金莲花 jin lian hua

Trollius asiaticus Linnaeus var. chinensis (Bunge) Maximowicz.

Stems more than 20 cm tall, to 80 cm at fruiting, simple. Basal leaves 1--4; petiole 12--30 cm, base narrowly sheathed; leaf blade not green when dried, pentagonal, 3.8--6.8 × 6.8--12.5 cm, base cordate, 3-sect; central segment rhombic, 3-fid to or beyond middle, margin densely unequally dentate; lateral segments obliquely flabellate, 2-fid nearly to base. Cauline leaves similar to basal ones, shortly petiolate or sessile. Pedicel 5--9 cm. Flower solitary, or 2 or 3 flowers in a terminal cyme, 3.8--5.5 cm in diam. Sepals (6--)10--15(--19), golden yellow, not green when dried, elliptic-obovate or obovate, 1.5--2.8 × 0.7--1.6 cm, apex rounded. Petals 18--21, narrowly linear, subequaling or longer than sepals, rarely shorter than sepals, 1.8--2.2 cm × 1.2--1.5 mm. Stamens 0.5--1.1 cm. Follicles 20--30, 1--1.2 cm × ca. 3 mm; persistent style ca. 1 mm. Seeds subovoid, ca. 1.5 mm, smooth. Fl. Jun--Jul, fr. Aug--Sep. 2n = 16*.

* Grassy slopes; 1000--2200 m. Hebei, N Henan, W Jilin, W Liaoning, E Nei Mongol, Shanxi.