In common with others of the small Smilaxes the strong-fibred stem has a somewhat zigzag gesture. It looks an honest little plant, not at all deserving the opprobrious epithet, “false,” that has been given it.
TWO-LEAVED SOLOMON’S SEAL: Smilacina trifolia.
| Solomon Zigzag. | Smilacina racemosa. |
| False Spikenard. |
Found in June, in moist woods and brookside copses.
The leafy stalk (from 1 to 2 feet high) is oblique and zigzag in gesture; it has a strong fibre, and a smooth surface, and is light green.
The leaf is oval—long in proportion to its width,—tapering to a slender tip, with an entire and much ruffled margin, and 3 noticeable ribs; the surface is finely downy; the color a strong, vigorous green. The leaves have almost no stem at all, and are placed alternately along the stalk.
The flower is small, with 6 petal-like parts and 6 stamens, all greenish white. Many flowers are gathered in a branching cluster upon the end of the leafy curving stalk.
The berries are pale red, speckled with dark. Gray’s Manual in speaking of this genus says its name is a diminution of Smilax, “to which, however, these plants bear little resemblance.” For a similar reason, perhaps, this plant is called “false” after the true Spikenard!
