Consider-the-Lilies Web Gallery
Pokeweed
This tall—6-feet plus—herbaceous bush is commonly found along the edges of fields and roadside ditches in the Shenandoah Valley.
It is an "early pioneer" of recently disturbed ground, as when an overgrown lot is cleared of brush and vines prior to development.
A native perennial, it dies back over the winter and puts out new stalks with the return of warm temperatures.
Although the bush is quite colorful and eye-catching at a distance, it was I when I took a closer look—considered, as Jesus said—that I could appreciate the beauty of these lilies.
Then, instead of just a tall weed growing along the fence line of my property, I found a display of star-like flowers arrayed at the end of every branch.
Besides displaying beautiful and unusual blossoms, Phytolacca americana flowers are distinctive in another way.
If you'll look closely above, you'll see that the embryonic fruit is already visible as a green capsule in the center of each flower.
Another distinguishing feature is the lack of petals on the flowers: The petal-like white forms framing the green center are actually sepals—the usually green outer coverings of a blossom, which comprise the calyx or husk of the bud.
(Other flowers without petals in the Gallery are Thimbleweed and Flowering Spurge.)
In mid-summer the capsules ripen into these grape-like berries. This fruit was used to make a dye and ink by the early colonists, thus another name, Ink Berry.
Although they appear juicy and appealing, something like grapes, the berry, indeed the entire plant, is poisonous.
Ingesting the toxins contained in Pokeweed can cause burns to the tissues of the mouth and esophagus, as well as stomach irritation, followed by vomiting, bloody diarrhea, and can end in fatal convulsions.
Even casual contact: cutting the stem or leaves or touching the crushed berries can allow the toxin to be absorbed through the skin.
However, the new, young leaves have been eaten in the American South for many years as "poke salad," but only after thorough washing several times in fresh water. (It is believed that Indians introduced the first settlers in Virginia to "poke sallat.")
However, most authorities warn against coming in contact with, let alone, eating the leaves of Phytolacca americana, young or old, washed or not.
So, as we usually do: We suggest being content with visual enjoyment of these beautiful lilies of the field and find our "salat" elsewhere!
Any thoughts, pro or con? Why not drop me an anonymous note at the Comments page?
OR
Go back to the Main Directory to consider more lilies of the field.