White Baneberry

Actaea alba

Family Ranunculaceae

Brief Description: Stem 15-13 inches. Leaves egg shaped to oval. Petals are 1-2 tenths of an inch in length. Flowers in a dense, long-peduncled, terminal raceme. Fruit is white, rarely red. Also called Doll's Eyes because the berries are white with a black spot.

Blooms from May to June.

Fruit from July to October.

Geographic Range: From east Quebec to Ontario and Minnesota, south to Georgia, Louisiana, and Oklahoma.

Habitat: Rich woods

Garden Use: Combine with a mat such as Wild Ginger and other tall species such as Cardinal Flower and Bell Worts.

Historic Uses: Together with Red Baneberry, used by American Indians to promote menstrual discharge as well as in the cure of rheumatism. The relative scarcity of White Baneberry, however, kept it from being well known. Berries are extremely poisonous.