American False Hellebore

Appearance

It is a herbaceous perennial plant reaching 0.7–2 m tall, with a solid green stem. The leaves are spirally arranged, 10–35 cm long and 5–20 cm broad, elliptic to broad lanceolate ending in a short point, heavily ribbed and hairy on the underside. The flowers are numerous, produced in a large branched inflorescence 30–70 cm tall; each flower is 5–12 mm long, with six green to yellow-green tepals. The fruit is a capsule 1.5–3 cm long, which splits into three sections at maturity to release the numerous flat 8–10 mm diameter seeds. The plant reproduces through rhizome growth as well as seeds.

Naming

There are two varieties:
⤷ ''Veratrum viride'' var. ''viride''. Eastern North America. Side branches of inflorescence erect or spreading.
⤷ ''Veratrum viride'' var. ''eschscholzianum'' Breitung. Western North America. Side branches of inflorescence drooping.


The related western North American ''Veratrum californicum'' can be distinguished from sympatric var. ''eschscholzianum'' by its whiter flowers, with erect side branches of the inflorescence.

Distribution

In eastern North America, var. ''viride'' occurs from southwestern Labrador and southern Quebec south to northern Georgia. In the west, var. ''eschscholzianum'' occurs from Alaska and Northwest Territory south through Yukon, British Columbia, Alberta, Washington, Idaho, Montana, and Oregon to northwestern California .

It is found in wet soils in meadows, sunny streambanks, and open forests, from sea level in the north of the range, up to 1,600 m in the southeast and 2,500 m in the southwest.

Habitat

In eastern North America, var. ''viride'' occurs from southwestern Labrador and southern Quebec south to northern Georgia. In the west, var. ''eschscholzianum'' occurs from Alaska and Northwest Territory south through Yukon, British Columbia, Alberta, Washington, Idaho, Montana, and Oregon to northwestern California .

It is found in wet soils in meadows, sunny streambanks, and open forests, from sea level in the north of the range, up to 1,600 m in the southeast and 2,500 m in the southwest.