Veratrum

Kenneth Hixson khixson@nu-world.com
Sun, 18 Apr 2004 20:54:12 PDT
Mary Sue, thank you for mentioning Veratrum, and Jane, thank you for
adding to the subject.  I've never grown them, though have often thought
they would be attractive architectural plants, if only the leaves were
not so consistently shredded.
>However, few serious gardeners fail to be 
>attracted to the foliage of veratrums, especially if it is not damaged by 
>slugs and snails.
>The leaves are beautiful in spring, and they seem to develop a 
>resistance to slug predation over the years, so even without bait they 
>eventually look good. 
>They are quite poisonous.

	My question is, is this slug/snail damage?  The early season leaves
I've seen are usually not damaged, and the damage pattern is more consistant
with caterpillers than slugs--ie, the leafblades are eaten between the ribs 
of the leaves, not from the outside in as in the usual pattern of slugs.
It is always interesting that some creatures seem able to eat plants which
are poisonous to most others.
	I've long thought I'd like to grow one or more Veratrums somewhere
in the garden, but have never been in the right place at the right time
to harvest seeds.

Ken, western Oregon


More information about the pbs mailing list