We have recently published ‘Food Forest Plants for Hotter Conditions’: i.e. tropical and sub-tropical regions. We rely on regular donations to keep our free database going and help fund development of this and another book we are planning on food forest plants for Mediterranean climates. Please give what you can to keep PFAF properly funded. More >>>

Follow Us:

 

Ranunculus repens - L.

Common Name Creeping Buttercup, Prairie Double-flowered Buttercup, Water Buttercup, Creeping Buttercup
Family Ranunculaceae
USDA hardiness 3-8
Known Hazards All parts of the plant are poisonous[19], the toxins being destroyed by heat or by drying[65]. The plant also has a strongly acrid juice that can cause blistering to the skin[65, 183].
Habitats Wet meadows, pastures, woods, dune slacks etc[19]. A common and rampant weed, avoiding acid soils[19].
Range Europe, including Britain, from Norway south and east to Spain, through Asia to China and Japan.
Edibility Rating    (1 of 5)
Other Uses    (0 of 5)
Weed Potential Yes
Medicinal Rating    (1 of 5)
Care (info)
Moist Soil Semi-shade Full sun
Ranunculus repens Creeping Buttercup, Prairie Double-flowered Buttercup, Water Buttercup,  Creeping Buttercup


http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cleaned-Illustration_Ranunculus_repens.jpg
Ranunculus repens Creeping Buttercup, Prairie Double-flowered Buttercup, Water Buttercup,  Creeping Buttercup
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Sannse

 

Translate this page:

Summary

Bloom Color: Yellow. Main Bloom Time: Early summer, Early fall, Late summer, Late spring, Mid summer. Form: Spreading or horizontal, Upright or erect.


Physical Characteristics

 icon of manicon of flower
Ranunculus repens is a PERENNIAL growing to 0.3 m (1ft) by 1 m (3ft 3in) at a fast rate.
It is not frost tender. It is in flower from May to August. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Bees, flies, beetles.
Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.

UK Hardiness Map US Hardiness Map

Synonyms

Plant Habitats

Woodland Garden Dappled Shade; Shady Edge; Meadow;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Leaves  Root
Edible Uses:

Leaves - cooked and used as a pot-herb[2, 105]. A famine food, used when all else fails, and I would rather give it a miss even then[K]! See the notes above on toxicity. Root - must be dried beforehand and thoroughly cooked[118]. Personally, I would rather give this one a miss[K], see the notes above on toxicity.

References   More on Edible Uses

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.
Analgesic  Rubefacient

The entire plant is analgesic and rubefacient[257]. A poultice of the chewed leaves has been used in the treatment of sores, muscular aches and rheumatic pains[257]. Some caution is advised in the use of this plant, see the notes above on toxicity.

References   More on Medicinal Uses

The Bookshop: Edible Plant Books

Our Latest books on Perennial Plants For Food Forests and Permaculture Gardens in paperback or digital formats.

Food Forest Plants for Hotter Conditions: 250+ Plants For Tropical Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.
Edible Tropical Plants

Food Forest Plants for Hotter Conditions: 250+ Plants For Tropical Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.

More
Plants for Your Food Forest: 500 Plants for Temperate Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.
Edible Temperate Plants

Plants for Your Food Forest: 500 Plants for Temperate Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.

More
PFAF have eight books available in paperback and digital media.
More Books

PFAF have eight books available in paperback and digital formats. Browse the shop for more information.

Shop Now

Other Uses

None known

Special Uses

Food Forest

References   More on Other Uses

Cultivation details

Landscape Uses:Ground cover, Woodland garden. Prefers a moist loamy soil on the heavy side. A rampantly spreading weed of grassland, few gardeners would want to introduce it to their land[K]. A greedy plant, inhibiting the growth of nearby plants, especially legumes[54]. Special Features:Attractive foliage, North American native, Invasive, Naturalizing, Wetlands plant, Extended bloom season in Zones 9A and above. In garden design, as well as the above-ground architecture of a plant, root structure considerations help in choosing plants that work together for their optimal soil requirements including nutrients and water. The root pattern is suckering with new plants from runners away from the plant [2-1].

References   Carbon Farming Information and Carbon Sequestration Information

Temperature Converter

Type a value in the Celsius field to convert the value to Fahrenheit:

Fahrenheit:

image

The PFAF Bookshop

Plants For A Future have a number of books available in paperback and digital form. Book titles include Edible Plants, Edible Perennials, Edible Trees,Edible Shrubs, Woodland Gardening, and Temperate Food Forest Plants. Our new book is Food Forest Plants For Hotter Conditions (Tropical and Sub-Tropical).

Shop Now

Plant Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a cold frame. A very common weed, it doesn't really need any help from us. Division in spring. Very easy, though probably totally unnecessary, larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions.

Other Names

If available other names are mentioned here

Native Range

TEMPERATE ASIA: Iran, Iraq (north), Turkey, Russian Federation-Ciscaucasia (Ciscaucasia), Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russian Federation (Dagestan), Russian Federation-Western Siberia (Western Siberia), Russian Federation-Eastern Siberia (Eastern Siberia), Mongolia, Russian Federation (Kamcatskij kraj), China (Hebei Sheng, Heilongjiang Sheng, Jilin Sheng, Liaoning Sheng, Nei Mongol Zizhiqu, Shanxi Sheng, Xinjiang Uygur Zizhiqu), Japan (Hokkaidô, Honshu) EUROPE: Denmark, Finland, United Kingdom, Ireland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Austria, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Russian Federation (European part), Belarus, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Moldova, Ukraine (incl. Krym), Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece, Croatia, Italy (incl. Sardinia, Sicily), North Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, France (incl. Corsica), Portugal AFRICA: Spain (Canarias), Portugal (Azores, Madeira Islands), Algeria (north), Morocco

Weed Potential

Right plant wrong place. We are currently updating this section. Please note that a plant may be invasive in one area but may not in your area so it’s worth checking.

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants Status :

Related Plants
Latin NameCommon NameHabitHeightHardinessGrowthSoilShadeMoistureEdibleMedicinalOther
Ranunculus acrisMeadow Buttercup, Tall buttercup, Showy buttercupPerennial1.0 0-0  LMHSNMWe120
Ranunculus aquatilisWater Crowfoot, White water crowfootAnnual/Perennial0.0 4-8  LMHSNMWeWa11 
Ranunculus arvensisCorn ButtercupAnnual0.5 0-0  LMHSNM010
Ranunculus bulbosusBulbous Buttercup, St. Anthony's turnipPerennial0.3 0-0 FLMHSNM120
Ranunculus californicusCalifornia ButtercupPerennial0.6 6-9  LMHSNM10 
Ranunculus chinensisHui Hui SuanPerennial0.6 -  LMHSNMWe10 
Ranunculus ficariaLesser Celandine - Pilewort, Fig buttercupPerennial0.2 0-0 FLMHSNM123
Ranunculus flammulaLesser Spearwort, Greater creeping spearwortPerennial0.6 4-8  LMHSNMWeWa01 
Ranunculus hirtus Perennial0.0 -  LMHSNM01 
Ranunculus inamoeusGraceful ButtercupPerennial0.3 -  LMHSNM10 
Ranunculus japonicusMao GenPerennial0.1 -  LMHSNM11 
Ranunculus kochii Perennial0.1 5-9  LMHNM10 
Ranunculus muricatusRough-Seed Buttercup, Spinyfruit buttercupAnnual0.3 0-0  LMHSNM01 
Ranunculus nipponicus Perennial0.0 -  LMHSNWeWa10 
Ranunculus occidentalisWestern ButtercupPerennial0.6 -  LMHSNM10 
Ranunculus pallasiiButtercup, Pallas' buttercupPerennial0.1 0-0  LMHSNMWe10 
Ranunculus pennsylvanicusPennsylvania ButtercupAnnual/Perennial1.0 -  LMHSNMWe112
Ranunculus quelpaertensis Perennial0.6 -  LMHSNMWe10 
Ranunculus reptansCreeping SpearwortPerennial0.2 - FLMHSNMWe10 
Ranunculus rivularis Perennial0.0 -  LMHSNM01 
Ranunculus sceleratusCelery-Leaved Buttercup, Cursed buttercupPerennial0.6 0-0  LMHSNMWeWa111
Ranunculus tachreoi Perennial1.0 -  LMHSNM10 
Ranunculus ternatus Perennial0.3 -  LMHSNM01 

Growth: S = slow M = medium F = fast. Soil: L = light (sandy) M = medium H = heavy (clay). pH: A = acid N = neutral B = basic (alkaline). Shade: F = full shade S = semi-shade N = no shade. Moisture: D = dry M = Moist We = wet Wa = water.

 

Expert comment

Author

L.

Botanical References

17

Links / References

For a list of references used on this page please go here

Readers comment

sylvia stewart   Fri Jul 13 2007

i had heard that this plant was poisonous to soil bacteria, and wondered if it is safe to put o n the compost heap after thorough drying or should it just be binned. I am a great believer in drying perennial weed roots# to return some of the nutrition they have absorbed back into the soil via the compost bin. Can you advise, Thankyou

...   Sun Dec 2 2007

I've been putting buttercups in the compost heap with no problems getting the pile to heat up and compost.

Add a comment

If you have important information about this plant that may help other users please add a comment or link below. Only comments or links that are felt to be directly relevant to a plant will be included. If you think a comment/link or information contained on this page is inaccurate or misleading we would welcome your feedback at [email protected]. If you have questions about a plant please use the Forum on this website as we do not have the resources to answer questions ourselves.

* Please note: the comments by website users are not necessarily those held by PFAF and may give misleading or inaccurate information.

To leave a comment please Register or login here All comments need to be approved so will not appear immediately.

Subject : Ranunculus repens  
© 2010, Plants For A Future. Plants For A Future is a charitable company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales. Charity No. 1057719, Company No. 3204567.