W155 

 (2 leaves) 

 CINQUEFOILS 



Potentil'la spp. 



Cinquefoil is the name most commonly applied to the large genus 

 Potent ilia of often rather strawberry like, mostly perennial (a few 

 species are annual or biennial) herbs x belonging to the rose family 

 (Rosaceae). The name cinquefoil is a derivative of the French 

 cinque, five, and the Old French or medieval English word foil, leaf. 

 It refers to the five, fingerlike (digitate) leaflets characteristic of 

 many species of this genus; the common name fivefinger, also some- 

 times used, is similarly descriptive of such leaves. The generic noun 

 PotentUla is a feminine diminutive derived from the Latin adjective 

 potens, meaning powerful, and alludes to the medicinal properties 

 of a number of species which contain relatively large quantities of 

 tannic acid and are notably astringent. This large, variable genus 

 includes about 300 species; it is distributed widely throughout the 

 cooler temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere and extends 

 even into the Arctic Circle. Cinquefoils also occur in the higher 

 mountains of South America and tropical regions. 



Some 110 species of this genus occur on the western ranges, from 

 near sea level in Washington and Oregon to the highest limits of 

 vegetation (about 14,000 feet) in the central Colorado mountains. 

 The species are usually most abundant above the sagebrush belt, 

 occurring principally in scattered stands on the slopes, ridges, glades, 

 parks, and meadows, intermixed with grasses, weeds, and sedges. 

 On many areas they are conspicuous components of the vegetation, 

 particularly in moist, well-drained meadows, open parks of the aspen 

 and spruce belts, and high open ridges above timber line. Many 

 species grow on dry, shallow, sandy, gravelly, or rocky soils, but the 

 majority apparently prefer the rich, deep loams of moist but well- 

 drained sites; they frequently become abundant in the meadows, 

 parks, and better soils of the open hillsides. 



In the main, the species of PotentiUa possess very little forage 

 value, ranking as poor to fair for sheep, and worthless to poor for 

 cattle; horses occasionally crop a few flowers. Deer frequently eat 

 considerable quantities of the foliage, and elk partake lightly of the 

 herbage during the spring, summer, and fall. Apparently, the flow- 

 ering tops are the most palatable parts of the plant, as the leaves 

 and stems of most, if not all, cinquefoils have an acrid, astringent 

 taste, which evidently is connected with their low palatability and 

 which is probably attributable to their containing tannic acid. As 

 much as 13 percent of tannin has been obtained from the dried leaves 

 of oldfield cinquefoil (P. canadensis) . 2 



A number of cinquefoils withstand heavy tramping remarkably 

 well, and several even increase abundantly on depleted ranges. For 

 example, Nuttall cinquefoil (P. nuttal'lii}, blueleaf cinquefoil (P. 



1 In this work shrubby cinquefoil (Dasiphora fruticosa, syn. P. fruticosa) is placed in a 

 separate genus. 



3 Peacock, J. C. SOME OF THE UNPUBLISHED RESULTS OF THE INVESTIGATION OF THE 

 TANNINS BY THE LATE PROFESSOR HENRY TRIMBLE. Amer. Jour. Pharm. 72 : 429-433. 

 1900. 



