Family Description
The fumitory family is a group of mostly perennial dicotyledonous herbs consisting of 19 genera and 425 species distributed throughout the north temperate zone. The sap is watery and viscous with stems crisp and easily broken. Leaves are either basal, alternate to subopposite, without stipules and much dissected. Flowers are zygomorphic with a basic number of 4 but flower arrangement is unusual. Sepals are 2, soon deciduous with 4 petals, the outer 2 of which are spurred or with sac-like pouches. Flowers are borne in terminal racemes. Flower color varied but usually pink, white or yellow and appearing in the spring. The fruit is a 2-valved capsule or, in one genera, a nutlet.
- Main diagnostic features are:
- delicate, fernlike leaves
- the brittle stems
- unusual zygomorphic flowers
Dutchman's Breeches are easily grown in fertile, partially shaded woodland settings; however, plants may not be long lived. Propagation is by division or the scaly rootstock, by root cuttings taken in the late summer or occasionally by seeds. Seed germination is best under cool conditions with the optimum under 65°F. Pests are rare.
Important genera include Adlumia, Corydalis, Dicentra and Rupicapnos.
Dicentra spectabilis (left), D.cucullaria (right).
Representative Species
| * | Dicentra spectabilis | Bleeding Heart |
|
