Black Snakeroot
The black snakeroot produces tall, thin, graceful spires of white, fluffy, flowers, sometimes reaching 8 feet above the foliage clumps. It is excellent in the rear of the border.
Open and airy in bloom, the wandlike flower stalks sway with each breeze. The flowers are small and are produced densely along the upper part of the stalks in clusters up to 3 feet long. They are vertical and graceful, and exude a cloying sweet fragrance. The peak bloom occurs in late June and July, but small lateral branches bear flowers into August.
The glistening dark green leaves are compound, divided into three-toothed leaflets. The foliage forms dense clumps 2 to 3 feet high and provides good color until frost. Since the plant is native to the deep, rich, moist soils of open woodlands and the forest edge, it does best in moist, well-drained soil high in organic matter. It grows tallest in deep soil and light shade, and ideally should not have more than 4 hours of direct sun each day. In deep shade, however, it will not flower well.
Black snakeroot does not self-sow freely or spread about the garden, and can not be considered intrusive. The rhizomes expand slowly to increase the clump. The plant is long-lived.
