Cohosh.Actæa spicata, var. rubra.Red Baneberry.
Found in the woods during May.
The small round smooth stalk branches near the top, and grows about 2 feet high. It is green, with a cool gray-white bloom.
The leaf is rather large, and compound, being 2 or 3 times divided; the leaflets are oval, taper-pointed, and set on long, grooved, shining foot-stems; the margin is prettily toothed, with an occasional deep notch, the ribs and veins show like a fine network, the texture is loose, with a noticeable softness to the touch, the surface is shining; the color green. The leaf is set immediately upon the stalk.
The flower is very small; 4 to 10 white petals with oval tips and very slender bases; the many delicate, white stamens, with yellow tips, are longer than the petals. The flowers are arranged in a large, loose, round or club-shaped spike, on a long smooth stem, that springs from the junction of the leaf.
The calyx drops as the flowers open, and the petals soon fall also, leaving the stamens, which remain some time; these are succeeded by the ripening berries that are to be seen frequently during August in deep woods; they are oval in shape and of a shining coral red. The plant seldom bears more than a single spike of flowers.
The White Baneberry,A. alba, is very like the Red, but its berries (called “Dolls’ Eyes” in Massachusetts) are shining white with a black dot, and their foot-stems are noticeably larger.