goodyera pubescens - downy rattlesnake plantain
This plant grows up to 18 inches tall when flowering. The flower stalk is between 8 and 16 inches tall and has a cylindrical cluster of many small, white, round flowers atop a leafless, wooly stalk rising from a rosette of dark blue-green, white-veined leaves from 1.2 to 2.4 inches long. The flowers are 1/4" long.
These highly decorate leaves are unusual and are often collected for ornamentation, a practice to be discouraged. It can be mistaken for Goodyera repens (Dwarf Rattlesnake Plantain) when not flowering, but the Dwarf Rattlesnake Plantain has flowers less than 1/4" and they are only on one side of the flowering stalk. The common name of this plant refers to the mottled leaves, which resemble a snake's skin, a similarity that once suggested their use as a snakebite remedy.
This plant is found in dry or moist, deciduous or coniferous woods and well-drained wooded slopes. It flowers from May to September.
These highly decorate leaves are unusual and are often collected for ornamentation, a practice to be discouraged. It can be mistaken for Goodyera repens (Dwarf Rattlesnake Plantain) when not flowering, but the Dwarf Rattlesnake Plantain has flowers less than 1/4" and they are only on one side of the flowering stalk. The common name of this plant refers to the mottled leaves, which resemble a snake's skin, a similarity that once suggested their use as a snakebite remedy.
This plant is found in dry or moist, deciduous or coniferous woods and well-drained wooded slopes. It flowers from May to September.