Botany on the Byways: Dutchman's breeches

Dutchman's breeches (dicentra cucullaria) are a woodland flower and one of the earliest to bloom in spring. Their name aids their identification, as they resemble a pair
of pants or “breeches,” hanging upside down from a slender flower stalk. 

source: Gardens of the Blue Ridge

The breeches are white and sometimes tinged with pink, and are attached to the flower stalk at the crotch by a delicate flower stem. The leaves are frilly or fern-like and grow underneath the arching flower stalk. The leaves appear first; then fragrant flowers bloom in clusters, resembling pants hanging on a clothesline. Early bumblebees come for the nectar of the flowers and pollinate them. Dutchman's breeches have a mutualistic relationship with ants called myrmecochory. Ants distribute the seeds by taking them to their nests. The ants feed on a fleshy part of the seeds and the seeds germinate and sprout from the nests.

Dutchman's breeches can be found in woodlands in western Iowa and throughout much of the Loess Hills. They are easily found in Waubonsie State Park and Hitchcock Nature Center, just to name two of the many places you can find this early blooming woodland wildflower.