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Natural
History False Lily-of-the-Valley (Maianthemum dilatatum) Richard Hebda INDEX for Native Plants This text was originally published in Coastal Grower (formerly The Island Grower) in Victoria, British Columbia. For subscription information, please call Susanne Steele at the Coastal Grower at 250-478-0825. Unlike many highly bred horticultural plants, British Columbia's native plants usually require little maintenance. This makes them very suitable for landscaping purposes, whether on small city lots or over larger areas. British Columbia's flora has many shrubs suitable for landscape use, like tall Oregon-grape (Mahonia aquifolium) for example. Many herbaceous species, notable among them false-lily-of- the-valley, work well too. False lily-of-the-valley forms shiny green carpets from relatively thin creeping rhizomes (root-stems). Two to three perfectly heart-shaped leaves jut out smartly from the short erect stem, the whole plant rising to 10-25 cm (4-10") tall. Long parallel veins handsomely mark the leaf surface. A creamy white cylinder-shaped flower head rises among the leaf bases at the top of the stem. Though in the Lily Family (Liliaceae), which typically has flower parts in threes, false lily-of-the-valley has flower parts in fours. Flowers appear in May and in cool moist settings they sometimes persist into summer. Fruits are at first round and pea-like, their green surface dotted with brown patches. Later they turn red and soft. This species inhabits a wide geographic range which extends along the coast from Alaska to California. In British Columbia it grows mainly along the coast. Maianthemum canadense is an interior species which can be found right across Canada. False lily-of-the-valley revels in moist shaded places. It occurs widely in moist sites within the coast forest where shrubs do not form a dense canopy. Sometimes it spreads on river and stream banks. This plant is easily propagated from the rooted ends of the rhizomes (root-stems) that creep just under the soil surface. Remove these in the fall and replant as soon as possible in their new home. New plants are easily raised from fall sown seed too. Choose a shady to partly shady site with a loose humus rich soil and place the roots about 2.5 cm (1") below the surface and water in. The colony may a take a year or two to establish, but once it does it spreads easily. Gardening books and floras identify this herbaceous perennial for its usefulness in the garden, but warn that it is an invader. The best setting is one where there is moist or damp shade or partial shade. Ideal sites include a neglected woodland corner, under trees or shrubs where a uniform ground cover is wanted and on shady banks. False lily-of-the-valley excels in low light situations such as the north side of a wall, or between two buildings where the light rarely enters, but there is sufficient moisture. Once established though, this plant will overwhelm the ground, so it needs to be corralled from other parts of the garden. Oregon wood sorrel combines successfully with it in shady difficult places. In Stanley Park in Vancouver this species is used to spill about sword ferns along a stream. Another place it can be seen is in the Native Plant Garden at the Royal British Columbia Museum, where it forms a pleasant carpet in the coast forest beds. The reddish berries of this plant fed several groups of coastal B.C. First Peoples. Though not highly regarded as a food, and called "frog berries" by some groups, the red berries were occasionally eaten in the wild. Haida people gathered green berries and stored them in water until they were red and soft. Sometimes the berries were gathered and dried. Later they were boiled in water to be eaten. The mellifluous name Maianthemum originates in the Greek words maios = May, and anthemos = flower and refers to the time of blooming. The Latin word dilatatum means spread out and refers either to the spreading capacity of the plant or the way the leaves extend out from the stem. For more information about Native Plants, contact Richard Hebda at the Royal British Columbia Museum.
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