Herb-paris
Paris quadrifolia
Bunchflower family (Melanthiaceae)
One berry, plague berry
Herb paris is a striking plant with an odoriferous smell. The four, spreading, elliptical leaves are easily recognised, due to their symmetry, in dense covered forest floors. A single flower, surrounded by four petals and four sepals, emit the smell of rotting meat to attract blowflies. The flies pollinate the plant, which then goes on to develop a single big, blue-black berry after flowering (hence the Dutch name ‘eenbes’ – one berry). In moist, deciduous forests in the south and east of the Netherlands it is extremely rare in the wild.
Both the plant and berries are very toxic. In the past herb paris was widely used in homeopathy. A solution of the plant was used to expel infectious diseases but the medicine was often worse than the disease. To this end herb paris was known in Dutch as ‘pestbes’ - plague berry.
Themes
Crown jewel of Domies Toen.
All parts of the plant are poisonous, overdoses have proved fatal for children.
The flower smells of carrion and is pollinated by flies.
The entire plant is harvested just as it is coming into flower. Homeopathic remedies are made from the plant.
Dyes can be extracted from this plants - red from the berries, yellow from the leaves.
Details
Description: | Herb, 15-40 cm. |
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Distributions: | Temperate and colder areas in asia and europe, not in ireland |
Habitat: | Ancient woodlands on calcareous soils and occasionally found in grikes on open limestone pavement. |
Year cycle: | Perennial (trees and shrubs included) |
Hardiness: | Colder than -4 f (very hardy) |
Flowering period: | Mei - juni |
Flower color: | Green |
Notes on flowers: | Flowers with very narrow, greenish filiform (threadlike) petals, green sepals with a round, purple to red ovary in the center. |
At its best: | Mei - juni |