| Where
the garden meets the wild
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PODOPHYLLUM, DYSOSMA, SINOPODOPHYLLUM MAYAPPLE, MANDRAKE Podophyllaceae (Mayapple family) / Berberidaceae (Barberry family) |
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| Once there was only Podophyllum.
Then Dysosma was split off for the Chinese plants and Sinopodophyllum
was created for Podophyllum hexandrum alone. Now there's a move to
fold the whole lot back into Podophyllum. No matter what you call them, the mayapples of eastern North America and Asia are closely related and perfect for the woodland garden. Given damp humus and dappled shade, they gradually form swathes and clumps that are interesting to look at from the moment in spring when they rise like furled umbrellas until they die down in autumn. These rhizomatous plants contribute powerful anti-cancer and other drugs to medicine both eastern and western. Overcollection in the wild has made many of them rare. All parts of most of them are toxic if eaten without special preparation. We have quite a few species in our garden, but only a few in quantities to sell. |
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Photograph © Paige Woodward
Photograph © Antoine Hoog |
Podophyllum hexandrum Royle
var. chinense Sprague. Himalayan mayapple, Chinese
mayapple. Also
called Sinopodophyllum chinense and Podophyllum emodi. This
treasure is native to alpine shrub in the Himalaya and western China. The Chinese form,
which we offer, is
larger and showier. Its broad, toothed leaves with 3-5 lobes gradually
unfurl in April-May, mottled khaki and
pinkish-brown at
first, later dark green. The 6-tepalled flowers, 3-4 cm (1.5") across,
appear before or with the leaves and are often white in this species, but ours are
pale pink to rose-pink. In August, a scarlet, plum-shaped fruit is produced, persisting well
into autumn. Our plants descend from a collection made
in 1981 by Carla Teune, now curator of the Hortus Botanicus of
Leiden University, in China's Sichuan province at an altitude of 4000 m (13,000'). Rhizome (Fall shipping only). $12.00 |
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Photograph © Susan Farmer |
Podophyllum peltatum
Linnaeus.
Mayapple.
Western Mandrake. This plant of lowland deciduous woods in eastern North America is
the closest relative of Asia's Podophyllum
hexandrum ~ and looks it. Botanists speculate that several million years ago there was but one species over a vast area. As the
Himalaya and the Tibetan Plateau rose, some plants adapted to the
highlands, and became P. hexandrum, while others remained below, to
become P. peltatum. The
bright green leaves of P. peltatum are 15-25 cm
(6-10") across, with 5-9 lobes. Its nodding white flowers have 6-9
segments and bloom in May, below the leaves. The large, ovoid, dangling
fruits are 3-5 cm (1-2") long and are usually yellow, but sometimes
red. Height to 30 cm (12") after flowering. Zone 6.
Not available this season. |
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Photographs © Paige Woodward |
Rhizome (Fall shipping only). $18.00 |
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| This page was updated June 3, 2008 | ||
