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Common Name: Foamflower, False Miterwort
Scientific Name: Tiarella cordifolia
Family: Saxifragaceae
Pierson Falls Road
Polk County, North Carolina
May 6, 2002
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A rhizomatous perennial with roughly heart-shaped leaves 2 - 4 inches or more long. The flower stalks are 8 - 18 inches tall and bear a 1 - 3 inch long raceme. Older plants may form large clumps with many flower stalks. These low herbs, native to the north-eastern U.S. generally, are relatively frequent in the rich woods of our mountains and piedmont. April - June [Justice, William S. and Bell, C. Ritchie, Wild Flowers of North Carolina. University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, 1968]
This spring wildflower is easily recognized by its delicate spike of white flowers on a hairy, leafless stalk. Each leaf is shallowly lobed, toothed, and resembles a maple leaf. The leaves rise from the base of the plant on long, hairy stems. The flower's ten stamens are conspicuous. Foamflower is similar to alum root (Heuchera americana), a taller plant, and to bishop's cap (Mitella diphylla), a wildflower with two leaves on the flowering stalk. The scientific name for foamflower describes its flower and leaf characters. "Tiarella" means "little crown" and refers to the shape of the seed-producing organ, and "cordifolia" refers to the heart-shaped base of each leaf. April - June [White, Peter, Wildflowers of the Smokies. Great Smoky Mountains Natural History Association, Gatlinburg, 1996]
The name, Tiarella, is Greek for "little tiara". It refers to the way the long stamens of foamflower rise above the petals like the points on a royal crown. Indians used foamflower-leaf tea as a diuretic and for sore eyes and mouth. The plant is high in tannin, which may account for these uses. April - June [Adams, Kevin and Casstevens, Marty, Wildflowers of the Southern Appalachians: How to Photograph and Identify Them. John F. Blair, Publisher, Winston-Salem, 1996]
January February March April May June July August September October November December
Alphabetical Listings -- A B C D, E F G H I, J, K L M N, O P Q, R S T U, V W X, Y, Z
Family Listings -- A B C D, E F G H I, J, K L M N, O P Q, R S T U, V W X, Y, Z
Genus Listings -- A B C D, E F G H I, J, K L M N, O P Q, R S T U, V W X, Y, Z