Description: This native perennial plant is about 4-8" tall. It consists of a rosette of basal leaves spanning about 6" across. These basal leaves are greyish green and hairless. Each of these leaves is ternately compound and divided into 3 primary leaflets, while each primary leaflet is divided into 3 secondary leaflets. These secondary leaflets are pinnately cleft into linear or oblanceolate lobes. The petiole of each compound leaf is long and slender; it is often brown-colored.
From the center of the rosette, there
develops a drooping raceme of 2-6 pairs of white flowers. These flowers hang
upside down from slender pedicels. In the middle of each pedicel, there is a
pair of tiny bracts. Each flower is about ¾" long and assumes the form
of upside down Dutchman's Breeches, hence the common name of the plant. It
consists of 2 outer petals that are white and 2 inner petals that are pale
yellow. The two outer petals form two nectar spurs that are long and spreading;
they are joined together at the base. The two inner petals are much smaller and
form the base of the flower; they have small wings that curl upward. The sepals
of each flower are scale-like and insignificant. The blooming period occurs
from early to mid-spring and lasts about 2-3 weeks. There is no noticeable
floral scent. Each flower can develop into an oblongoid-ovoid seed capsule that
tapers to a point on both ends. This seed capsule eventually splits apart into
2 segments to release the seeds. The root system consists of a bulbous base
with fleshy scales and secondary roots.
Cultivation: The preference is dappled sunlight of
woodlands, mesic conditions, and a fertile loamy soil with abundant organic
matter. This plant develops early and can resist moderate frost without
damage.
Range & Habitat:
Dutchman's Breeches is a common plant that occurs in nearly every county of
Illinois. Habitats include deciduous mesic woodlands, especially along gentle
slopes, ravines, or ledges along streams. This species occurs in original
woodland that has never been plowed under or bulldozed over. It's abundance in
such woodlands can be highly variable – from uncommon to
common.
Faunal Associations: The
nectar of the flowers attracts long-tongued bees primarily, including
bumblebees, Mason bees, Miner bees, and Anthophorid bees. Less common visitors
include Bombylius major (Giant Bee Fly) and various butterflies and
skippers. The butterflies and skippers are not effective pollinators of the
flowers. Because the seeds have elaisomes (fleshy or oily appendages), they are
distributed by ants. Ants carry the seeds to their nests, eat the elaisomes,
and discard the seeds some distance from the mother plant. The foliage is toxic
to mammalian herbivores and is not often eaten by them.
Photographic Location: A mesic area of Busey Woods
in Urbana, Illinois.
Comments: This
is a delightful spring wildflower of woodlands – both the flowers and
foliage are attractive. Dutchman's Breeches is one of the earlier woodland
wildflowers to bloom. The only other species with a similar appearance is
Dicentra canadensis (Squirrel Corn). Squirrel Corn also occurs in mesic
deciduous woodlands and blooms only a little later than Dutchman's Breeches.
The nectar spurs of Squirrel Corn are shorter and more rounded than those of
Dutchman's Breeches, and its white flowers are fragrant. It also has a root
system that produces small edible tubers. Within the Fumitory family,
Dicentra spp. differ from Corydalis spp. by the structure of
their flowers – the former have flowers with 2 nectar spurs, while the
latter have flowers with a single nectar spur.