General: Perennial herb from scaly rhizomes; flowering stems 30-80 cm tall; plants hairy throughout, glandular-hairy above.
Leaves: Basal leaves heart-shaped, 3-10 cm wide, nearly as long, shallowly 5- to 7-lobed, sharply toothed, hairy, sometimes with small buds at base of leaf blades, long-stalked, the stalks hairy; stem leaves few, similar to the basal, reduced; stipules leaf-like, elliptic, 3-8 mm long, irregularly toothed, short-bristly.
Flowers: Inflorescence a many-flowered, spike-like, terminal cluster, 10-30 cm long, the flowers irregular; petals usually 4, brownish-purple, 8-12 mm long, thread-like; calyces greenish-purple to brown, free of ovary, the hypanthium tubular, 5-9 mm long, the upper 3 lobes larger than lower 2, the calyx deeply cleft between lower 2; stamens 3.
Fruits: Capsules, 9-14 mm long, equally 2-valved; seeds about 0.5 mm long, finely spiny.
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range. (Updated August, 2013)
A shade-tolerant/intolerant, submontane to subalpine, Pacific North American forb (very marginally in the Cordilleran region). Occurs in maritime to submaritime cool mesothermal climates on fresh to very moist, nitrogen-rich soils; its occurrence decreases with latitude, elevation, and continentality. Sporadic in coniferous forests, plentiful in broad-leaved forests on water-receiving sites. Associated with Athyrium filix-femina, Galium triflorum, Oplopanax horridus, Polystichum munitum, Rubus spectabilis, and Tiarella trifoliata. A nitrophytic species characteristic of Moder and Mull humus forms.
