One of the first flowers you’ll notice on your spring walks in the woods is the tiny Goldthread. The small, three-part leaf of Goldthread hugs the ground. The delicate white flower blooms about three inches above the leaf on a delicate stem. Coptis trifolia is the Latin name for Goldthread. Coptis comes from the Greek word “to cut”, a reference to the divided leaf. Trifolia means “having three leaves”.
![](https://blogs.massaudubon.org/takingflight/wp-content/uploads/sites/31/2020/05/image.png)
The common name Goldthread is derived from the color of the root. Scratch down below the leaf to uncover the yellow root. This is a small section of root I pulled up and placed on a rock for a better photo.
![](https://blogs.massaudubon.org/takingflight/wp-content/uploads/sites/31/2020/05/image-1.png)
![](https://blogs.massaudubon.org/takingflight/wp-content/uploads/sites/31/2020/04/JM-Arches-NP-150x150.jpg)
Our guest blogger, Julianne Mehegan, is a wonderful friend of MABA, a birder and a naturalist.