Jacob's ladder

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Jacob's ladder

Jacob's ladder

Jacob's ladder leaves

Morphology

Stem

1-several, erect, ascending or spreading, at length reclining, slender, weak, branched, mostly glabrous.

Leaves

Alternate, long-stalked below, nearly sesile above, pinnately compound; leaflets 3-17, ovate to lanceolate, 2/5 to 2.8 inches long, 1/5 to 4/5 inch wide; margins entire; tips pointed.

Inflorescence

Cluster, few-flowered, loose, open, terminal.

Flower

Showy, 3/5 to 4/5 inch broad, stalked; calyx bell-shaped, 1/5 to 1/4 inch long, lengthening in fruit, 5-lobed, minutely hairy; lobes triangular; corolla bell-shaped, 2/5 to 3/5 inch long, 5-lobed, pale blue to violet with white center; stamens 5, about same height, shorter than or equaling corolla; filaments slender; style exceeding stamens; stigmas 3.

Fruit

Capsule, egg-shaped to oblong, about 1/5 inch long, several-seeded, separating into 3 segments; seeds 5-7 per segment.

Ecology

Habitat

Moist, rocky wooded hillsides, alluvial soil near streams.

Distribution

East 1/6 of Kansas.

Practical Information

Uses

Native Americans took a compound containing the root as a diuretic and laxative.

Additional Notes