Heracleum nipponicum is a perennial herb occurring in
damp places on riversides; stems are thick, hollow, hairy, erect,
and branch at the upper parts. Leaves are of a ternate compound or
mono-pinnate compound leaf; leaflets are cleft, shallow, or
intermediate, with margins coarsely serrated. Petioles swell at
bases as if enclosed in sheaths. Stem or branch tips create
prominently large compound umbels that grow 20cm in diameter.
Flowers, 5-petaled, are white; the petals in the peripheral part of
flowers are different in shape from those in the central portion -
one of the outers is significantly large and cleft in two. Bloom
time: May-June. |