''Pulsatilla pratensis'' (

syn. The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. * In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linnae ...

''Anemone pratensis''), the small pasque flower, is a species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to central and eastern Europe, from southeast

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and th ...

and western

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , established ...

south and east to

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Maced ...

. It grows from near sea level in the north of the range, up to in the south of its range.Flora Europaea
pratensis''
/ref>Blamey, M. & Grey-Wilson, C. (1989). ''Flora of Britain and Northern Europe''. .

Name

The Latin

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

''pratensis'' means "from the meadow", referring to one of its typical habitats.

Description

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 o ...

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

growing to tall. The

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

are finely divided and thread-like, and densely covered with silvery hairs. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanis ...

s are long, pendulous, bell-like, the

tepal A tepal is one of the outer parts of a flower (collectively the perianth). The term is used when these parts cannot easily be classified as either sepals or petals. This may be because the parts of the perianth are undifferentiated (i.e. of very ...

s with reflexed tips; flower colour varies from purple in the north of the species' range to greenish-violet in the south. The flowers are

hermaphrodite In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes. Many taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrates) do not have s ...

, and are pollinated by

bees Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfami ...

; flowering is from early to mid spring.

Subspecies

There are a number of

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

:Naturfoto
''Pulsatilla pratensis'' subsp. ''bohemica'' (in Czech)
/ref> *''Pulsatilla pratensis'' subsp. ''pratensis'' *''Pulsatilla pratensis'' subsp. ''bohemica'' *''Pulsatilla pratensis'' subsp. ''hungarica'' *''Pulsatilla pratensis'' subsp. ''nigricans'' *''Pulsatilla pratensis'' subsp. ''ucrainica'' *''Pulsatilla pratensis'' nothosubsp. ''zichyi'' Anemone pratensis Sturm41

''Pulsatilla pratensis'' subsp. ''hungarica'' grows in E Slovakia, NE Hungary and NW Romania. In Slovakia and Romania it is categorized as critically endangered CR. In Hungary it is protected by law. It occurs on open sand-plains and avoids limestone. In Hungary it can be found in two regions, the Nyírség and Bodrogköz.

Cultivation and uses

This plant is

toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subs ...

, but can be dissipated through heat or drying.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q148936 pratensis Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Taxa named by Philip Miller