tall and has a solitary flower. The large white flower measures about 1½ -3” across with 8-16 petals and approximately twice as many yellow stamens as petals. The leaf continues to expand and unfurl after the flower is pollinated. The fruit of the plant is an elongated seed capsule which contains numerous small seeds. The plant grows from thick rhizomes and both the rhizome and leaves contain a toxic orange-red juice. ^2,3,4

Bloom time: Mar-Apr

Notes: Bloodroot is one of the earliest blooming spring ephemerals in our area – a welcome sign of spring! It only blooms for 1-2 days. If it is not pollinated by an insect, bloodroot can self-pollinate.^2,5

Range: Found in almost every county in Virginia, it is most common in the Piedmont and the mountains but less frequent in the Coastal Plain.⁶

Geology/Soil: Typically found in soils rich in nutrients, including high levels of calcium, magnesium, and potassium.^2,6

Habitat: Most strongly associated with rich moist forests and well-drained floodplain forests, but can be found also in other locations including dry calcareous forests and woodlands.^2,6

Flora associations: Often found with a wide array of other spring-blooming wildflowers such as mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum), Virginia bluebell (Mertensia virginica), spring beauty (Claytonia virginica var. virginica), and cut-leaf toothwort (Cardamine concatenata).

Fauna associations: Bloodroot produces no nectar but has many stamens (yes, like other poppies!), so what is attracted to them? Pollinators such as mining bees (Andrena spp.) and sweat bees (Halictus spp. and Lasioglossum spp.) as well as honey bees, bumblebees, little carpenter bees, hoverflies and some beetles may all visit to collect pollen from all those stamens! One specialist is attracted to the red juice produced by the plant! The aphid Linosiphon sanguinarium can be found feeding at leaf veins on the underside of the leaf.^3,4,5

Sanguinaria canadensis seeds have an attached nutrient-packed ‘elaiosome’–a tasty snack pack evolved to attract ants. These treats are especially attractive to winnow ants (genus Aphaenogaster), some of the most common ants in eastern deciduous forests. While winnow ants collect Sanguinaria seeds in order to eat the elaiosomes, the ants generally don’t remove them from the seeds until they reach their nest. Once there they commonly discard the elaiosome-stripped seeds in a ‘midden’, the ant colony’s nutrient-rich waste pile, and a perfect place for seed germination.^7,8 This strategy of using ants for seed dispersal (formally known as myrmecochory) is common among many other spring ephemerals in our area, including spring beauty (Claytonia virginica var. virginica), yellow trout lily (Erythronium americanum ssp. americanum), perfoliate bellwort (Uvularia perforliata), and several species of violets (Viola spp.), among others.⁷

Human associations: Many people have found a wide variety of uses for Sanguinaria canadensis, including as a dye and a range of medicinal uses. The Cherokee, Algonquin, and Chippewa people are among many native people who use it to dye materials for making clothing and baskets.^9,10,11 Cherokee medicinal uses include using a salve to treat skin conditions (such as ulcers, warts, and ringworm) and making a decoction to treat coughs, croup, and lung inflammation.^9,10,11 The Haudenosaunee people use it in a similar manner but additionally treat stomach complaints (such as vomiting, diarrhea, and gas) with infusions containing bloodroot.¹⁰ Bloodroot contains alkaloids that are toxic to humans and great care is required when using this plant.^5,9,11 One of these compounds, the alkaloid sanguinarine, has antimicrobial properties and was used as a common ingredient in toothpaste until it was linked to precancerous lesions in the mouth!¹²

We want these plants to thrive and for everyone who gets to visit the park to enjoy them, so remember – don’t pick flowers or other parts of the plant!!

1 Tikkanen, Amy. “Puccoon | Plant | Britannica.” www.britannica.com, www.britannica.com/plant/puccoon. Accessed 26 Feb. 2024.

2 Weakley, A.S., J.C. Ludwig, and J.F. Townsend. 2012. Flora of Virginia. Bland Crowder, ed. Foundation of the Flora of Virginia Project, Inc., Richmond. Fort Worth: Botanical Research Institute of Texas Press, pp. 769-770.

3 “Bloodroot (Sanguinaria Canadensis).” Www.illinoiswildflowers.info, www.illinoiswildflowers.info/woodland/plants/bloodroot.htm. Accessed 26 Feb. 2024.

4 “Bloodroot (Sanguinaria Canadensis).” Bplant.org, bplant.org/plant/1271. Accessed 26 Feb. 2024.

5 “Bloodroot – CornellBotanicGardens.” Cornellbotanicgardens.org, cornellbotanicgardens.org/plant/bloodroot/. Accessed 26 Feb. 2024.

6 “Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora | Sanguinaria canadensis.” Vaplantatlas.org, https://vaplantatlas.org/index.php?do=plant&plant=3483&search=Search. Accessed 6 Jan. 2024.

7 Clark, R. 2022. Are seed-dispersing ants elaiosome-limited? An experimental test in a Connecticut forest dominated by myrmecochorous plants. Food Webs 32 (2022)

8 In Defense of Plants. Episode 166 – Ants as Seed Dispersers a.k.a. The Myrmecochory Episode! June 24, 2018.

9 “Bloodroot Sanguinaria Canadensis.” My Cherokee Garden, 4 Feb. 2014, mycherokeegarden.com/2014/02/04/bloodroot-sanguinaria-canadensis/. Accessed 26 Feb. 2024.

10 “BRIT – Native American Ethnobotany Database.” Naeb.brit.org, http://naeb.brit.org/uses/search/?string=sanguinaria+canadensis. Accessed 26 Feb. 2024.

11 Cherokee Nation. “Cherokee Ethnobiology: Bloodroot.” https://www.cherokee.org/media/ujvlnhoz/bloodroot.pdf. Accessed 26 Feb. 2024.

12 Allen C.L., J. Loudon, A.K. Mascarenhas. 2001. Sanguinaria-related leukoplakia: epidemiologic and clinicopathologic features of a recently described entity. General Dentistry 49: 608-614.

Definitions:

Spring ephemeral: A perennial plant which grows early in the spring – before the trees grow leaves – to take advantage of the sunlight reaching the forest floor. In less than 2 months, the plant grows, blooms, and produces seed and then disappears from view as the leaves die back.

Myrmecochory: The formal term used for the dispersal of seeds by ants.