Index / Search / Ranunculus sceleratus
§1 Plant
Ranunculus sceleratus L.
vernacular cursed buttercup — species · Ranunculaceae
§2Habit & range
Habit and range
- Growth habit
- Forb/herb
- Duration
- Annual, Perennial
- Group
- Dicot
- Family
- Ranunculaceae Juss.
- Genus
- Ranunculus
§2a
Native status, by region
- AK Alaska Native
- CAN Canada Introduced
- L48 Lower 48 States Native
- SPM St. Pierre & Miquelon Introduced
§2b
County-level range
· 675 counties across 38 states/territories§3Cultivation specs · USDA
Recorded by the USDA Plant Materials Program.
§3a
Tolerances
- Drought
- None
- Shade
- Low
- Moisture use
- High
- Fire
- Low
- Salinity
- Low
- Anaerobic
- High
- CaCO₃
- Medium
- Hedging
- None
§3b
Climate & soil
- Cold tolerance
- 52 °F minimum
- Frost-free days
- 90 min.
- Precipitation
- 8–55 in/yr
- pH range
- 4.8–8.4
- Root depth
- 6 in min.
- Fertility need
- Medium
- Soil texture
- coarse, medium, fine
§3c
Form & growth
- Growth form
- Single Crown
- Growth rate
- Rapid
- Lifespan
- Short
- Mature height
- 2 ft
- Foliage texture
- Fine
- Foliage colour
- Green
- Porosity (summer)
- Porous
- Porosity (winter)
- Porous
- Flower colour
- Yellow
- Fruit colour
- Brown
- Fire resistant
- No
- N fixation
- None
- Toxicity
- None
§3d
Reproduction
- Bloom period
- Late Spring
- Seed abundance
- Medium
- Seed begins
- Spring
- Seed ends
- Summer
- Spread rate
- Moderate
- Stratify
- No
- Seeds / lb
- 25,000
- Propagation
- seed
§3e
Use & availability
- Commercial availability
- No Known Source
- Nursery stock
- No
- Palatable, human
- No
- Lumber
- No
- Christmas tree
- No
§4Counties, by state
Recorded in 675 counties across 38 states/territories.
Alabama view state ↗ 4 N ▾
Alaska view state ↗ 8 N ▾
Arizona view state ↗ 3 N ▾
Arkansas view state ↗ 16 N ▾
Delaware view state ↗ 2 N ▾
District of Columbia view state ↗ 1 N ▾
Florida view state ↗ 4 N ▾
Georgia view state ↗ 1 N ▾
Illinois view state ↗ 50 N ▾
- Adams 17001
- Alexander 17003
- Boone 17007
- Calhoun 17013
- Cass 17017
- Christian 17021
- Cook 17031
- Crawford 17033
- DeKalb 17037
- DuPage 17043
- Fulton 17057
- Greene 17061
- Grundy 17063
- Jackson 17077
- Jersey 17083
- Jo Daviess 17085
- Kane 17089
- Kankakee 17091
- Kendall 17093
- Knox 17095
- Lake 17097
- LaSalle 17099
- Logan 17107
- Macoupin 17117
- Mason 17125
- Massac 17127
- McDonough 17109
- McHenry 17111
- Menard 17129
- Monroe 17133
- Peoria 17143
- Perry 17145
- Pike 17149
- Pope 17151
- Putnam 17155
- Richland 17159
- Sangamon 17167
- Schuyler 17169
- Scott 17171
- St. Clair 17163
- Stark 17175
- Tazewell 17179
- Union 17181
- Vermilion 17183
- Warren 17187
- Washington 17189
- White 17193
- Will 17197
- Winnebago 17201
- Woodford 17203
Indiana view state ↗ 27 N ▾
- Allen 18003
- Boone 18011
- Cass 18017
- Clark 18019
- Crawford 18025
- Floyd 18043
- Fountain 18045
- Franklin 18047
- Fulton 18049
- Jasper 18073
- Jay 18075
- Jefferson 18077
- Kosciusko 18085
- Lagrange 18087
- LaPorte 18091
- Miami 18103
- Newton 18111
- Parke 18121
- Perry 18123
- Porter 18127
- Pulaski 18131
- Steuben 18151
- Tippecanoe 18157
- Warren 18171
- Wayne 18177
- Wells 18179
- White 18181
Iowa view state ↗ 11 N ▾
Kansas view state ↗ 46 N ▾
- Atchison 20005
- Barber 20007
- Chase 20017
- Cherokee 20021
- Cheyenne 20023
- Clay 20027
- Cloud 20029
- Comanche 20033
- Cowley 20035
- Doniphan 20043
- Douglas 20045
- Edwards 20047
- Ellis 20051
- Ford 20057
- Harper 20077
- Harvey 20079
- Hodgeman 20083
- Jackson 20085
- Jewell 20089
- Kingman 20095
- Lincoln 20105
- Logan 20109
- Lyon 20111
- McPherson 20113
- Meade 20119
- Miami 20121
- Morton 20129
- Nemaha 20131
- Ness 20135
- Phillips 20147
- Pottawatomie 20149
- Pratt 20151
- Rawlins 20153
- Reno 20155
- Republic 20157
- Riley 20161
- Rooks 20163
- Russell 20167
- Saline 20169
- Scott 20171
- Sedgwick 20173
- Seward 20175
- Shawnee 20177
- Stafford 20185
- Sumner 20191
- Woodson 20207
Kentucky view state ↗ 18 N ▾
Louisiana view state ↗ 53 N ▾
- Acadia 22001
- Allen 22003
- Ascension 22005
- Assumption 22007
- Avoyelles 22009
- Bienville 22013
- Bossier 22015
- Caddo 22017
- Calcasieu 22019
- Cameron 22023
- Catahoula 22025
- Concordia 22029
- East Baton Rouge 22033
- East Carroll 22035
- East Feliciana 22037
- Evangeline 22039
- Grant 22043
- Iberia 22045
- Iberville 22047
- Jefferson 22051
- Jefferson Davis 22053
- Lafayette 22055
- Lafourche 22057
- LaSalle 22059
- Madison 22065
- Morehouse 22067
- Natchitoches 22069
- Orleans 22071
- Ouachita 22073
- Plaquemines 22075
- Rapides 22079
- Red River 22081
- Richland 22083
- St. Bernard 22087
- St. Charles 22089
- St. James 22093
- St. John the Baptist 22095
- St. Landry 22097
- St. Martin 22099
- St. Mary 22101
- St. Tammany 22103
- Tangipahoa 22105
- Tensas 22107
- Terrebonne 22109
- Union 22111
- Vermilion 22113
- Vernon 22115
- Washington 22117
- Webster 22119
- West Baton Rouge 22121
- West Carroll 22123
- West Feliciana 22125
- Winn 22127
Maine view state ↗ 2 N ▾
Massachusetts view state ↗ 10 N ▾
Michigan view state ↗ 48 N ▾
- Alpena 26007
- Arenac 26011
- Barry 26015
- Bay 26017
- Benzie 26019
- Berrien 26021
- Branch 26023
- Calhoun 26025
- Cass 26027
- Charlevoix 26029
- Cheboygan 26031
- Chippewa 26033
- Clinton 26037
- Delta 26041
- Eaton 26045
- Emmet 26047
- Gogebic 26053
- Grand Traverse 26055
- Gratiot 26057
- Houghton 26061
- Ingham 26065
- Isabella 26073
- Jackson 26075
- Kalamazoo 26077
- Kent 26081
- Keweenaw 26083
- Lapeer 26087
- Leelanau 26089
- Livingston 26093
- Mackinac 26097
- Macomb 26099
- Manistee 26101
- Marquette 26103
- Midland 26111
- Monroe 26115
- Muskegon 26121
- Oakland 26125
- Ogemaw 26129
- Ottawa 26139
- Presque Isle 26141
- Saginaw 26145
- Sanilac 26151
- Schoolcraft 26153
- Shiawassee 26155
- St. Clair 26147
- St. Joseph 26149
- Washtenaw 26161
- Wayne 26163
Minnesota view state ↗ 57 N ▾
- Anoka 27003
- Becker 27005
- Beltrami 27007
- Big Stone 27011
- Blue Earth 27013
- Brown 27015
- Carver 27019
- Cass 27021
- Chippewa 27023
- Clay 27027
- Clearwater 27029
- Cottonwood 27033
- Crow Wing 27035
- Dakota 27037
- Douglas 27041
- Faribault 27043
- Goodhue 27049
- Hennepin 27053
- Hubbard 27057
- Itasca 27061
- Jackson 27063
- Kandiyohi 27067
- Kittson 27069
- Lac qui Parle 27073
- Lake of the Woods 27077
- Le Sueur 27079
- Lincoln 27081
- Mahnomen 27087
- Marshall 27089
- Meeker 27093
- Morrison 27097
- Mower 27099
- Murray 27101
- Nicollet 27103
- Nobles 27105
- Norman 27107
- Olmsted 27109
- Otter Tail 27111
- Pipestone 27117
- Polk 27119
- Pope 27121
- Redwood 27127
- Renville 27129
- Rice 27131
- Roseau 27135
- Scott 27139
- Sibley 27143
- St. Louis 27137
- Stearns 27145
- Steele 27147
- Traverse 27155
- Wabasha 27157
- Waseca 27161
- Washington 27163
- Wilkin 27167
- Wright 27171
- Yellow Medicine 27173
Mississippi view state ↗ 5 N ▾
Missouri view state ↗ 27 N ▾
- Andrew 29003
- Bates 29013
- Boone 29019
- Carroll 29033
- Clark 29045
- Clay 29047
- Cole 29051
- Gentry 29075
- Holt 29087
- Howard 29089
- Jackson 29095
- Lafayette 29107
- Lewis 29111
- Marion 29127
- Mississippi 29133
- Monroe 29137
- Montgomery 29139
- Pike 29163
- Platte 29165
- Ray 29177
- Saline 29195
- Scott 29201
- St. Charles 29183
- St. Clair 29185
- St. Louis 29189
- Ste. Genevieve 29186
- Vernon 29217
Montana view state ↗ 12 N ▾
Nebraska view state ↗ 37 N ▾
- Antelope 31003
- Brown 31017
- Buffalo 31019
- Cass 31025
- Cedar 31027
- Cherry 31031
- Cheyenne 31033
- Clay 31035
- Cuming 31039
- Custer 31041
- Dawes 31045
- Dawson 31047
- Dodge 31053
- Douglas 31055
- Franklin 31061
- Furnas 31065
- Grant 31075
- Hall 31079
- Harlan 31083
- Holt 31089
- Howard 31093
- Kearney 31099
- Keya Paha 31103
- Kimball 31105
- Lancaster 31109
- Lincoln 31111
- Merrick 31121
- Nance 31125
- Nemaha 31127
- Platte 31141
- Red Willow 31145
- Richardson 31147
- Sarpy 31153
- Saunders 31155
- Seward 31159
- Washington 31177
- Webster 31181
New Hampshire view state ↗ 1 N ▾
New Jersey view state ↗ 17 N ▾
New Mexico view state ↗ 7 N ▾
New York view state ↗ 38 N ▾
- Albany 36001
- Bronx 36005
- Cattaraugus 36009
- Cayuga 36011
- Chemung 36015
- Columbia 36021
- Dutchess 36027
- Erie 36029
- Genesee 36037
- Jefferson 36045
- Kings 36047
- Madison 36053
- Monroe 36055
- Montgomery 36057
- Nassau 36059
- New York 36061
- Niagara 36063
- Oneida 36065
- Onondaga 36067
- Ontario 36069
- Orange 36071
- Orleans 36073
- Oswego 36075
- Putnam 36079
- Queens 36081
- Rensselaer 36083
- Richmond 36085
- Rockland 36087
- Saratoga 36091
- Schenectady 36093
- Schuyler 36097
- St. Lawrence 36089
- Steuben 36101
- Suffolk 36103
- Tompkins 36109
- Ulster 36111
- Westchester 36119
- Yates 36123
North Carolina view state ↗ 15 N ▾
North Dakota view state ↗ 39 N ▾
- Barnes 38003
- Benson 38005
- Billings 38007
- Bottineau 38009
- Burke 38013
- Cass 38017
- Cavalier 38019
- Dickey 38021
- Divide 38023
- Dunn 38025
- Emmons 38029
- Foster 38031
- Golden Valley 38033
- Grand Forks 38035
- Grant 38037
- Griggs 38039
- Kidder 38043
- LaMoure 38045
- Logan 38047
- McIntosh 38051
- Mercer 38057
- Mountrail 38061
- Nelson 38063
- Oliver 38065
- Pembina 38067
- Pierce 38069
- Ransom 38073
- Richland 38077
- Rolette 38079
- Sargent 38081
- Sheridan 38083
- Slope 38087
- Steele 38091
- Stutsman 38093
- Towner 38095
- Walsh 38099
- Ward 38101
- Wells 38103
- Williams 38105
Ohio view state ↗ 3 N ▾
Oklahoma view state ↗ 14 N ▾
Pennsylvania view state ↗ 16 N ▾
Rhode Island view state ↗ 2 N ▾
South Carolina view state ↗ 2 N ▾
South Dakota view state ↗ 17 N ▾
Tennessee view state ↗ 8 N ▾
Vermont view state ↗ 1 N ▾
Virginia view state ↗ 43 N ▾
- Accomack 51001
- Albemarle 51003
- Amherst 51009
- Arlington 51013
- Campbell 51031
- Charles City 51036
- Chesapeake (city) 51550
- Chesterfield 51041
- Cumberland 51049
- Essex 51057
- Fairfax 51059
- Fauquier 51061
- Frederick 51069
- Gloucester 51073
- Goochland 51075
- Hampton (city) 51650
- Hanover 51085
- Henrico 51087
- Highland 51091
- Isle of Wight 51093
- James City 51095
- King and Queen 51097
- King William 51101
- Lancaster 51103
- Loudoun 51107
- Mathews 51115
- Montgomery 51121
- Nelson 51125
- New Kent 51127
- Newport News (city) 51700
- Northampton 51131
- Northumberland 51133
- Orange 51137
- Prince George 51149
- Prince William 51153
- Richmond 51159
- Roanoke 51161
- Rockingham 51165
- Shenandoah 51171
- Southampton 51175
- Surry 51181
- Virginia Beach (city) 51810
- Warren 51187
§5Sources & provenance
USDA PLANTS
Symbol, taxonomy, distribution, cultivation specs, native status. Public domain.
plants.usda.gov/RASC3 ↗GBIF Backbone
Canonical taxonomic identity, synonym resolution, cross-refs. CC0.
gbif.org/species/3033374 ↗Record version
Cached and built locally. Source version on this record:
usda-plants-mt-2026-05-26
fetched 2026-05-26T09:28:40Z