Where Does Yellow Root Grow Wild in Kentucky?

Identification

• Yellowroot flowers in April. The blooms are comprised of greenish-white sepals and have no petals. The fruits, which greatly resemble raspberry, ripen in July. Yellowroot is also known as ground raspberry because of the fruits it produces, but the berries are not edible. The bark is yellow-brown in color with a knotted texture. The roots of yellowroot are tuberous and yellow in appearance.

Cultivation

• Yellowroot grows best in rich, well-drained soil. Plant yellowroot in a partially shaded location to protect it from sun damage. The site should, ideally, offer up to 75-percent shade so the plant receives sun for only one-quarter of the day. Yellowroot is commonly cultivated from rootstock because the plant is difficult to grow from seed. Plant yellowroot in the fall.

Northern Kentucky

• Yellowroot grows in the eastern half of the state of Kentucky. The plant may be found growing wild in the northeastern counties of Elliott, Robertson Fleming, Menifee, Wolfe and Lee. Elliott County is home to the easternmost distribution of yellowroot in Kentucky; it's located near the West Virgina state line. Search for yellowroot growing in shaded, uncultivated areas with lots of vegetation, such as forests and parks.

Southern Kentucky

• In the southeastern part of Kentucky, yellowroot may be found in Rockcastle, Laurel, Pulaski, McCreary, Whitley and Cumberland Counties. Yellowroot grows no further west in the state than Cumberland County. McCreary, Whitley and Cumberland Counties are all on the Tennessee border and represent the southernmost region of yellowroot in the state.