WHERE’S WILDLIFE • WILDFLOWER FIELD GUIDE

Waxy-leaf Meadow Rue

Thalictrum revolutum

Pronunciation: thuh-LIK-trum rev-oh-LOO-tum

← Previous Flower
Wildflower Guide
Wildflower Quiz
Next Flower →
Cream-colored flowering plume of Waxy-leaf Meadow Rue (Thalictrum revolutum)

Waxy-leaf Meadow Rue flowering plume. Select a photo to enlarge.

NATIVE • WILDFLOWER

At a glance

Family   Ranunculaceae
Life cycle   Perennial
Native status   Native to eastern North America
Blooms   Late spring to early summer
Height   Usually 3–7 feet
Habitat   Prairies, thickets, open woods and woodland borders
Common names   Waxy-leaf Meadow Rue; Waxyleaf Meadow-rue; Skunk Meadow Rue

Observation Map

View observations on iNaturalist ↗

Observation maps show reported sightings, not a complete distribution.

Field photographs

Nine complementary flower, foliage, whole-plant and habitat views. Select a photograph to enlarge it.

How to recognize Waxy-leaf Meadow Rue

Look for alternate, repeatedly divided leaves with rounded to oval leaflets, many with two or three shallow lobes near the tip. Their margins tend to roll underneath.

The best confirmation is on the underside of a leaflet: a pale, waxy surface with tiny glands or papillae. An upper-surface photograph alone cannot establish this character.

On male flowers, the white stamen filaments broaden toward the anthers. Use this together with leaf characters; flower color and purple stems alone are not diagnostic.

Rounded, lobed leaflets of Waxy-leaf Meadow Rue (Thalictrum revolutum)
Flowering meadow rue in open prairie habitat of Waxy-leaf Meadow Rue (Thalictrum revolutum)

Where and when to look

Search prairies, sunny openings, thickets and woodland edges in late spring and early summer. Plants occur in moist ground and somewhat drier sites. Open flower clusters rise above the surrounding vegetation.

The Chiwaukee Prairie photographs show their growth form in open habitat. Nearby sightings support a species being present, but identification still depends on the plant’s features.

Range and sightings

Native to eastern North America. Reported sightings may include identification errors and gaps in coverage.

Explore Waxy-leaf Meadow Rue sightings on iNaturalist →

A closer look at the flowers

Meadow rues have no petals. These showy tassels are male flowers with numerous stamens beneath small sepals. Female flowers are less conspicuous; male and female flowers usually occur on separate plants.

The close-up shows filaments widening near the yellow anthers, a useful feature when separating this species from Purple Meadow Rue.

Male flower with widened stamen filaments and yellow anthers of Waxy-leaf Meadow Rue (Thalictrum revolutum)

Similar species

Purple Meadow Rue (Thalictrum dasycarpum) has slender stamen filaments and more distinctly pointed anther tips. Both species can be tall and purple-stemmed.

Tall Meadow Rue (Thalictrum pubescens) also has widened filaments, but lacks the glandular or papillose leaflet undersides characteristic of waxy-leaf meadow rue.

Early Meadow Rue (Thalictrum dioicum) is a spring woodland species with more extensively lobed leaflets and slender, often colored filaments.

For difficult plants, photograph leaflet undersides and mature fruit as well as flowers.

Dangling stamens in branching flower clusters of Waxy-leaf Meadow Rue (Thalictrum revolutum)

Ecology

Wind carries pollen between flowers. Bees may also collect pollen from the male flowers. Female plants later develop clusters of dry, ribbed fruits called achenes.

Behind the name

Revolutum refers to the rolled-under leaflet margins. “Waxy-leaf” describes the coating on the underside of the foliage.

Sources and further reading

Keep learning

Compare other meadow rues in the Wildflower Guide, then practice identifying wildflowers in the quiz.

← Previous Flower
Next Flower →

Share this:

Like this:

Like Loading…