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Project Noah Nature School
Medeola virginiana
This plant has a really strikingly attractive flower in the spring, but the fruiting body is no less lovely. Birds like these bluish berries, and I find the red coloring on the leaves below them to be quite lovely as well. The berries are not edible for us humans, but the root is. Supposedly it has a brittle cucumber-like flavor (I'm imagining something like jicama) but as this flower is becoming somewhat uncommon (it's actually endangered in Florida and Illinois) it should probably be left alone. If you're lost and starving in the woods, it's good to know the root is safe to eat!
USA: AL , AR , CT , DC , DE , FL , GA , IL , IN , KY , LA , MA , MD , ME , MI , MN , MO , MS , NC , NH , NJ , NY , OH , PA , RI , SC , TN , VA , VT , WI , WV Canada: NB , NS , ON , PE , QC Native Distribution: Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia; south to Florida; west to Alabama and Louisiana; north to Minnesota. Native Habitat: Moist woodlands.
Spotted along the Bear Creek Trail Ellijay GA
Spotted on Aug 30, 2014
Submitted on Sep 12, 2014
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