POLYGONATUM VERTICILLATUM

Family and Genus:- See- ASPARAGACEAE

Common Names:- Whorled Solomon's seal

Homotypic synonyms:- Campydorum verticillatum, Convallaria verticillata,

Evallaria verticillata, Sigillum verticillatum

Meaning:- Polygonatum (Gr) "Many knees" or "many joints," referring to the

knobby, jointed segments of the underground root.

Verticillatum (L) With reference to the whorled arrangement of the

leaves growing in circles around the upright stems.

General description:- An erect, rhizomatous herbaceous perennial. featuring

distinct whorled leaves, pendulous greenish-white tubular flowers, and spherical red

or black berries.

Rhizome:-

1) Thick, knotted, horizontal, and tuberous with distinct jointed scars, aiding slow

vegetative spread.

Stems:-

1) Slender, primly erect to subtly arching, angular, growing typically from 30 to 90

cm (and occasionally up to 1 m) high depending on soil moisture and shade.

Leaves:-

1) Narrowly lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, glabrous, and sessile or near-sessile.

tapering to an acuminate point. Deep, vibrant, or dark green on the upper surface.

Flowers:-

1) Inflorescence, axillary clusters of small, pendulous, tubular or campanulate

flowers hanging in twos or threes (or occasionally solitary) beneath the leaf

whorls. Creamy-white, greenish-white, or pale green.

Fruit:-

1) Berry, globose, Transitioning from green to bright red or dark orange/black upon

maturity in late summer/autumn.

Key features:-

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Toxicity:- Harmful if ingested by humans or pets

Habitat:- Preferring rich, damp, and nutrient-dense soils in cool, moist, shaded

temperate habitats such as mountain forests, wooded ravines, shaded riverbanks,

and rocky clearings.

Distribution:- Naturally distributed across temperate regions of Eurasia, stretching

from Europe through the Caucasus, Turkey, and the Himalayas to China and

Myanmar. An extremely rare native British perennial restricted to a handful of native

sites in Tayside, Scotland (specifically Mid and East Perthshire and Angus).

Flowering time:- Late spring to midsummer (May to July).

Status:- Classified globally as secure, widespread across Eurasia, but in Great

Britain, it is a rare native species listed as Vulnerable on the GB Red List and

protected under Schedule 8 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act.

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