Actaea pachypoda

Native

Moderate moisture. Woods.

May to June

White

18″ to 36″

This is a 18″ to 36″ tall, erect, perennial forb that rises from a large, thick rhizome.

The stems are erect and hairless.

The leaves are alternate. The lower leaves are on long stalks, the upper leaves on shorter stalks. They are divided into 3 segments, with each segment divided into 3 leaflets. The leaflets are egg-shaped to oblong and may be unlobed or have 1 to 3 lobes. The margins have deep, sharp, irregular teeth. The upper leaflet surface is hairless. The lower surface is usually hairless.

The inflorescence is a dense, slightly elongated cluster on a long stalk with 25 or more flowers rising at the end of the stem or from an upper leaf axil. It is ¾″ to 6¾″ long and usually longer than wide.

The flowers are ¼″ wide. There are 4 to 10 white petals which soon fall off leaving 15 to 50 stamens.

The fruit is a white, nearly globular berry with a black dot at the tip. The berry contains several seeds. When fruiting the pedicels are bright red and stout, as thick as the stalk to which they are attached.

Red baneberry (Actaea rubra ssp. rubra) leaflet lower surface is commonly hairy, at least with hairs along the veins. The flower clusters are ball-shaped, as wide as long. The berries are red. When fruiting the pedicels are dull green or brown and slender, thinner than the stalk to which they are attached.

The form Actaea pachypoda f. rubrocarpa has red or pink berries. It is uncommon. It may be a hybrid of Actaea pachypoda and Actaea rubra, as its fruits are sterile.