Growing in Greenville County near downtown in a city park. Moist spring fed ravine environment.
Hi Barbara, your plant is one of the buttercups, in fruit rather than flower. It is Ranunculus recurvatus, and it usually likes moist places along streams or around seeps. It does not like dry or sunny areas. One possible problem is that your current full plant photo may not be the same plant as your other 3 images – instead, it sure looks like an immature Sanicula sp. to me – the close-ups with fruits are all Ranunculus recurvatus. You may wish to exchange one of your other images for the whole plant image so that we can be certain that this is the plant that you meant. It is interesting to me that immature plants of the unrelated families Ranunculaceae and Apiaceae can sometimes look very similar because of the sheathing petioles and divided alternate leaves – but they cannot be confused in flower or fruit. – Steve Hill