The genus Potentilla, commonly known as cinquefoil (five-leaflets) is classified in the rose family with flowers that resemble those of a 5 petal wild rose. It includes over 500 different species of shrubs and herbaceous plants. The genus was classified by Linnaeus in the 18th century, the name derived from the Latin potens, which means powerful, as the European species were considered potent medicinal plants. This species is native to much of Canada, New England and cold mountains from coast to coast. This species and its cultivars encompasses most of the cultivated plants in the genus. There was an effort to reclassify the plant in its own genus Daisphora fruticosa by Per Axel Rydberg, 1860-1931 of the New York Botanical Garden.