The delicate inflorescence of this rue is wafting above the surrounding plants in the streamside plantings.
A member of the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae, the genus Thalictrum comprises approximately 130 tuberous and rhizomatous perennials from mountains, meadows and streamsides, mainly in the northern hemisphere. All are erect plants carrying many tiny, petal-less flowers, with a sepal resembling the petals, and having numerous stamens and pistils to often create a fluffy effect. In Thalictrum rochebrunianum a cluster of pendent yellow stamens sit amidst a pink, or occasionally white, sepal, and each flower head is comprised of many such flowers held in a loose panicle to 2m high. This Japanese species enjoys moist, humus-rich soil in partial shade.