Yellow Woodsorrel (Oxalis stricta) Has Trios of Heart Shaped Leaves

Summary: Yellow woodsorrel (Oxalis stricta) is a yellow-flowered wildflower with trios of heart shaped leaflets that is native to North America and Eurasia.

closeup of yellow flowers and heart shaped leaflets of yellow woodsorrel (Oxalis stricta): SB_Johnny, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Yellow woodsorrel (Oxalis stricta) appears in New World and Old World native homelands as an annual or short-lived perennial with tiny yellow flowers and trios of heart shaped leaflets.

In the New World, yellow woodsorrel is native to eastern North America. In the Old World, yellow woodsorrel’s nativity ranges across Eurasia. The wildflower’s Old World homelands include China, Japan and Korea in East Asia and Belarus in eastern Europe.

Oxalis stricta thrives in dry, open habitats with poor soils. The yellow-flowered wildflower is found in open environments, such as fields, meadows, pastures and plains. Oxalis stricta also inhabits ravines, roadsides, thickets and woodland edges. Oxalis stricta accepts a range of sunlight conditions, from full sun to dappled or shady light.

Yellow woodsorrel’s family name, Oxalidaceae, and genus name, Oxalis, derive from the Ancient Greek word meaning “sour” (Ancient Greek: ὀξαλίς ‎, oxalís). The base word reflects the renowned taste of the plant’s leaves.

Yellow woodsorrel’s other common names include common yellow oxalis, lemon clover, sourgrass and upright yellow sorrel. The inclusion of sorrel in several of the common names emphasizes the well-known acidic leaves that characterize Oxalis stricta and many other species in the Oxalis genus. The word sorrel comes from Middle English sorel, which ultimately derives from the Proto-Germanic word meaning “a little sour” (Proto-Germanic *sūraz, “sour” +‎ diminutive suffix -el).

Stems arise from a fibrous root system of underground stems known as rhizomes (Ancient Greek: ῥίζα, rhíza, “root”). The rhizomatous root system encourages the development of clumps of colonies.

The slender stem may grow to a height of 20 inches (50.8 centimeters). Stems may transition in color from brownish red to pink to green.

Green leaves display alternate arrangement along the stem. Leaves appear as trios of heart shaped leaflets atop a long petiole (Latin: petiolus, “little foot”), the stalk attaching the leaflets to the stem.

Yellow woodsorrel usually puts forth flowers from summer through autumn. Tiny, five-petaled, yellow flowers open in axillary clusters atop long stalks. The floral stalks angle from the axil (Latin: axilla, “little wing”), which is the junction of leaf stalks with the stem from which they spring.

Seed are enclosed within pointed, flat-sided cylindrical capsules. Capsules measure a length of about three-fourths of an inch (1.9 centimeters).

Seeds disperse by dehiscence (Latin: dehiscere, “to burst or split open”). At maturity, the capsules split open and explosively eject seeds at a distance of up to 13 feet (3.96 meters).

Yellow woodsorrel forms new plants by dispersing seeds and by colonizing via rhizomes.

Yellow woodsorrel is a completely edible plant. Flowers, leaves and seed pods add color, flavor and texture to salads.

Avoidance of consuming large quantities of fresh leaves is suggested. The oxalic acid that imparts a tantalizing tang to the plant’s foliage binds in concentrated doses with calcium and leads to problems such as joint pain and kidney disease. Cooking reduces the amount of oxalic acid in the leaves.

Native American ethnobotany recognizes yellow woodsorrel not only as a food source for humans but also for livestock. The Omaha and Pawnee of North America’s Great Plains pound rhizomes for use as fodder.

Native American ethnobotany also includes usage of yellow woodsorrel in therapeutic remedies. The Iroquois of northeastern North America prepare a compound decoction of roots as a treatment for blood health. The Kiowa of the Rocky Mountains and the Southern Plains appreciate the juiciness of chewing raw leaves as a thirst quencher.

Yellow woodsorrel daintily grows in the sunny meadow that thrives along my yard’s southern border. The plants also thrive in a shaded roadside along a busy town road about one mile from my home. Although growing close to the ground, the plants still manage to capture my attention with their tiny yellow flowers.

closeup of seed pods of yellow woodsorrel (Oxalis stricta): Rasbak, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

closeup of flowers and leaves of yellow woodsorrel (Oxalis stricta): SB_Johnny, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oxalis_stricta_flowers_and_foliage_002.JPG

closeup of seed pods of yellow woodsorrel (Oxalis stricta): Rasbak, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oxalis_stricta_seedpods,_Stijve_klaverzuring_vruchten_(3).jpg?uselang=fr

For further information:

Barredo, Ellen. “Experience Oxalis!” The Gateway Gardener > Houseplants. March 9, 2011.
Available @ http://www.gatewaygardener.com/houseplants/experience-oxalis

Friday, Theresa. “False shamrock, aka woodsorrel, is a weed we notice around St. Patrick’s Day.” University of Florida Santa Rosa IFAS Extension. March 6, 2012.
Available @ http://santarosa.ifas.ufl.edu/blog/2012/03/06/false-shamrock-aka-woodsorrel-is-a-weed-we-notice-around-st-patricks-day/

Linnaeus, Carl von. 1753. "12. Oxalis stricta." Species Plantarum, tomus I: 435. Holmiae [Stockholm, Sweden]: Laurentii Salvii [Laurentius Salvius].
Available @ https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/358454

“Oxalis stricta.” University of Massachusetts Amherst Extension > Landscape, Nursery and Urban Forestry Program > Weeds.
Available @ https://extension.umass.edu/landscape/weeds/oxalis-stricta

“Oxalis stricta L.” Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora > Genus.
Available @ http://vaplantatlas.org/index.php?do=plant&plant=3096&search=Search

“Oxalis stricta L.” The Plant List > Angiosperms > Oxalidaceae > Oxalis.
Available @ http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl/record/kew-2394269

“Oxalis stricta - L.” Plants For A Future.
Available @ http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Oxalis+stricta

"Oxalis stricta L."" Tropicos® > Name Search.
Available @ http://www.tropicos.org/Name/23700040

“Oxalis stricta Linnaeus.” Efloras > Flora of China.
Available @ http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=242416902

Peterson, Lee Allen. A Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants of Eastern and Central North America. Peterson Field Guides. New York NY: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1977.

“Taxon: Oxalis stricta L.” U.S.D.A. Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN) > Taxonomy.
Available @ https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxonomydetail.aspx?26216

Tenaglia, Dan. “Oxalis stricta L.” Missouri Plants > Yellow flowers Leaves alternate.
Available @ http://www.missouriplants.com/Yellowalt/Oxalis_stricta_page.html

“Yellow Woodsorrel: Oxalis stricta.” Virginia Tech Plant Pathology, Physiology and Weed Science Department > Professor Michael Flessner > Virginia Tech Weed Identification Guide.
Available @ http://oak.ppws.vt.edu/~flessner/weedguide/oxast.htm