Pasque Flower Pasque
flower is a pretty tundra plant. It is a member of
the Ranunculaceae family, which is Latin for little
frog. The name was given to the family because a
group of plants in this family grow where frogs
live. The Pasque
flower has several stems that rise 6-8 inches off
the ground. On each stem is one flower with 5-8
petals. The range of color in the petals is from
dark lavender to almost white. In the center of the
flower are yellow stamens. Below the flower, around
the stem is a leaf covered in silky hairs, as is
the rest of the plant. The fruit of the plant is a
plum that is achenial, which means that one seed is
attached to the ovary wall, like a strawberry
seed. The Pasque flower, like all tundra plants, grows low to the ground to keep out of the cold climate. It is also covered in fine silky hairs, which help insulate it. The Pasque flower is useful to treat eye diseases like cataracts, which is opacity on the lens of the eye, which can cause partial or complete blindness. The Pasque flower is plentiful in the wild. It can be seen any where from northwest U.S. to northern Alaska. by Ben P. 2001
bibliography: "Heartland Wild Flower",www.newsminer.com/heartland/hland6309/h30wild.htm (11/2/00) "Kings American Dispensatory", www.ibiblio.org/herbmed/eclectic/kings/anemone-pate.html (11/3/00) "Native Wildflowers of North Dakota", www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/literatr/wildflwr/species/anempate.htm (11/30/00) "Pasque Flower", http://thinkquest.org/6274/stopandsmell/pasque.htm (11/3/00) |