Oxypolis rigidior
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Apiales
Family: Apiaceae
Genus: Oxypolis
Species:
O. rigidior
Binomial name
Oxypolis rigidior
(L.) Raf.
Illustration from Britton and Brown, 1913

Oxypolis rigidior, known as cowbane, common water dropwort,[1] stiff cowbane,[2] or pig-potato, is a species of flowering plant in the carrot family native to eastern North America. It is a perennial wildflower found in wet habitats.[3][4][5] Oxypolis rigidior is poisonous to mammals.

Description

Oxypolis rigidior is 2–6 foot tall perennial herb of eastern North America. Its leaves are compound, odd-pinnate with 7-11 leaflets, and have variable shape. Umbels of 3 mm white flowers appear August to October. Flat fruits with conspicuous "wings" appear October through November.[5][3]

The variable leaf shape may make identification challenging. Water hemlock, a related very poisonous species, which sometimes even shares the common name "cowbane", is similar, as is the closely related Savanna cowbane (Oxypolis ternata).[5][3]

Taxonomy

Two varieties have been described, O. rigidior var. rigidior and O. rigidior var. ambigua.[5]

Toxicity

Both roots and top parts are reported as poisonous to mammals.[6][7]

Interestingly, however, they are also considered edible and safe by some.[8][9] Thayer calls them Cherokee swamp potato in reference to their use in Cherokee cuisine and states that “the tubers can used as a potato-like vegetable…fantastic in any way you’d use a potato”.[9] However, he also states that the plant should be gathered with “great caution” due to its resemblance to another plant, water hemlock, which shares the name cowbane.

References

  1. ↑ "Oxypolis rigidior". www.minnesotawildflowers.info. Minnesota Wildflowers. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  2. ↑ "Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin". www.wildflower.org.
  3. 1 2 3 Peterson, Roger Tory; McKenny, Margaret (1968). A Field Guide to Wildflowers Northeastern and Northcentral North America. New York, NY, USA: Houghton Mifflin. p. 52.
  4. ↑ "Oxypolis rigidior (L.) Raf". USDA. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Weakley, Alan S. (May 2015). Flora of the Southern and Mid-Atlantic States (PDF). Chapel Hill, NC, USA: The University of North Carolina Herbarium. p. 1236. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  6. ↑ Dr. John Hilty. "Cowbane (Oxypolis rigidior)". illinoiswildflowers.info/. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  7. ↑ Cowbane at the Encyclopædia Britannica
  8. ↑ "BRIT - Native American Ethnobotany Database". naeb.brit.org. Retrieved 2023-10-16.
  9. 1 2 Thayer, Samuel (2023). Sam Thayer’s Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants. United States: Forager’s Harvest. pp. 424–425. ISBN 978-0-9766266-4-0.
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