Osmorhiza claytonii, Clayton's sweetroot
Pavek, Diane S. 1992. Osmorhiza claytonii, Clayton's sweetroot. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: https://research.fs.usda.gov/feis/species-reviews/osmcla
| Abbreviation | Common Name | Scientific Name | Classification | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plants | ||||
| OSMCLA | Clayton's sweetroot | Osmorhiza claytonii | Life Form: Plants/Forb Kingdom: Plantae Class: Dicot Order: Apiales Family: Apiaceae Genus: Osmorhiza | Fed. Protected: No Nativity: Native Invasiveness: Noninvasive |
Taxonomy
The scientific name of Clayton's sweetroot is Osmorhiza claytonii (Michx.) C. B., Clarke in the parsley family (Apiaceae). There are no recognized subspecies, varieties, or forms.
Synonyms
- Osmorhiza aristata var. brevistylis (DC.) Bowin
- Washingtonia claytonii (Michx.) Britt.
Other Common Names
downy sweet cicely, sweet cicely, sweet jarvil, wooly sweet cicely
General Distribution
In Canada, Clayton's sweetroot is found from southern Manitoba east to Quebec and south to Newfoundland [11,14,15,21,31]. In the United States, Clayton's sweetroot is distributed from the New England states west to the Great Plains, extending south into central Arkansas and northern Alabama [3,14,20,29,32].
Distribution of Clayton's sweetroot.
States and Provinces
- United States: AL AR CT GA KS KY IN IA IL ME MD MA MI MN MO NE NH NJ NC ND NY OH PA RI SC SD TN VT VA WI WV
- Canada: MB NB NF NS ON PE PQ SK
Site Characteristics
Clayton's sweetroot grows in rich, mesic, mixed-hardwood forests [3,29]. It is common in woods on shaded hillsides [11,15,32,34]. It also occurs on the forested edges of wet prairies and meadows [5,18].
Sites on which Clayton's sweetroot occurs vary from well-drained gravelly or sandy loams to poorly drained clay loams [2,24,26]. Occasionally, there is a top layer of humus, 1 to 4 inches (2.5-10 cm) deep [37]. Water may be at or near the soil surface for most of the year [5,16,18]. The soil pH is acidic to strongly acidic; calcium and magnesium have generally been leached out [18]. Clayton's sweetroot is found on level to very steep (75 percent) slopes [18,24]. It occurs from elevations of 600 feet to 2,200 feet (183-670 m) [27,28].
The climate is generally characterized by short, mild summers and long, cold winters [18,27]. At one representative site, average annual precipitation is about 39 inches (1,000 mm); snowpack, an average of 10 inches (250 cm) per year, may last from November to April [27]. The growing season is approximately 200 days over its range [37].
Plant Communities
Clayton's sweetroot has a patchy distribution throughout the understory of the northern hardwood and eastern deciduous forests [17]. It is an indicator and/or a dominant species in the sugar maple (Acer saccharum) climax communities of the northern states and Canada [6,8,17,37]. Common codominants in these climax communities with sugar maple are American beech (Fagus grandifolia), red oak (Quercus rubra), and eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) [8,17]. Clayton's sweetroot is an indicator of highly productive sites of climax sugar maple-basswood (Tilia americana) stands and subclimax oak-aspen (Quercus spp.-Populus tremuloides) [9,16]. In a Minnesota sugar maple-basswood climax forest, frequency was six Clayton's sweetroot plants per square yard (7.3 plants/sq m) [9].
Clayton's sweetroot is a minor component in the sugar maple-white ash (Fraxinus americana) forest zone and in the sugar maple associations with yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis), black ash (Fraxinus nigra), or American elm (Ulmus americana) of eastern Canada [22,24].
Forest classifications that list Clayton's sweetroot as an indicator or dominant species are:
- Field guide: Habitat classification system for the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Northeast Wisconsin [6]
- The principal plant associations of the Saint Lawrence Valley [8]
- The "big woods" of Minnesota: its structure, and relation to climate, fire, and soils [9]
- Variation in overstory biomass among glacial landforms and ecological land units in northwestern lower Michigan [16]
- Field guide to forest habitat types of northern Wisconsin [17]
- Soil-vegetation relationships in northern hardwoods of Quebec [22]
- A forest classification for the maritime provinces [24]
- The composition and dynamics of a beech-maple climax community [37]
Associated overstory species are bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa), yellow-poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), and black willow (Salix nigra) [5,35]. Common associated shrubs are fly honeysuckle (Lonicera canadensis), red elderberry (Sambucus pubens), and juneberry (Amelanchier alnifolia) [5,28]. Herbaceous associates are enchanter's nightshade (Circaea quadrisulcata), American pokeweed (Phytolacca americana), feather Solomon's-seal (Smilacina racemosa), and several violet species (Viola spp.) [26,27,28].
Botanical Description
Clayton's sweetroot is a native perennial forb with thickened fibrous roots extending from a caudex [11]. Its solitary stem grows from 12 to 35 inches (30-90 cm) high with compound leaves [6,36]. Flower stalks have very small umbels, producing thin black seeds with stiffly hairy ribs [3].
Clayton's sweetroot.
Raunkiaer Life Form (Raunkiaer 1934)
- Hemicryptophyte
Seasonal Development
In the spring before the canopy closes, Clayton's sweetroot initiates foliage growth and then puts up a flower stalk. It begins flowering in April in the southern part of its range [29,32]. In the northern parts, it flowers progressively later: blooming in May and June in the central states, and June to August in the far north [14,15,21,29]. Clayton's sweetroot seeds mature from June through August. The seeds are shed primarily in late autumn and winter; however, they may not be dropped until the following spring [3]. Seedlings generally emerge in the spring [3]. The flower stalk dies in the fall, but new leaves are put out at that time [6,17]. Clayton's sweetroot overwinters as a rosette [9].
Regeneration Processes
New foliage in the fall and annual flower stalks in the spring are generated from a root stock [6,17]. In mature forests that typically have long-term disturbance regimes, Clayton's sweetroot responds to small scale disturbances, such as one causing a tree gap, by increasing its cover [7,35].
Clayton's sweetroot seeds are disseminated by dropping from the plant or by snagging in animal fur, hair, or clothing [6,17]. Clayton's sweetroot seeds require warm stratification followed by cold stratification before germination will occur [3]. In laboratory studies, 98 percent of the seeds germinated after 4 weeks with day temperatures at 86 degrees Fahrenheit (30 deg C) and night temperatures at 59 degrees Fahrenheit (15 deg C) followed by 2 weeks at 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 deg C) days and nights [3]. Under field conditions, Clayton's sweetroot sheds seed during the summer or early autumn when temperatures are relatively warm to hot, which results in high germination rates the following spring. Baskin and Baskin [3] also found that a portion of the seed did not germinate until the second spring after shedding. Clayton's sweetroot forms a short-lived seed bank.
Seeds that are not dropped and remain attached to the plant during the winter have longer dormancy after being shed. This seed required 12 weeks warm stratification followed by cold stratification to yield 96 percent germination [3].
Successional Status
Clayton's sweetroot is relatively shade tolerant [1,37]. It is a mature, approximate climax or climax understory species in deciduous forests [2,28]. In studies of Ohio old field-deciduous forest seres, Clayton's sweetroot was present herb only in 200+ year-old stands as a subdominant or minor herb [2,28,35].
Immediate Fire Effects
No fire studies have been done on Clayton's sweetroot. Fire top-kills foliage. The soil-covered root stock may survive, unless conditions are dry and duff layers are well-developed [37]. Under these conditions, fire may consume the caudex and kill the plant and seed bank.
Postfire Regeneration Strategy (Stickney 1989)
- Caudex, growing points in soil
- Secondary colonizer - off-site seed
Fire Adaptations
In the communities in which Clayton's sweetroot grows, fire occurrence ranges from uncommon in the northern hardwoods to very common in the Appalachian oak forests [23]. A covering of soil protects the caudex of an established Clayton's sweetroot plant. Under moist conditions, a root stock may survive fire. Seed buried in soil may be insulated enough to survive [13]. However, seeds attached to stalks at the time of burning will die.
Accumulated dead stalks are a fire hazard to Clayton's sweetroot. Aerial stems of Clayton's sweetroot die each fall and generally remain attached [6,17]. These old stems make the plant more susceptible to burning.
Plant Response to Fire
Fire severity and rooting depth of the caudex control recovery of Clayton's sweetroot. If burned in late summer or early autumn, surviving root stocks should sprout, since Clayton's sweetroot normally initiates new leaves in the fall [6,17]. With a persistent seed bank, Clayton's sweetroot seeds may germinate in the first postfire spring [3]. Off-site regeneration is possible; seeds can be transported into burned areas.
The Research Project Summary, "Effects of surface fires in a mixed red and eastern white pine stand in Michigan" provides information on prescribed fire and postfire response of plant community species, including Clayton's sweetroot, that was not available when this species review was written.
Fire Regimes
For fire regime information, search FEIS for this species by entering the species name or acronym on the home page and selecting “Fire Regime” as the publication type.
Fire Management Considerations
No information was available on this topic.
Federal Status
None
Other Status
No entry.
Importance to Wildlife and Livestock
No information was available on this topic.
Palatability and Nutritional Value
No information was available on this topic.
Cover Value
No information was available on this topic.
Value for Rehabilitation or Restoration of Disturbed Sites
No information was available on this topic.
Other Uses
No information was available on this topic.
Other Management Considerations
No information was available on this topic.
Table A1— Forest and range ecosystems, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) physiographic regions, Kuchler plant associations, Society for American Foresters (SAF) forest cover types, and Society for Rangeland Management (SRM) rangeland cover types in which this species occurs.
Forest and Range Ecosystems (Garrison et al. 1977)
- FRES14 Oak – pine
- FRES15 Oak - hickory
- FRES17 Elm - ash - cottonwood
- FRES18 Maple - beech - birch
BLM Physiographic Regions (Bernard and Brown 1977)
- 14 Great Plains
Kuchler Plant Associations (Kuchler 1964)
- K098 Northern floodplain forest
- K099 Maple - basswood forest
- K100 Oak - hickory forest
- K101 Elm - ash forest
- K102 Beech - maple forest
- K103 Mixed mesophytic forest
- K104 Appalachian oak forest
- K106 Northern hardwoods
- K111 Oak - hickory - pine forest
SAF Cover Types (Eyre 1980)
- 16 Aspen
- 17 Pin cherry
- 18 Paper birch
- 19 Gray birch - red maple
- 24 Hemlock - yellow birch
- 25 Sugar maple - beech - yellow birch
- 26 Sugar maple - basswood
- 27 Sugar maple
- 28 Black cherry - maple
- 39 Black ash - American elm - red maple
- 42 Bur oak
- 46 Eastern redcedar
- 52 White oak - black oak - northern red oak
- 53 White oak
- 55 Northern red oak
- 57 Yellow-poplar
- 59 Yellow-poplar - white oak - northern red oak
- 60 Beech - sugar maple
- 63 Cottonwood
- 93 Sugarberry - American elm - green ash
- 95 Black willow
- 108 Red maple
- 109 Hawthorn
- 110 Black oak
SRM Rangeland Cover Types (Shiflet 1994)
- No entry
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