Osmorhiza claytonii (Hairy sweet cicely)
Osmorhiza claytonii (Hairy sweet cicely)
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$30 minimum per species for seed.
$30 minimum per species for seed.
Each species requires a minimum of $30 of seed to proceed with checkout.
Pure Live Seed
Pure Live Seed
Seed is provided in Pure Live Seed (PLS) unless otherwise stated.
Pure Live Seed (PLS) refers to the percentage of a seed lot that consists of the desired species and is viable (capable of germination).
Here's why PLS is crucial for native seeds:
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Accurate Planting:
- PLS helps determine the actual number of viable seeds in a given weight or volume of seed.
- This ensures you plant the correct amount of seed to achieve the desired density and success rate.
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Cost-Effectiveness:
- By knowing the PLS, you can avoid overspending on seed that may not germinate.
- This is especially important for native seeds, which can be more expensive than some cultivated varieties.
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Weed Control:
- PLS helps minimize the presence of weed seeds within the seed lot.
- This reduces competition for resources and ensures the successful establishment of the desired native plants.
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Ecological Restoration:
- Using high-quality native seeds with a high PLS is essential for successful ecological restoration projects.
- It helps to re-establish diverse and resilient plant communities that support local wildlife.
Weight Conversions lbs. to oz.
Weight Conversions lbs. to oz.
0.01 pounds = 0.16 ounces
- 0.1 pounds = 1.6 ounces
- 0.25 pounds = 4 ounces
- 0.5 pounds = 8 ounces
- 0.75 pounds = 12 ounces
- 1.00 pounds = 16 ounces
Sweet cicely holds small groups of white flowers above divided foliage in woodland shade. The hairy stems help distinguish it from aniseroot, a similar-looking relative often found in the same kinds of woods.
Sun exposure for Osmorhiza claytonii: partial shade; Shade. Soil conditions: moist soil enriched with organic matter. Recorded habitats include woods; Thickets. Reported height: 1 to 3 feet.
Choose neighboring plants with compatible light and moisture needs, and allow space for their mature growth.
Plant specifications & ecological relationships
Key growing facts
| Sunlight | Partial shade; Shade |
|---|---|
| Soil moisture | Moist soil enriched with organic matter |
| Height | 1 to 3 feet |
| Bloom season | May–June (Minnesota observations) |
Show / hide ▾Growing & planting details
Plant identification & seed reference
| Botanical name | Osmorhiza claytonii |
|---|---|
| Other common names | hairy sweet cicely |
| Plant family | Apiaceae |
Plant characteristics
Osmorhiza claytonii (Hairy sweet cicely) is a very common plant of a wide variety of woodlands. The entire plant contains anise oil ( its roots, the stem, and leaves) and smell of licorice when crushed.
- Flower Color White
- Flower Time May-June
Show / hide ▾Native range & C-value
| Wetland indicator — NWPL 2022 Midwest | FACU |
|---|---|
| C-value — Chicago region, Flora 2017 | 4 |
| Chicago-region native — Flora 2017 | Yes |
| Native range — U.S. states | Alabama; Arkansas; Connecticut; Delaware; Georgia; Illinois; Indiana; Iowa; Kansas; Kentucky; Maine; Maryland; Massachusetts; Michigan; Minnesota; Missouri; Nebraska; New Hampshire; New Jersey; New York; North Carolina; North Dakota; Ohio; Pennsylvania; Rhode Island; South Carolina; South Dakota; Tennessee; Vermont; Virginia; West Virginia; Wisconsin |
| County nativity | Not yet verified; occurrence records do not establish nativity. |
Show / hide ▾Plant communities & associates
Other documented plant associations
These published associations show how this plant fits into natural vegetation. The region and community are identified for each list; moisture, shade and flooding can differ within a community.
Understory on loam soils in black-maple forest
Lake States
Other regional plant communities
These plants are named with this species in published vegetation accounts. Each list keeps its community and region; some records describe a shared vegetation type rather than neighboring plants in a measured plot. They are ecological records, not a planting recipe, and may include plants unsuitable for a particular garden.
- Maple and mixed-hardwood understory (Northern states and Canada): Acer saccharum, Fagus grandifolia, Quercus rubra, Tsuga canadensis, Tilia americana, Populus tremuloides.
- Maple-forest understory (Eastern Canada): Fraxinus americana, Betula alleghaniensis, Fraxinus nigra, Ulmus americana.
- Woodland canopy and ground flora (Eastern North America; account synthesis): Quercus macrocarpa, Liriodendron tulipifera, Salix nigra, Lonicera canadensis, Sambucus pubens, Amelanchier alnifolia, Circaea quadrisulcata, Phytolacca americana, Smilacina racemosa, Viola spp..
Show / hide ▾Pollinators & wildlife
Caterpillars & other plant-feeding insects
This plant has published caterpillar host records for the butterflies and moths listed below. These are larval feeding relationships, separate from adult nectar visits. The records span a North American literature compilation and do not establish that every insect occurs locally or uses only this plant.
Moths
- Epermenia albapunctella
Show / hide ▾Frequently asked questions
What are the ideal growing conditions for Hairy sweet cicely?
Osmorhiza claytonii performs best in partial sun to full shade with mesic (rich deciduous woods & ravines) conditions. It thrives in authentic regional soil types ranging from sandy loam to well-drained clay loams.
How do I germinate and establish Hairy sweet cicely from seed?
Seed of Osmorhiza claytonii has a germination code of C(30). For best results, sow seed in late fall/winter for natural outdoor freeze-thaw stratification, or cold-moist stratify in refrigeration for 30 to 60 days before spring indoor propagation.
Is Hairy sweet cicely deer and herbivore resistant?
Yes. Native plants adapted to Midwestern habitats naturally produce protective secondary compounds and fibrous textures that make them highly resistant to deer, rabbits, and other grazing herbivores.
When should I expect Hairy sweet cicely to emerge and bloom?
Established plants break dormancy in spring as soil temperatures warm, developing vigorous foliage before blooming in their seasonal window to provide vital nectar when native pollinators need it most.
Show / hide ▾Sources & ecological notes
Chicago-region assessment: Wilhelm & Rericha (2017), Flora of the Chicago Region, via Kenneth Johnson’s Universal FQA dataset (2018). Chicago-region native status is separate from U.S. nativity.
The C-value and Chicago-region native status shown here also agree with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Chicago Region FQA dataset (2017), distributed through the USACE/ERDC fqadata package under CC0.
Flora of the Chicago Region (2017) records this taxon as native in the Chicago region.
The state list describes native botanical distribution. It does not establish county nativity or occurrence, suitability for every site, or the origin of the plants and seeds offered here. An unlisted state is not proof of absence.
Range data: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; 4 June 2026 release, accessed 7 September 2026. © The Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. CC BY 3.0; selected and reformatted. Kew cannot warrant the quality or accuracy of these data. This use has no Kew endorsement.
State and county nativity: The state list uses WCVP records marked native, excluding introduced, extinct and doubtful records. County nativity has not yet been verified for this listing. Presence in a county or preserve does not establish nativity there.
Documented plant associations: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service — black maple. Regions and community contexts are retained in the lists above. Federal botanical facts summarized in original wording; no photographs reproduced.
Available Flora-linked Chicago assessments remain controlling. These regional ecology accounts supplement evidence not available for direct reuse from the Flora; they are not represented as Chicago Flora association lists.
Plant communities: USDA Forest Service, Fire Effects Information System (FEIS): Osmorhiza claytonii. Selected association facts regrouped in original wording; regional scope retained. No source photographs or captions reproduced.
Caterpillar host records: Shropshire, K.J. & Tallamy, D.W. (2025), Lepidoptera of North America, Supplement 1. Contains information from this database made available under the Open Database License (ODbL 1.0). Natural Communities selected species-level records and screened source qualifications. The complete selection and transformation instructions for this page are available below under the same license.
C-value source: Flora of the Chicago Region (2017), Universal FQA database 80. Matched source taxon: Osmorhiza claytonii. Exact.
Sources checked September 5, 2026. Regional assessments and growing observations apply to their stated settings. Unverified fields are omitted; missing information does not mean an ecological relationship is absent.
- Minnesota Wildflowers. Limited botanical facts presented in Natural Communities’ own wording. Source-specific observations retain their stated scope; photographs, original descriptive prose and compiled relationship tables are excluded. Supports: Bloom Season; Height; Opening botanical description; Primary Native Habitats; Sun Exposure; Sunlight Exposure.
- Universal FQA — Flora-linked Chicago database 80. Taxonomic names, family and regional nativity originally checked against Kenneth Johnson’s Flora-linked database 80 (2018), citing Wilhelm & Rericha (2017). Limited factual identification only; the C-value follows this Flora-linked database wherever an exact or documented synonym match is available. Supports: Alternate Common Names; Botanical Name; Chicago-region native status; Plant Family.
- USACE/ERDC fqadata — Chicago Region FQA 2017. Herman, B., Sliwinski, R. & Whitaker, S. (2017), Chicago Region FQA Calculator; distributed by USACE/ERDC in fqadata under CC0. Values may differ from Flora of the Chicago Region (2017). CC0 dedication. Retained for comparison; the displayed C-value follows Flora database 80.
- University of Georgia — Native Plants for Georgia III. Limited botanical facts presented in Natural Communities’ own wording. Source-specific observations retain their stated scope; photographs, original descriptive prose and compiled relationship tables are excluded. Supports: Soil Moisture Range.
- USACE National Wetland Plant List 2022 — Midwest. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 2022 National Wetland Plant List, Midwest region; effective February 13, 2024. Federal data. Supports: Wetland Indicator Status.
Flora rating attribution: Kenneth Johnson (2018), Flora of the Chicago Region UFQA Database, following Gerould Wilhelm and Laura Rericha (2017), Flora of the Chicago Region: A Floristic and Ecological Synthesis. Individual rating facts are presented with original commentary; the calculator’s software license is not treated as a license for the underlying Flora publication.
Historical botanical names remain visible where used by the source. These regional accounts supplement the available Chicago Flora evidence.
Reusable research data
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Plant Shipping & Care
Plant Shipping & Care
We want to ensure that our customers get what they want, a native backyard oasis. To do that, we need to follow a few simple guidelines and give you some information and pointers to make sure you get your plants delivered in a healthy state.
As a reminder, you will receive an email to confirm your pickup or shipping window just before the plants are ready. See Order Fulfillment below for seasonal fulfillment windows.
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What to Expect When Receiving Your Delivery
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Shipments
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- Continue to water daily each morning and possibly again in the afternoon
- No additional fertilizer is needed
Seed Shipping & Care
Seed Shipping & Care
There is a minimum order requirement of $30 for each seed species. Seed ships all year and typically ships within a week of an order being placed.
We have attempted to put together some basic information regarding native seed installation, establishment, and maintenance. We hope you find it helpful. If you need further assistance on native seed establishment, please schedule a free consolation call here.
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