Yellow Avens is a common wildflower in the rose family; native to most parts of the northern hemishere. the genus name 'guem' is the accient Latin name for a plant in the same family. the species name 'aleppicum' means of Aleppo; a city in Syria.
There is currently no commerical applications for yellow avens.
Within the realm of rational and holistic medicine, Yellow Avens is used as an anodyne. It is used in the treatment of sores, wounds and skin diseases. The roots can be used as an astringent, diaphoretic and febrifuge. A decoction has been used in the treatment of diarrhoea, fevers, children's coughs, sore teeth and sore throats.
Please note that MIROFOSS does not suggest in any way that plants should be used in place of proper medical and psychological care. This information is provided here as a reference only.
The leaves of young yellow avens can be eaten.
Yellow Avens grows in light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.
Soil Conditions | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Soil Moisture | ![]() |
Sunlight | ![]() ![]() |
Notes: | ![]() |
Bellwort plants can reach a height of up to 75cm, and a clump width of 30cm across. The leaves of the bellwort plant are ovate or oblong shape and arranged alternately along the stem of the plant. Each leave can be 6cm to 13cm long and 2cm to 7cm wide. The leaves are smooth on the top side and small hairs on the undersides. The flowers are yellow in colour, 10mm to 30mm long, and droop from the stems of the plant. Each flower has three petals, three sepals, three stamens, and six pistils. In late summer three capsuled ovaries split open releasing seeds that have attached food bodies called elaiosom which are attractive to ants that collect and redistribution the seeds.
Plant Height | 75cm | ![]() |
Habitat | Rich moist woods | |
Leaves | Ovate | |
Leaf Margin | Entire | |
Leaf Venation | Parallel | |
Stems | Smooth Stems | |
Flowering Season | April to June | |
Flower Type | Radially Symmetrical | |
Flower Colour | Yellow | |
Pollination | Bees, Insects | |
Flower Gender | Flowers are hermaphrodite and the plants are self-fertile | |
Fruit | Hard round seeds | |
USDA Zone | 4A (-31°C to -34°C) cold weather limit |
No known health risks have been associated with bellwort. However ingestion of naturally occurring plants without proper identification is not recommended.
![]() |
-Click here- or on the thumbnail image to see an artist rendering, from The United States Department of Agriculture, of yellow avens. (This image will open in a new browser tab) |
![]() |
-Click here- or on the thumbnail image to see a magnified view, from The United States Department of Agriculture, of the seeds created by yellow avens for propagation. (This image will open in a new browser tab) |
Yellow Avens can be referenced in certain current and historical texts under one other name:
Yellow Avens can be translated into the following select languages:
Arabic | Bulgarian | Chinese (Sim) | |||
Croatian | Czech | Danish | |||
Dutch | Esperanto | sonorilo | Estonian | ||
Finnish | French | German | |||
Greek | Hebrew | פעמון | Hungarian | ||
Italian | Japanese | キンギョソウ | Korean | 종다리 | |
Punjabi | ਬੈਲਵਾਲਟ | Lithuanian | varpinė | Norwegian | |
Persian | زنگ زدن | Polish | Portuguese | candelária de bexiga | |
Romanian | Russian | Slovak | |||
Spanish | campana | Swedish | Tagalog | kampanilya | |
Turkish | Ukrainian | Vietnamese | quả chuông |
![]() |
The MIROFOSS database offers free printable garden tags for personal and non-profit use. These tags can be used to properly identify plant samples in a garden. Click on the tags shown on the the screen or -click here- to download a full size jpeg image for a bladder campion identification tag; which can be printed on paper or used with a plastic laser printer. |
![]() |
What's this? What can I do with it? |
Description | RHS A-Z encyclopedia of garden plants. United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. 2008. p. 1136. ISBN 1405332964. |
Description | Timothy P. Spira (16 May 2011). Wildflowers and Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont: A Naturalist's Guide to the Carolinas, Virginia, Tennessee, and Georgia. Univ of North Carolina Press. pp. 462–. ISBN 978-0-8078-7765-4. |
Description | Charlotte Adelman; Bernard L. Schwartz (21 September 2011). The Midwestern Native Garden: Native Alternatives to Nonnative Flowers and Plants. Ohio University Press. pp. 77–. ISBN 978-0-8214-4356-9. |
Folklore | Smith, Huron H. (1933). "Ethnobotany of the Forest Potawatomi Indians". Bulletin of the Public Museum of the City of Milwaukee. 7: 56, 57, 64. |
Biology | Dickinson, T.; Metsger, D.; Bull, J.; & Dickinson, R. (2004) ROM Field Guide to Wildflowers of Ontario. Toronto:Royal Ontario Museum, |
Image Rendering | USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / USDA NRCS. Wetland flora: Field office illustrated guide to plant species. USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. |
Environment | National Audubon Society. Field Guide To Wildflowers (Eastern Region): Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 0-375-40232-2 |
Physical Identification | National Audubon Society. Field Guide To Wildflowers (Eastern Region): Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 0-375-40232-2 |
September 18, 2019 | The last time this page was updated |
©2021 MIROFOSS™ Foundation | |
![]() |