BEWARE! Lesser Celandine is invading Franklin Park and Forest!
Lesser celandine invading the forest floor - this is taking place in our national, state, and county parks and in our very own neighborhood!
Lesser celandine (Ficaria verna) is very pretty, with glossy round leaves and yellow petalled flowers. But don’t be fooled!!! It’s an exponential spreader and will take over your lawn and garden. It’s already emerging all over Franklin Park — in lawns, around wet areas, and in low areas such as along Birch Road and stream banks — smothering ferns, mosses, and other habitat and food sources for birds, pollinators, and fireflies. So…what to do????
For small patches - hand digging can be an effective means of control, provided all of the bulblets and tubers are removed from the soil. The plants and soil should be bagged and disposed of in landfill waste — not yard waste!
For larger, established patches - Persistence is key! Sources that reference the use of herbicides point out that several years will be required to eradicate Lesser celandine from an area. A one-time application will have limited, short-term results. Remember that for appropriate application of any pesticide, the label is the law!
Learn how to identify and remove Lesser celandine, including characteristics such as a heart-shaped leaf base and three sepals (leaf-like structures) under the petals.
Plant this … not that !
Golden groundsel (aka, Golden ragwort; Packera aurea) or Zig-zag goldenrod (Solidago flexicaulis) — are two native ground covers with yellow flowers that will spread and possibly out compete the Lesser celandine over time. Both are deer resistant and loved by birds and pollinators. These can be planted where Lesser celandine has been removed.
Golden groundsel (also known as Golden ragwort) is a lovely, colorful native ground cover that thrives in shade
On this iNaturalist map, you can see just some of the locations where Lesser celandine has been spotted in our Franklin Park & Forest community.
Key characteristics of Lesser celandine are the leaf that is heart shaped at the base and slightly wavy to coarsely toothed, brightly colored yellow flowers with eight to twelve petals, three sepals under the petals, spherical structures on the stem, and potato-shaped tubers under the ground.
If you believe you have Lesser celandine, but are not sure and want to double-check to make sure it is not a native look-alike, email the UFA at ufa.mclean@gmail.com. Attaching a picture will help with identification.