Dorothy GilmanMayapples, Podophyllum peltatum, are an interesting native woodland plant. Their wide (around one foot) deeply lobed leaves are carried singly or in pairs on 12 to 15-inch stems; a group of them resembles an encampment of green umbrellas, rather like an illustration by Dr. Seuss.
In early spring, the stems push straight up through the soil; leaves are clasped at the tip, unfurling when the stem reaches its full height, and not before. Single flowers appear in April or May on older plants having more than one leaf.
The nodding, cupped flowers are typically white, very occasionally pink, with six to nine petals and many bright yellow stamens; you have to peek under the “umbrella” to see them in the fork of the leaf stem.
Mayapple flowers are short-lived, have a peculiar scent, little or no nectar to entice pollinators, face downward, and are hidden under ample leaves.
Still, they are visited by queen bumblebees seeking pollen to pack into their nests—food for emerging larvae.
Pollination yields an ovoid or lemon-shaped fruit, which turns from pale green to yellow as it ripens. The fully ripe fruit is edible, but beware: the seeds, unripe fruit, and all other parts of the plant are poisonous.
Better to leave it be. The weight of the ripening fruit pulls the senescing stem down, putting the fruit at just the right height to be munched by passing box turtles, who then distribute the seeds away from the parent plant in their droppings. That, as my youngest daughter used to say, is a good cooperation, one forged over millennia between a plant, which needs pollination and seed distribution; a bumblebee, driven to provide for the survival of her brood; and an omnivorous turtle, unaffected by the plant’s toxin.
Mayapples prefer moist, acidic soil with lots of organic matter and partial shade to shade. However, they will tolerate a range of soil conditions, can take more sun, and are drought tolerant. Deer and rabbits leave them alone. They spread by branched, creeping rhizomes (occasionally by seed) and can form large colonies–all the plants in a good-sized patch are likely related. Propagate by division in the fall or very early spring.
Or try collecting the seeds; it seems to work best if they are planted straight away with the fleshy pulp clinging to them. Mayapples are ephemeral plants, dying back when conditions are no longer to their liking, the sun too hot, or the weather too dry, and so are unsuitable for a border. But they are perfect for naturalizing in a woodland or native garden. They are excellent under the shade of trees, including walnut trees and some pines, where many other plants will not grow. Try interplanting them with ferns to fill in as the mayapples fade. Or keep it simple and serene and let the leaf duff or pine needles cover the soil after the mayapples go by.
Dorothy gardens in Belmont, where she lives with her husband, Steve, and their two dogs, Rosie and Jasper. She has six grandchildren — all perfect by definition — and has enjoyed introducing them to gardening. She has an abiding interest in nature and is always amazed by the wonders to be found in her own backyard.