Red Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), is one of the GAP’s most striking native wildflowers. This perennial herb in the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae) produces distinctive nodding flowers with red outer petals surrounding yellow centers, from which emerge bright yellow stamens and pistils. The flowers feature backward-elongating tubes called spurs that contain nectar, creating an unmistakable profile that heralds the arrival of spring along both the edges of the GAP and on adjacent hardwood-forested hillsides and steeply sloping ravines.
The timing of red columbine's bloom coincides precisely with the northward spring migration of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, typically beginning in April when these birds arrive from their wintering grounds in Mexico and Central America. Red columbine provides the first substantial nectar source for these energy-demanding migrants. Notably, the nectar of red-flowered columbines contains twice the sugar content of other North American columbine species, along with necessary amino acids.
Native Americans, specifically the Meskwaki people, added columbine seeds to smoking blends, and other tribes used the crushed seeds as a perfume and in love charms. Native Americans also used the seeds, roots, flowers, and leaves for various medicinal purposes, including kidney and urinary ailments, and stomach aches. European colonists used the plant for gallbladder disorders and relief of general stomach and intestinal problems.
The entire plant does contain various toxic compounds, and the borderline between medicine and poison is difficult to define—it has been known to poison rabbits—and most modern herbalists seem to shy away from it, since safer alternatives are available. Also, it usually does not occur in great quantities, making it best enjoyed for the aesthetic qualities of its gorgeous flowers.
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| Red Columbine |
