Downy Rattlesnake Plantain
Goodyera pubescens
Family: Orchidaceae
What it is like
Bloom Color: White. Main Bloom Time: Early summer, Late spring, Mid summer. Form: Upright or erect.
Goodyera pubescens is an evergreen Perennial growing to 0.4 m (1ft 4in) at a medium rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 6. It is in leaf all year, in flower from July to August. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Insects. Suitable for: light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers dry or moist soil.
Height (m): 0.4
Where it is found
Almost any wooded habitat with acid soils, mainly on moist humus soils in shady, upland woods of hemlock, pine, oak, or maple, less frequent in lowland woods, bogs, swamps; 0 -1600 metres.
Eastern N. America - Maine to Florida, west to Alberta and Quebec.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 0
Medicine
Rating: 2
A tea made from the roots is used in the treatment of pleurisy and snakebites. A tea made from the leaves is taken to improve the appetite, as a treatment for colds, kidney ailments, rheumatism and toothaches. Externally, a poultice of the wilted leaves is used to cool burns, treat skin ulcers and relieve rheumatic joints. An ooze from the plant (this probably means the sap or the juice of the bulb) has been used as eye drops to treat sore eyes.
Appetizer: Improves the appetite
Miscellany: Various medicinal actions that need more clarification.
Odontalgic: Treats toothache (temporary measure only) and other problems of the teeth and gums.
Ophthalmic: Treats eye complaints.
Poultice: A moist, usually warm or hot, mass of plant material applied to the skin in the treatment of burns etc.
Other
Rating:
Miscellany: A rag-bag of items that are difficult to categorise.
How it is grown
Landscape Uses:Border, Ground cover, Massing. Requires a somewhat shady site and a well-drained compost of peat, leafmold and sand. Does well in the woodland garden. Orchids are, in general, shallow-rooting plants of well-drained low-fertility soils. Their symbiotic relationship with a fungus in the soil allows them to obtain sufficient nutrients and be able to compete successfully with other plants. They are very sensitive to the addition of fertilizers or fungicides since these can harm the symbiotic fungus and thus kill the orchid. This species is closely related to the British native species, G. repens. This plant is too rare in the wild to be harvested. Special Features:Attractive foliage, North American native, Attractive flowers or blooms.
Propagating it: Seed - surface sow, preferably as soon as it is ripe, in the greenhouse and do not allow the compost to dry out. The seed of this species is extremely simple, it has a minute embryo surrounded by a single layer of protective cells. It contains very little food reserves and depends upon a symbiotic relationship with a species of soil-dwelling fungus. The fungal hyphae invade the seed and enter the cells of the embryo. The orchid soon begins to digest the fungal tissue and this acts as a food supply for the plant until it is able to obtain nutrients from decaying material in the soil. It is best to use some of the soil that is growing around established plants in order to introduce the fungus, or to sow the seed around a plant of the same species and allow the seedlings to grow on until they are large enough to move.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade; Shady Edge;
Habit: Perennial
Hardiness: 6-10
Growth: Medium
Soil: Light (sandy), medium
Shade: Semi-shade, no shade
Moisture: Dry, moist