Valeriana dioica L.
Wood Valerian (Capitate Valerian; marsh valerian)
Caprifoliaceae (Valerian family)
(Previously in Valerianaceae)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

Photograph

© Daniel Mosquin     (Photo ID #59546)

Map

E-Flora BC Static Map

Distribution of Valeriana dioica
Click here to view the full interactive map and legend

SUBTAXA PRESENT IN BC

Valeriana dioica var. sylvatica

Species Information

General:
Perennial herb from a stout branched rhizome or woody stem-base with fibrous roots; stems erect, solitary, simple below the inflorescence, smooth or nearly so, 10-40 cm tall.
Leaves:
Basal leaves spoon-shaped to egg-shaped, up to 8 cm long and 3 cm wide, mostly simple, smooth, long-stalked; stem leaves opposite, 2-4 pairs, up to 5 cm long and 2.5 cm wide, pinnately cleft with 1-7 pairs of lateral lobes, the terminal lobe narrowly oblong, short-stalked or unstalked.
Flowers:
Inflorescence a compact, round-topped cluster of either male and female or only female flowers; corollas white, 2-4 mm long, lobed, the lobes about equal to the tubes; calyces with 9-15 feathery segments; stamens well exserted.
Fruits:
Achenes, lanceolate, 3-5 mm long, up to 2 mm wide, smooth.
Notes:
The North American plants, recognized as ssp. sylvatica, are closely related to and not always easily distinguished from the Eurasian ssp. dioica.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Valeriana dioica

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)

Site Information
 Value / Class

Avg

Min

Max
Elevation (metres)
 1401 6 2425
Slope Gradient (%)
 10 0 90

Aspect (degrees)
[0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]

 188 5 360
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR)
[0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic;
8 - hydric] 		5 2 8
Modal Nutrient Regime
Class
 D
# of field plots
 species was recorded in:
 192
Modal BEC Zone Class
 ESSF

All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in

 BAFA(1), BWBS(15), ESSF(64), ICH(1), IDF(10), IMA(1), MS(25), SBPS(40), SBS(19), SWB(8)

Habitat and Range

Wet to moist meadows and streambanks in the montane and subalpine zones; frequent in BC east of the Coast-Cascade Mountains; N to YT and NT, E to NF and S to SD, WY, ID and WA.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

© 2019 E-Flora BC  Contact us