''Ranunculus asiaticus'', the Persian buttercup, is a species of buttercup ('' Ranunculus'') native to the eastern Mediterranean region in southwestern Asia, southeastern Europe ( Crete, Karpathos and Rhodes), and northeastern Africa. It is a

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

perennial plant growing to 45 cm tall, with simple or branched stems. The basal

leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

are three-lobed, with leaves higher on the stems more deeply divided; like the stems, they are downy or hairy. The flowers are 3–5 cm diameter, variably red to pink, yellow, or white, with one to several flowers on each stem.Huxley, A., ed. (1992). ''New RHS Dictionary of Gardening''. Macmillan . It is a protected species in some jurisdictions, including Israel.

Cultivation and uses

Double-flowered forms, which are likely

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...

s, are a popular ornamental plant in gardens, and widely used in floristry. Numerous cultivars have been selected, including 'Bloomingdale', 'Picotee', 'Pot Dwarf', and 'Superbissima'. The plants can tolerate light frost, but are not hardy at temperatures below -10 °C. 'Tecolote' and 'Bloomingdale' are examples of the double-flowered plants (not shown here). The single-flowered species form is not commercially cultivated on any significant scale. By contrast, the similar-looking ''

Anemone coronaria ''Anemone coronaria'', the poppy anemone, Spanish marigold, or windflower, is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native to the Mediterranean region. Description ''Anemone coronaria'' is a herbaceous perenni ...

'' is widely available in single-flower 'De Caen' hybrid forms. However, as with ''Ranunculus asiaticus'', the species form, which also has red single flowers, is not commercially cultivated.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q728595 asiaticus Plants described in 1753 Flora of Africa Flora of Asia Flora of Europe Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus