Home » Plants & Animals » North American Wildflowers » Bloodroot; a Bloody Good Poppy

Bloodroot; a Bloody Good Poppy

© Gregg Pasterick

When we think of poppies, we think of orange California Poppies, or scarlet Oriental Poppies; showy flowers that unfold brightly colored petals. Perfect, pure white flowers typically don't come to mind, particularly if they blossom early in the season, when green is still a rumor and frost not uncommon. But such a poppy exists and, in eastern North America, is a common early spring wildflower. It's Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), named not for its perfect, pure white flowers that can spread across woodland floors like clusters of stars, but for its orange-red blood-like juice.

Bloodroot, the only species in its genus, is widespread, found from Nova Scotia to Florida, and as far west as Nebraska up to Manitoba. It blooms as early as March in some areas, typically in rich woodlands, but also along streams. And, like other early bloomers, it relies upon food it has stored from the previous season to get a jump on spring.

Its "bloody" juice is in the roots and stems, and will stain any- and everything it comes into contact with. Native Americans mixed it with animal fat to paint their faces as well as dye baskets and clothing, and to decorate their weapons and tools. Colonial Americans, using alum as a mordant, dyed cloth, particularly wool, with Bloodroot. The result was a reddish-orange color.

Each small - up to 10" tall - plant bears a single flower atop a smooth stalk, This stalk grows beside a lobed leaf that often curls around it. The flowers have 7 to 12 pure white petals and 2 sepals, which fall away as the flower opens. In the center, numerous golden-orange stamens surround a single pistil. The flowers close at night.

Bloodroot's single leaf and bud-tipped stalk rise from the cold soil together. The leaf, wrapped about the stalk, protects it from the elements, and as the bud gets closer to opening, it rises above the leaf. Unfurling its petals, exposing itself to nature's whims, the delicate flower often lasts but a day or 2, being easily torn apart by wind and rain. If the weather is kind, the blossoms last a week or more.

Because of its human-like "blood", Native Americans considered Bloodroot good for treating ringworm and ulcers and other skin conditions. Some used it to induce vomiting and to treat cramps. It was even used as an insect repellent.

In the mid-1800's, London physicians came up with a concoction of Bloodroot, flour, water and zinc chloride to be used to treat skin cancer. That usage fell out of favor, but during the 1960's it returned, being used to treat nose and ear cancer. More recently, the extract sanguinarine has been considered useful in fighting plaque, and in the 1980's it began to turn up in toothpaste and mouth rinse.

Bloodroot

The copyright of the article Bloodroot; a Bloody Good Poppy in North American Wildflowers is owned by . Permission to republish Bloodroot; a Bloody Good Poppy in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.