Canadian wild ginger - Species Profile
Conservation • Wetland • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Use • Distribution • Taxonomy
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List
not listed
NatureServe
N5 - Secure
SNR - Unranked
Minnesota
not listed
Wetland Indicator Status
Great Plains
FACU - Facultative upland
Midwest
FACU - Facultative upland
Northcentral & Northeast
UPL - Obligate upland
Description
Canadian wild ginger, more commonly referred to simply as wild ginger, is a 2″ to 12″ tall, erect, perennial forb rising from shallow, horizontal rhizomes. It is usually found in colonies.
A short stem branches at the ground level into two thick, densely hairy, 2¼″ to 8″ long leaf stalks.
The leaves are basal, bright green, slightly hairy, and shiny on the upper surface. They are kidney-shaped to heart-shaped, deeply indented at the base, 1½″ to 3″ long and 3″ to 5½″ wide. The blade is irregularly curved, wavy, or crinkled, making it appear distinctly 3-dimensional.
A single ¾″ to 1½″ wide flower rises from the leaf axil on a densely-hairy, ½″ to 1¼″ flower stalk. It lies close to the ground and is often hidden by the leaves.
The sepals are reddish brown with a whitish center. They are fused for two-thirds of their length into a bell-shaped tube, which divides at the top into three lobes. The lobes are bent backward. Beyond their middle the lobes curve upwards and narrow gradually to the tip, with the margins rolled backward to the underside. The rolled tips are from a little less than ¼″ to ¾″ long.
Height
2″ to 12″
Flower Color
Reddish brown
Similar Species
Habitat
Understory of deciduous forests. Partial sun or full shade.
Ecology
Flowering
April to June
Pests and Diseases
Use
Distribution
Sources
Biodiversity occurrence data published by: Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas (accessed through the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Portal, bellatlas.umn.edu. Accessed 6/29/2022).
Midwest Herbaria Portal. 2026. https://midwestherbaria.org/portal/index.php. Accessed 6/29/2022.
Asarum canadense L. in GBIF Secretariat (2023). GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org. Accessed 6/29/2022.
Nativity
Native
Occurrence
Common
Taxonomy
Kingdom
Subkingdom
Pteridobiotina
Phylum
Tracheophyta (Vascular Plants)
Class
Order
Piperales (Pepper Plants, Birthworts, and Allies)
Family
Aristolochiaceae (Birthwort)
Subfamily
Asaroideae
Genus
Asarum (Wild Gingers)
Subgenus
Asarum
Subordinate Taxa
Three morphologically and geographically distinct types of Asarum canadense have been described based on the length, position, and shape of the calyx lobes. Some authors separate these as two distinct species, one of which has two varieties. In this taxon scheme, hydra ginger (Asarum canadense var. acuminatum) is widespread and common throughout Minnesota; reflexed wild ginger (Asarum reflexum) is restricted to the southeast quarter of the state; and common wild ginger (Asarum canadense var. canadense) does not occur in Minnesota.
Most authors and databases, including Flora of North America, treat these as synonyms because the characters defining the types intergrade so deeply across geographic ranges that they lack reliable consistency.
Synonyms
Asarum acuminatum
Asarum ambiguum
Asarum canadense var. acuminatum
Asarum canadense var. acutifolium
Asarum canadense var. ambiguum
Asarum canadense var.canadense
Asarum canadense var. reflexum
Asarum carolinianum
Asarum furcatum
Asarum latifolium
Asarum medium
Asarum parvifolium
Asarum reflexum
Asarum rubrocinctum
Asarum villosum
Asarum ypsilantennse
Common Names
American wild ginger
Canada snakeroot
Canadian wild ginger
Canadian wildginger
snakeroot
wild ginger
wildginger
wild-ginger
