Hepatica americana (he-PAT-ih-kuh a-mer-ih-KAY-nah)
Family: RanunculaceaeNativeGroundcover (<1 ft)
Groundcover (<1 ft)Native
The round-lobed liverleaf is an early spring-blooming herbaceous perennial woodland wildflower native to Eastern and Central Canada and the Eastern United States. It is typically found in shaded woodlands rich with acidic organic soil. This rhizomatous plant grows erect, 3 to 9 inches tall and equally as wide. The new leaves are large, light green, with three rounded lobes or shamrock-like. From mid-March through April, its delicate flowers are borne atop hairy stalks, and the blooms may be white, light blue, lavender, and sometimes pink with 5 to 12 petal-like sepals. Three green hairy bracts are beneath the sepals. The flowers bloom among the previous year's reddish-brown foliage, much like the color of the human liver. The new light green leaves emerge once flowering occurs. Round-lobed liverleaf is a member of the buttercup family ( Ranunculaceae). The genus name Hepatica is Latin and means of the liver, referring to the leaf shape. The specific epithet americana means of North or South America. The common name round-lobed refers to its leaf shape. Its other common names are liverwort and liverleaf, and refer to the plant's liver-like leaf shape. Prefers partial shade to full shade and moist, well-drained, organically rich acidic soils. The soil should be consistently moist. Carpenter bees and honeybees frequent the flowers to collect pollen. After the flowers are pollinated, the seeds form and drop off into the soil. Propagated by seeds or by division. Best used in a shaded naturalized setting such as a woodland or native garden. Quick ID Hint: Three-lobed, hairy leaves, rounded leaf tips, and persist through the winter. Hairy flower stalks Solitary flower with 5 to 12 petal-like sepals and 3 large, green, hairy bracts with a rounded tip Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: Has no significant insect pests or diseases.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Often confused withHepatica americana var. acutaViola sororia
Dappled Sunlight (Shade through upper canopy all day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Clay; High Organic Matter; Loam (Silt); Sand
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist
Available space
Less than 12 inches
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 0 ft. 3 in. - 0 ft. 9 in. | Width: 0 ft. 3 in. - 0 ft. 9 in.
Growth rate
Slow
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
5 - Groundcover (<1 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Clumping; Erect
Foliage
Deciduous
Leaf color
Green; Variegated
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Rosulate
Leaf shape
Orbicular; Ovate
Leaf margin
Entire; Lobed
Leaf feel
Leathery
Leaf value
Long-lasting; Showy
Leaf size
1-3 inches long, 1-3 inches wide
Hairs present
Yes
Leaf detail
Three to fifteen new light green or purple-mottled, thick, leathery, heart-shaped, basal leaves with three deeply rounded lobes open once the flowers bloom. The margins of the leaves are entire. The leaves are up to 3 inches long and equally as wide and borne on a hairy stalk. The leaves remain green through the spring and summer. During the fall and winter, the leaves become a darker green to maroon, dark purple, or brown. They will wither away in the spring as the plant starts to bloom.
Fall color
Red/Burgundy
Flower color
Blue; Pink; Purple/Lavender; White
Flower value
Showy
Flower form
Solitary
Flower shape
Star
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
The solitary flowers may be white, pink, blue, or lavender and are borne on a silky-hairy stalk. It has 5 to 12 colored petal-like sepals (usually 5 or 6). The center of the flower is a green cluster of carpels, with 10 to 30 white stamens. Each flower measures 0.5 to 1 inch in diameter. The green bracts beneath the sepals are oval, up to 0.5 inches long, with a blunt or rounded tip. Flowers bloom from mid-March to April.
Bloom time
Spring
Fruit type
Achene
Fruit size
< 1 inch long, < 1 inch wide
Fruit detail
The fruit is a hairy, oval-shaped, dry achene, measuring only 0.13 to 0.2 inches long and 0.05 to 0.6 inches wide. It does not split open when it ripens and only contains one seed. Fruit displays from March to June.
Stem color
Brown/Copper; Red/Burgundy
Stem detail
The flower stalk is reddish-brown, circular, leafless, grows upright or angled outwards, and is densely hairy and unbranched; it measures 2 to 7 inches long.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Native
Origin
Central and Eastern Canada and the Eastern United States
Distribution
Native: Canada--Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Quebec; United States--AL, AR, CT, DE, DC, FL, GA, IL, IN, IA, KY, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MS, MO, NH, NJ, NY, NC, OH, PA, RI, SC, TN, VT, VA, WV, and WI.
Wildlife value
This plant attracts sweat bees, carpenter bees, honeybees, and flies.