Common Name

Small-flowered Buttercup, Australian Small-flowered Buttercup, Annual Buttercup (var. pilulifer)

Family

Ranunculaceae

Notes

Annual forb to 35cm tall. Leaves alternating up the stems, hairy to hairless. Lower leaves 0.4-1.2cm long, often kidney shaped and broader than long, lobed and toothed. Upper leaves composed of 3 leaflets or dissected, 5-20mm wide. Flowers often small (about 2-4mm across), with 0-2 yellow petals, solitary, stalkless or on short stalks arising from the bases of the leaves. Vulnerable SA (var. pilulifer). Poorly known Vic (var. pilulifer).

In Ranunculus sessiliflorus var. sessiliflorus the leaves are coarsely toothed or lobed.

In Ranunuculus sessiliflorus var. pilulifer the leaves are composed of 3 leaflets, further dissected into narrow segments. Vulnerable SA.

Short description (page 311) and photo (page 310) of Ranunculus sessiliflorus ssp. sessiliflorus in G.M. Cunningham, WE Mulham, PL Milthorpe and J H Leigh (1981 and later printings) Plants of Western New South Wales page 311

PlantNET description:  http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Ranunculus~sessiliflorus

Photo of plant (var. sessiliflorus). Photographer Chris Lindorff, W of Melbourne, Vic