Index / Search / Caulophyllum thalictroides

§1 Plant

Caulophyllum thalictroides (L.) Michx.

vernacular blue cohosh — species · Berberidaceae


USDA
CATH2
GBIF
3033920
Rank
species
blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides)
Platephotograph · Jason HollingerCC BY source · iNaturalist ↗

§2Habit & range

Habit and range

Growth habit
Forb/herb
Duration
Perennial
Group
Dicot
Family
Berberidaceae Juss.
Genus
Caulophyllum
§2a

Native status, by region

  • CAN Canada Native
  • L48 Lower 48 States Native
§2b

County-level range

· 668 counties across 23 states/territories
Legend Native · 668 Introduced · 0 Both · 0 Hover a county for detail.

§3Cultivation specs · USDA

Recorded by the USDA Plant Materials Program.

§3a

Tolerances

Drought
Low
Shade
Low
Moisture use
Medium
Fire
Low
Salinity
None
Anaerobic
Low
CaCO₃
Low
Hedging
None
§3b

Climate & soil

Cold tolerance
-33 °F minimum
Frost-free days
120 min.
Precipitation
35–60 in/yr
pH range
4.5–7
Root depth
16 in min.
Fertility need
High
Soil texture
medium
§3c

Form & growth

Growth form
Multiple Stem
Growth rate
Moderate
Lifespan
Moderate
Mature height
2.5 ft
Foliage texture
Medium
Foliage colour
Green
Porosity (summer)
Porous
Porosity (winter)
Porous
Flower colour
Purple
Fruit colour
Brown
Fire resistant
No
N fixation
None
Toxicity
None
§3d

Reproduction

Bloom period
Mid Summer
Seed abundance
Low
Seed begins
Spring
Seed ends
Summer
Spread rate
Slow
Stratify
Yes
Propagation
bare root, container, corm, sprigs
§3e

Use & availability

Commercial availability
No Known Source
Nursery stock
No
Browse palatability
Low
Graze palatability
Low
Palatable, human
Yes
Protein potential
Low
Lumber
No
Christmas tree
No

§4Counties, by state

Recorded in 668 counties across 23 states/territories.

Alabama view state ↗ 7 N
Arkansas view state ↗ 4 N
Delaware view state ↗ 1 N
Georgia view state ↗ 11 N
Illinois view state ↗ 70 N
Indiana view state ↗ 56 N
Iowa view state ↗ 12 N
Kansas view state ↗ 3 N
Kentucky view state ↗ 61 N
Maine view state ↗ 9 N
Massachusetts view state ↗ 8 N
Michigan view state ↗ 70 N
Minnesota view state ↗ 58 N
New Hampshire view state ↗ 8 N
New Jersey view state ↗ 9 N
New York view state ↗ 43 N
North Carolina view state ↗ 26 N
Pennsylvania view state ↗ 57 N
South Carolina view state ↗ 1 N
Tennessee view state ↗ 47 N
Vermont view state ↗ 13 N
Virginia view state ↗ 52 N
West Virginia view state ↗ 42 N

§5Sources & provenance

USDA PLANTS

Symbol, taxonomy, distribution, cultivation specs, native status. Public domain.

plants.usda.gov/CATH2 ↗

GBIF Backbone

Canonical taxonomic identity, synonym resolution, cross-refs. CC0.

gbif.org/species/3033920 ↗

Record version

Cached and built locally. Source version on this record:

usda-plants-mt-2026-05-26

fetched 2026-05-26T07:25:30Z