100 Species #48: Lily of the valley

[urbpan]

This spray of pink lilies of the valley (Convallaria majalis 'Rosea') came up below our eastern white pine trio.

Lily of the valley is a plant that forms a ground cover in forests, producing tiny but very fragrant flowers. It's a common sight in New England woods, but whether it was present there before European colonization is apparently in question. Some sources, like Cornell University, say it is native to northeastern North America while many others insist that it is strictly a European native.

I like the way it unfurls from below the soil, turning barren winter ground into a sea of green in spring. All parts of the plant are poisonous, though presumably it produces it's little red berries to be eaten by some animal. Perhaps it lures birds to eat the berries, and germinates the seed in the bellies of dead bird carcasses. I'm kidding, but if anyone is aware of the natural seed-dispersal method of this species, it would be interesting to know.

(I used the "wildflowers" tag because this plant is often encountered in a wild state, even though the individual pictured here is a cultivated garden perennial.)

Comments

[bill_sheehan.livejournal.com]

What an utterly glorious painting of a photograph! That is just gorgeous!

[urbpan.livejournal.com]

Oh, well Geez, thanks! (The secret is underexposing the hell out of it.)

[plantmom.livejournal.com]

Yes, it's absolutely gorgeous.

Re: the question of how the seed is dispersed, some things are poisonous to humans but not to birds. Pokeweed (Phytolacca americana) is one plant which comes to mind. The roots, stems, and berries are poisonous to humans, yet birds carboload on them before migrating. At least, that's what I've concluded after years of observation. I can't believe they eat the berries then die; natural selection would have stopped that behavior long ago. I would have noticed a sudden die-off of robins and catbirds, too, but all I notice is the vivid purple droppings. Nice...

[urbpan.livejournal.com]

Right. And every description of poke (including this one) mentions that birds love the fruit. But I could find no mention of what eats lily of the valley berries (in what was admittedly hasty research).

See also: oriental bittersweet, poison ivy, etc.

[plantmom.livejournal.com]

Sneaky snarky lily of the valley eaters. They only come out at night. On odd days in the calendar.

I'm goofin'. I have no friggin' idea. I will, however, look around a bit. :)