PlantaeDB Logo
Login Sign-up

Genus Dicentra in Tribe Fumarieae

In botanical taxonomy, a genus (plural genera) is a rank used to group closely related species within a family. In the hierarchy, genus sits below family and above species.

Genera are defined by shared morphological, anatomical, and genetic characteristics (for example, features of flowers, fruits, seeds, or leaves) that indicate a close evolutionary relationship among the species they contain.

Each genus can include one or more species. Examples include Rosa (roses) and Solanum (nightshades, including tomato and eggplant).

Do you wish to read more about plant taxonomy? Click here!

Genus Description

Suggest a correction!

Dicentra (Barkh. ex Bernh.) is a genus of herbaceous perennials in the poppy family (Papaveraceae, subfamily Fumarioideae). The genus includes about 25–30 species (POWO, 2024; WFO, 2024) and is distributed across temperate forests and montane meadows of eastern Asia (China, Japan, Korea) and western North America. The type species is Dicentra cucullaria (L.) Ker Gawl. (POWO, 2024).

Plants arise from tubers or fleshy rhizomes; basal leaves are ternately or palmately divided, glaucous and glabrous. Inflorescences are terminal racemes of pendulous, bilaterally symmetrical flowers. Each flower bears two spurred outer petals that form a prominent pouch, and two narrower inner petals; the stamens are fused in two bundles, a characteristic of the Papaveraceae, and the ovary is bicarpellary with parietal placentation. The fruit is a dehiscent capsule containing many tiny, carunculate seeds.

The centre of diversity lies in the Sino‑Japanese region, where several endemics (e.g., Dicentra grandiflora, Dicentra peregrina) occupy shaded, moist woodlands between 500 and 2500 m. In North America, Dicentra eximia and Dicentra formosa dominate the Pacific‑Northwest and California, respectively, while Dicentra cucullaria is widespread in eastern deciduous forests. Many species are restricted to limestone cliffs or high‑elevation meadows, reflecting a pattern of local specialization.

Pollination is primarily by long‑tongued bees that access nectar at the spur bases, although some taxa also attract hoverflies and moths. Seeds are explosively ejected when the capsule splits; the caruncle promotes myrmecochory. The base chromosome number is x = 8, with most diploids having 2n = 16, and occasional tetraploids reported (Harberd, 1972).

Historically Dicentra was placed in the family Fumariaceae, but modern classifications (APG IV, 2016) merge Fumarioideae into Papaveraceae. Harberd (1972) recognized three subgenera, but molecular phylogenies (Wang & Olmstead, 2020) recover a monophyletic Dicentra without clear infrageneric support, prompting most recent floras to treat the genus as a single, narrowly circumscribed lineage (POWO, 2024; WFO, 2024). The former Dicentra spectabilis has been transferred to the separate genus Lamprocapnos (APG IV, 2016), illustrating ongoing realignment of generic limits.

Several species are cultivated as ornamentals, notably Dicentra cucullaria (“Dutchman’s breeches”) and Lamprocapnos spectabilis (“bleeding heart”). Their delicate foliage and flowering period make them popular for shade gardens and rockeries, though none have economic significance as timber or crops, nor are they considered invasive.

While most taxa remain secure, localized endemics such as Dicentra pulchella of the Pacific Northwest face habitat loss from logging and climate change. Continued taxonomic clarification, especially of East‑Asian taxa, will be essential for conservation planning.

Pick a Species to see its components: