Scientific Name:
Heracleum lanatum
Pronunciation:
hair-uh-KLEE-um lah-NAH-tum
Common Name:
cow parsnip
Family Name:
Apiaceae
Plant Type:
Herbaceous perennial
Key ID Features:
Stems single, pubescent, leafy, hollow, strong pungent odor when mature, green (usually) to purplish (rarely), ridged but not spotted; leaves alternate, ovate, 20-40cm long x 15-35cm wide, petiole base conspicuously inflated and winged, divided in 3 lobed and serrated leaflets; umbels 1-4 from side shoots, 20-30cm wide, florets white, small; schizocarp splitting into two mericarps 8-12mm long x 5-8mm wide.
Habit:
Spreading
Form:
Round
Texture:
Coarse
Mature Height:
1.3 - 2.0m
Mature Spread:
1.0 - 1.5m
Growth Rate:
Fast
Origin:
North America
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 3: (-40 to -34 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun
Soil/Growing Medium:
Bog, Well-drained
Landscape Uses:
Native planting, Waterside planting (Caution: poisonous parts)
Additional Info:
Google. Caution: the clear sap on skin can cause photodermatitis. (Note: giant hogweed is a more hazardous look-alike but with green stems with obvious purple blotches from which stiff white hairs arise.)
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Compound
Arrangement:
Alternate
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible, Palmate venation
Surfaces:
Pubescent
Compound Leaf:
Tripinnate
Colour in Summer:
Dark-green
Colour in Fall:
Yellow
Shapes:
Ovate
Apices:
Acute
Bases:
Rounded
Margins:
Palmately lobed, Serrate
Additional Info:
Upper leaves sometimes simple and maple-like
Inflorescence Type:
Umbel
Flower Morphology:
Flowers perfect
Number Of Petals:
5
Corolla Shape:
Rotate/stellate
Ovary Position:
Inferior
Colour (petals):
Showy, White
Flower Scent:
None
Flower Time at Peak:
Jun, Jul
Additional Info:
Flattened compound umbel
Fruit Type:
Achene, Schizocarp
Fruit Colour:
Brown
Fruiting Time:
Aug, Sep
Additional Info:
Egg to heart shaped, flattened, with or without hairs, 1 seeded, aromatic, sunflower-seed-like, lateral ribs broadly winged
Bark Morphology:
Smooth
Bark or Stem Colour:
Green, Tan
Organ Modifications:
Fibrous-like roots, Storage tap root
Propagation:
Seed
Pest Susceptibility:
(Pest resistant, Disease resistant)
