Purple Sanicle

Sanicula bipinnatifida occurs in the far west of North America from British Columbia south through Washington, Oregon, California and Baja California. This species is exhibited in numerous habitats such as grassland, open woodlands, pine/oak woodland and slopes with serpentine soils.

Also called Purple sanicle, this perennial herb arises from a tuber and may reach a height of 60 centimeters. Miwok peoples used the plant prehistorically as a snakebite remedy.

Sanicula bipinnatifida Dougl.; Hook. Fl. Bor. Am. 1:
258. 1832.
Sanicula nemoralis Greene, Erythea 1: 6. 1893.
Sanicula bipinnatifida var. jlava Jepson, Madrono 1: 112. 1923.
Sanicula bipinnatifida var. nemoralis Jepson, Madrono 1: 112. 1923.
Sanicula bipinnatifida var. Hoffmannii Munz; R. Hoffm. Bull. S. Calif. Acad. 31: 110. 1932.
Plants erect, 1.5-8 dm. high, perennial from a deep-seated taproot, the nodes scantily scaberulous, otherwise glabrous, the stems several, branched, usually naked above, purplish; leaves suborbicular to ovate-oblong in general outline, excluding the petioles 4-19 cm. long, 2-15 cm. broad, polymorphic; those of the seedlings suborbicular, entire or 5-lobed, crenulate, the older leaves oval to oblong-ovate, serrulate to deeply serrate, becoming broadly ovate and trilobate, the terminal primary division largest, coarsely crenate-serrate, the divisions becoming lobate or pinnately divided into 5-7 subovate divisions, deeply pinnatifid with narrow dentate segments, decurrent on the rachis as a toothed wing; petioles sheathing below, 4-20 cm. long; involucre of leaflike bracts; involucel of lanceolate, sometimes connate bractlets, shorter than the heads; fertile rays 3-5, 0.5-19 cm. long, the umbellets capitate, 5-12 mm. broad; sterile and fertile flowers in the same umbellet, the sterile pedicellate; flowers yellow or purple; calyx deeply cleft, the lobes lanceolate, mucronate, shorter than the petals; anthers yellow or purple, exserted; styles exceeding the bristles; fruit ovoid to subglobose, 3-6 mm. long, 2-4 mm. broad, the bristles conspicuous, bulbous at the base; oil-tubes 6-7 on the dorsal and lateral surfaces, 2 on the commissure; seed flattened dorsally in cross section, the commissural face sulcate.
Type locality: "Fort Vancouver, on the Columbia," Clark County, Washington, Douglas.
Distribution: Vancouver Island, south to Baja California, at low elevations; California islands. {Elmer 4817, Heller &• Kennedy 8765, Thompson 8933.)

Sanicula bipinnatifida is a species of flowering plant in the parsley family known by the common names purple sanicle, purple blacksnakeroot, and shoe buttons. It is native to the west coast of North America from British Columbia to Baja California, where it can be found in many types of habitat, including grassland, woodlands, and mountain slopes of serpentine soils.