Streptopus amplexifolius
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| Streptopus amplexifolius | ||||||||||||||
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| Streptopus amplexifolius (L.) DC. |
Streptopus amplexifolius (Clasping Twistedstalk or Claspleaf Twistedstalk[1]) is a species of flowering plant in the family Liliaceae, native to North America.
It is a herbaceous perennial plant growing to 40-100 cm tall, with alternate, oblong-lanceolate leaves 5-14 cm long. The greenish-white flowers hang from axils on 1-2 cm thin kinked panicles, each flower with four white tepals, 9-15 mm long. The plants leaves completely encircle the stem, and the stems have a kink at each leaf axil giving the plants stem a "twisted" and wiry appearance. The plants grow in a creeping habit in moist, dense undergrowth.
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[edit] Distribution
Twisted Stalk is widely distributed across North America. The plant is most often found near shaded stream banks and in moist thickets of the montane and subalpine zones across most of North America.[2]
[edit] Uses and Edibility
Twisted Stalk was used as a food plant by Native Americans in Eastern North America and as a medicine. The plant was referred to by early settlers of Eastern and Western North America as "wild cucumber" and as "scoot berries" for the mildly laxative effects of the plants berries if they are eaten in excessive quantities.
The tender young shoots of this plant were eaten by Native Americans as a salad green. The entire plant is sweet with a cucumber-like flavor. The berries are reported to be juicy and sweet, with a cucumber-like flavor. The juice of the berries was used as a soothing treatment for burns by American Indians.
Twisted Stalk has a supercifial resemblence to false solomons seal (Maianthemum racemosum), however, Twisted Stalk produces axillary flowers and fruits along the stem, where False Solomons Seal produces a terminal inflorescence. Twisted Stalk is easily identified by its large, juicy red berries which grow from each leaf axil and boldly contrast the surrounding foilage, and the berries are highly visible, even in the thickest undergrowth.
When young, Twisted Stalk can bear a frightening resemblence to members of the genus Veratrum, a highly toxic member of the Lily family that is distantly related to Twisted Stalk. This plant should not be consumed unless identification is positive. It is recommended to limit consumption of this plant only to the ripe berries due to this plants similar appearance to other related members of the Lily family some of which are highly toxic.[3]
[edit] Notes
- ^ TSN 43044. Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
- ^ Edible and Medicinal Plants of the West, Gregory L. Tilford, ISBN 0-87842-359-1
- ^ Edible and Medicinal Plants of the West, Gregory L. Tilford, ISBN 0-87842-359-1
[edit] References
- Blanchan, Neltje (2002). Wild Flowers: An Aid to Knowledge of our Wild Flowers and their Insect Visitors. Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.
