Potentilla diversifolia Lehm. var. multisecta Wats. 

 Diverse-leaved cinquefoil 



A. DESCRIPTION 



1. General description: a relatively small, herbaceous 

 perennial in the Rosaceae (rose family) . The mostly basal 

 leaves have stipules, and are pinnately compound with 

 generally 5-7 leaflets, which are toothed to lobed. Leaves 

 are grayish hairy. Smaller leaves are borne on the flowering 

 stems. The flowers consist of a 5 lobed green calyx, 5 yellow 

 petals, and many stamens and pistils. The fruits are achenes. 



2. Technical species description (for the species, quoted from 

 Hitchcock and Cronquist 1961) : 



Perennial with a branching caudex and short thick 

 rootstocks, from sparsely-strigose and greenish, to 

 rather grayish-sericeus, at least on the lower surface of 

 the leaflets; stems usually several, spreading to erect, 

 (1)1.5-4.5 dm tall; leaves mainly basal, the blades with 

 5 (7) main leaflets, mostly digitate, but not rarely 

 semipinnate or truly pinnate, often with 1 or 2(3-4) much 

 reduced (sometimes entire) leaflets more or less distant 

 from the main ones; leaflets (oblong) oblanceolate to 

 broadly obovate, mostly 1-3(5) cm long, from shallowly 

 triangular-toothed to dissected (almost to the midvein) 

 into narrowly oblong to linear segments; cauline leaves 

 mostly 1 or 2 below the inflorescence; stipules ovate- 

 lanceolate, 1-2 cm long, usually entire; cymes open, many 

 flowered; calyx saucer-shaped, villous-sericeus, up to 

 1.5 cm broad in fruit, the lobes triangular-lanceolate, 

 (3)4-6 mm long; petals yellow, obcordate, (4)6-9 mm long; 

 stamens usually 20; pistils numerous; style slender, 

 equaling or exceeding the fruit and subapically attached 

 to it; achenes 1.3-1.6 mm long, ultimately weakly 

 reticulate. 



3. Diagnostic characters: Var. multisecta is separated from 

 other varieties of the species by having pinnately compound 

 leaves (vs. digitate leaves of the typical variety) which are 

 coarsely grayish strigose (vs. greenish sericeous to glabrate 

 for var. perdissecta) and have nearly linear leaflet segments 

 (Hitchcock and Cronquist 1973). 



B. GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION 



1. Range of the variety: "occasional in Idaho and Montana to 

 common in Utah and Nevada (Hitchcock and Cronquist 1973)." 



2. Distribution in Montana: Known only by historical records 

 from the Bridger, Big Belt and Crazy Mountains. 



