Images: ©Jouko Lehmuskallio
Hoary Cinquefoil
Potentilla argentea
- Family: Rose Family – Rosaceae
- Height: Var. argentea 20–30 cm (8–12 in.), var. incanescens 30–50 cm (12–20 in.)
- Flower: Regular (actinomorphic). Petals five, yellow, broad, 4–5 mm (0.15–0.2 in.) long, and slightly notched. Calyx-lobes five, ca. 3 mm long, triangular, sharp-pointed. Epicalyx-lobes narrow, as long as calyx-lobes. Receptacle and calyx downy. Carpels free, many. Stamens twenty.
- Leaves: Alternate. White-downy beneath, usually digitate with five leaflets. Long-stalked basal leaves only few. Stem leaves short-stalked or stalkless. Leaflets with tapering base, lobed or large-toothed, margins rolled under. Stipules entire or lobed.
- Fruit: A roundish, yellowish, and dull achene.
- Habitat: Dry meadows, rock outcrops, waysides, lawns, waste ground.
- Flowering time: June-August.
The biennial or perennial hoary cinquefoil is a very variable species. It may be apomictic, i.e. produce seeds without fertilisation. Therefore, many genetically different and dissimilar-looking lines have diverged. These “microspecies” differ from each other e.g. by the hairiness.
In Finland, at least five variants are recognised. The most common are var. argentea and var. incanescens. They can be distinguished by the greater size of the latter (30–50 cm, 12–20 in.) and by that its leaves are hairy on both sides. The other variants i Finland are var. demissa, var. decorta och var. acutifida.
