Filipendula

a genus of plants of the family Rosaceae. They are perennial, generally hardy herbs, with pinnate or pinnatipar-tite leaves. The flowers are bisexual and yellowish white, pink, or red; they are in a paniculate inflorescence. The perianth is usually five- or six-parted; the fruit is a group of carpels. There are approximately 20 species of Filipendula, distributed in the temperate and subarctic zones of the northern hemisphere. Nine species are found in the USSR. Meadowsweet (Filipendula ul-maria) usually forms thickets around marshy meadows, water meadows, underbrush, swampy light forests, clearings, and the edges of forests. Dropwort (F. vulgaris [formerly F. hexapeta-la]) has tuberous swellings on its roots; it is found on dry slopes, the edges of forests, dry meadows, and steppes. All species of Filipendula are nectar-bearing. Some species are used as ornamentals.