Plants 1.5-4.5 dm from a short rhizome, usually puberulent or glandular-puberulent above; lvs 2-4(-7) near the top of the stem, 3-10 cm, often some (sometimes all) of them ovate to lance-ovate with long tip and truncate to broadly tapering base, usually some or all ±deeply 3-cleft, the terminal segment the largest; fls on slender, erect, axillary peduncles; sep lance-linear, ciliolate; pet bright yellow with brown-purple lines toward the base, the lateral ones bearded; style with a capitate, bearded summit; frs stoutly ellipsoid, 8-10 mm; seeds pale. Rich woods; sw. Pa. and s. O. to N.C., S.C., Ga., Ala., and ne. Miss. Apr., May.
Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.
