For several years now, I have been under the impression that there were two different kinds of buttercups– 1. The true buttercups; 2. The weed known as buttercups. So, is there a difference? What is a weed, or what isn’t? I personally have been pulling these “weeds” out before they flower every spring.

Well, after much research, I have found out this is your everyday common meadow buttercup. And it is EVERYWHERE. Like it or hate it, it’s there. Some gardeners love the color they give to the garden during the “in-between” phase of the growing season (I like to call it the shoulder season– the bleakness between spring and summer blooms). Others like me try to rid our flower beds of this rather troublesome plant because it does take over any area if you let it.

Here are a few facts about the Meadow Buttercup:

Plant Family: Ranunculaceae Family (Ranunculus)

Number of Varieties: Between 1700 and 2000 worldwide

Fun Fact: They are heliotropic– they move throughout the day to follow the sun

Many varieties of buttercups are an important food source to animals, so please don’t think all of them are a nuisance.

If you are a gardener who wants to limit the amount of these beautiful flowers in your garden, I would as soon as you see their little leaves start shooting up, I would pull them up and make sure to get their roots, because if you don’t, they will come back!