All Topics  
Pasque flower

 
Pasque Flower

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Pasque flower
 
 
  Topics Pasque flower Topic Home

A pasque flower (or pasqueflower) is a deciduous
Deciduous

Deciduous means falling off at maturity or tending to fall off and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe....
 perennial
Perennial plant

A perennial plant or perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. When used by gardeners or horticulturalists, this term applies specifically to perennial herbaceous plants....
 that is found in short clumps in meadow
Meadow

A meadow is a field vegetated primarily by grass and other non-woody plants . It may be cut for hay or grazing by livestock such as cattle, sheep or goats....
s and prairie
Prairie

Prairie refers to temperate grasslands of North America. These are areas of low topographic relief that historically supported grasses and herbs, with few or no trees, having a generally mesic habitat climate....
s of North America
North America

North America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and almost totally in the western hemisphere....
 and Eurasia
Eurasia

Eurasia is a large landmass covering about 53,990,000 km? or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface . Often considered a single continent, Eurasia comprises the traditional continents of Europe and Asia, concepts which date back to classical antiquity and the borders for which are somewhat arbitrary....
. The genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
 Pulsatilla includes about 30 species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
, many of which are valued for their finely-dissected leaves
Leaf

In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant Organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues....
, solitary bell-shaped flower
Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproduction structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds....
s, and plumed seed heads. The anthers are bright yellow and the purple bell consists of sepal
Sepal

A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Sepals in a "typical" flower are green and lie under the more conspicuous petals. As a collective unit the sepals are called the Wiktionary:calyx, and the collection of petals is called the Wiktionary:corolla....
s.

In its tallgrass prairie
Tallgrass prairie

The tallgrass prairie is an ecosystem native to Central United States North America, with fire as its primary periodic disturbance. In the past, tallgrass prairies covered a large portion of the American Midwest, just east of the Great Plains, and portions of the Canadian Prairies....
 habitat, it is one of the first plants to bloom in the spring, often before the late winter snows have thawed.

This genus is sometimes included as part of genus Anemone
Anemone

Anemone , is a genus of about 120 species of flowering plants in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae in the north and south temperate zones. They are closely related to Pasque flowers and Hepaticas ; some botanists include both of these genera within Anemone....
 as subgenus Pulsatilla, and is also commonly known as the prairie crocus, wind flower, Easter Flower and meadow anemone.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Pasque flower'
Start a new discussion about 'Pasque flower'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


A pasque flower (or pasqueflower) is a deciduous
Deciduous

Deciduous means falling off at maturity or tending to fall off and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe....
 perennial
Perennial plant

A perennial plant or perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. When used by gardeners or horticulturalists, this term applies specifically to perennial herbaceous plants....
 that is found in short clumps in meadow
Meadow

A meadow is a field vegetated primarily by grass and other non-woody plants . It may be cut for hay or grazing by livestock such as cattle, sheep or goats....
s and prairie
Prairie

Prairie refers to temperate grasslands of North America. These are areas of low topographic relief that historically supported grasses and herbs, with few or no trees, having a generally mesic habitat climate....
s of North America
North America

North America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and almost totally in the western hemisphere....
 and Eurasia
Eurasia

Eurasia is a large landmass covering about 53,990,000 km? or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface . Often considered a single continent, Eurasia comprises the traditional continents of Europe and Asia, concepts which date back to classical antiquity and the borders for which are somewhat arbitrary....
. The genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
 Pulsatilla includes about 30 species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
, many of which are valued for their finely-dissected leaves
Leaf

In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant Organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues....
, solitary bell-shaped flower
Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproduction structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds....
s, and plumed seed heads. The anthers are bright yellow and the purple bell consists of sepal
Sepal

A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Sepals in a "typical" flower are green and lie under the more conspicuous petals. As a collective unit the sepals are called the Wiktionary:calyx, and the collection of petals is called the Wiktionary:corolla....
s.

In its tallgrass prairie
Tallgrass prairie

The tallgrass prairie is an ecosystem native to Central United States North America, with fire as its primary periodic disturbance. In the past, tallgrass prairies covered a large portion of the American Midwest, just east of the Great Plains, and portions of the Canadian Prairies....
 habitat, it is one of the first plants to bloom in the spring, often before the late winter snows have thawed.

This genus is sometimes included as part of genus Anemone
Anemone

Anemone , is a genus of about 120 species of flowering plants in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae in the north and south temperate zones. They are closely related to Pasque flowers and Hepaticas ; some botanists include both of these genera within Anemone....
 as subgenus Pulsatilla, and is also commonly known as the prairie crocus, wind flower, Easter Flower and meadow anemone. The pasque flower is the official state flower of South Dakota
South Dakota

South Dakota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States of the United States of America. It is named after the Lakota people and Sioux Sioux Native Americans in the United States tribes....
 and the provincial flower of Manitoba
Manitoba

Manitoba is a prairie provinces in Canada, which has an area of 647,797 square kilometres and a population of 1,207,959 , with more than half located within the Winnipeg Capital Region ....
. It also grows in limestone pastures in central and northern Europe and parts of Russia, and locally in southern England from where the Pasque / Parsk / Pask family takes its name.

Pasque refers to Easter (Passover) as the flower blooms around that time of year.

Use and toxicity

Pasque flower is highly toxic, and produces cardiogenic toxins and oxytoxins which slow the heart in humans. Excess use can lead to diarrhea
Diarrhea

In medicine, diarrhea, also spelled diarrhoea , is characterized by frequent loose or liquid bowel movements. The spelling of "diarrhea" is an appropriation of the Greek "diarrhoia" meaning "a flowing through." ....
, vomiting and convulsions, hypotension
Hypotension

In physiology and medicine, hypotension refers to an abnormally low blood pressure. This is best understood as a physiologic state, rather than a disease....
 and coma
Coma

In medicine, a coma is a profound state of unconsciousness. A comatose person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to pain or light, does not have sleep-wake cycles, and does not take voluntary actions....
. It has been used as a medicine by Native Americans for centuries. Blackfeet Indians used Pasque Flower to induce abortions and childbirth. Pusatilla should not be taken during pregnancy
Pregnancy

Pregnancy is the carrying of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, inside the uterus of a female. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or Multiple birth....
 nor during lactation
Lactation

Lactation describes the secretion of milk from the mammary glands, the process of providing that milk to the young, and the period of time that a mother lactates to feed her young....
.

Extracts of Pusatilla have been used in an effort to treat reproductive problems such as premenstrual syndrome and epididymitis
Epididymitis

Epididymitis is a medicine condition in which there is inflammation of the epididymis . This condition may be mildly to very painful, and the scrotum may become red, warm and swollen....
. Additional applications of plant extracts include uses as a sedative
Sedative

A sedative is a substance that induces sedation by reducing irritability or excitement.At higher doses it may result in slurred speech, staggering gait , poor judgment, and slow, uncertain reflexes....
 and for treating coughs. It is used as an initial ingredient in homeopathic preparations
Homeopathy

File:LedumPalustre15CH.jpgHomeopathy is a form of alternative medicine first expounded by Samuel Hahnemann in 1796, that treats a disease with heavily diluted preparations created from substances that would ordinarily cause effects similar to the disease's symptoms....
, which don't have toxic effects of other remedies because the ingredients are diluted with water until no molecules of the initial substance can be found in a typical quantity.

External link

- Flavon's art gallery