Some celandines are very attractive wildflowers, and there are even cultivated varieties that are grown for their ornamental and attractive flowers and leaves. Lesser celandine, on the other hand, is a pernicious perennial weed, which can quickly colonise and take over large areas of the garden if not controlled early.
Although new plants are sometimes produced from seed, it persists and spreads through its numerous small tubers and mainly by the many bulbils (tubercles) that form in the leaf axils.
The carpets of foliage can smother and kill smaller plants. The tubers and bulbils grow up through cultivated plants, making them awkward to remove and control. It has a short growing season, making it difficult for employing successful control methods.
Lesser celandine is usually worse in moist and heavy clay soils and in shady positions.