Mitella
Encyclopedia
Mitella is a genus of flowering plants known as miterworts or bishop's caps. Mitella species are native to temperate and arctic North America and Asia.
growing from a scaly rhizome
, bearing wide heart- or spade-shaped leaves
near their bases and flower
s with five petal
s in a long raceme
or spike.
", from Latin
mitra with the diminutive
suffix -ella, since the flowers are said to resemble bishop
's headdresses. In Classical Latin
use, however, mitella means "female headdress" or "sling
". Latin mitra comes from Greek
"girdle", "headband
", or "turban".
Description
Mitella includes perennialsPerennial plant
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. The term is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter lived annuals and biennials. The term is sometimes misused by commercial gardeners or horticulturalists to describe only herbaceous perennials...
growing from a scaly rhizome
Rhizome
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes...
, bearing wide heart- or spade-shaped leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
near their bases and flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s with five petal
Petal
Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They often are brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. Together, all of the petals of a flower are called a corolla. Petals are usually accompanied by another set of special leaves called sepals lying...
s in a long raceme
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
or spike.
Etymology
The genus name means "little mitreMitre
The mitre , also spelled miter, is a type of headwear now known as the traditional, ceremonial head-dress of bishops and certain abbots in the Roman Catholic Church, as well as in the Anglican Communion, some Lutheran churches, and also bishops and certain other clergy in the Eastern Orthodox...
", from Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
mitra with the diminutive
Diminutive
In language structure, a diminutive, or diminutive form , is a formation of a word used to convey a slight degree of the root meaning, smallness of the object or quality named, encapsulation, intimacy, or endearment...
suffix -ella, since the flowers are said to resemble bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
's headdresses. In Classical Latin
Classical Latin
Classical Latin in simplest terms is the socio-linguistic register of the Latin language regarded by the enfranchised and empowered populations of the late Roman republic and the Roman empire as good Latin. Most writers during this time made use of it...
use, however, mitella means "female headdress" or "sling
Bandage
A bandage is a piece of material used either to support a medical device such as a dressing or splint, or on its own to provide support to the body; they can also be used to restrict a part of the body. During heavy bleeding or following a poisonous bite it is important to slow the flow of blood,...
". Latin mitra comes from Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
"girdle", "headband
Headband
A headband is a clothing accessory worn in the hair or around the forehead, usually to hold hair away from the face or eyes. Headbands generally consist of a loop of elastic material or a horseshoe-shaped piece of flexible plastic or metal...
", or "turban".
Species
Species include:- Mitella breweriMitella breweriMitella breweri is a species of flowering plant in the saxifrage family known by the common name Brewer's miterwort. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to northern California and Nevada, where it grows in moist meadows, woods, and mountain forests. It is a rhizomatous...
- Brewer's miterwort - Mitella caulescensMitella caulescensMitella caulescens is an herbaceous perennial flowering plant in the family Saxifragaceae native to Western North America.-External links:****...
- slightstemmed miterwort - Mitella diphyllaMitella diphyllaMitella diphylla is a clump forming, open woodland plant growing from a fibrouse root system. The species is placed in the Saxifragaceae family. It is native to Eastern North America and is a spring blooming plant with lacy, white flowers produced on stems growing from 20 to 50 centimeters tall...
- twoleaf miterwort - Mitella diversifolia - angleleaf miterwort
- Mitella nudaMitella nudaMitella nuda, the naked bishop's cap, is a plant in the genus Mitella.It has a single leaf, serrate but not deeply lobed, rising in single stalks from the ground. The leaf color is light green. Tiny white hairs arise perpendicular to the leaf surface...
- naked miterwort - Mitella ovalisMitella ovalisMitella ovalis is a species of flowering plant in the saxifrage family known by the common names coastal miterwort and oval-leaf miterwort. It is native to western North America from southwestern British Columbia, including Vancouver Island, to northern California as far south as Marin County. It...
- coastal miterwort - Mitella pentandraMitella pentandraMitella pentandra is a species of flowering plant in the saxifrage family known by the common name fivestamen miterwort. It is native to much of western North America from Alaska to California to Colorado, where it grows in moist, shady habitat such as meadows, woods, and mountain forests. It is a...
- fivestamen miterwort - Mitella prostrata - creeping bishop's cap
- Mitella stauropetala - smallflower miterwort
- Mitella trifidaMitella trifidaMitella trifida is a species of flowering plant in the saxifrage family known by the common names threeparted miterwort and Pacific miterwort. It is native to western North America from Alaska to Montana to California, where it grows in wet wooded habitat types. It is a rhizomatous perennial herb...
- threepart miterwort