Phytolacca americana
A tall North American perennial in the Phytolaccaceae with reddish stems, white flowers, and dark purple-black berries, toxic to mammals, ornamentally cultivated with historic uses as a vegetable, medicine, and dye, and providing food for wildlife.
Common Names
Pokeweed, Pokeberry, American Pokeweed, Common Pokeweed, Poke, Poke Sallet, Poke Salad, Inkberry, Pigeonberry, American Nightshade, Virginia Poke, Scoke, Poke Root
Summary
American pokeweed is a tall, herbaceous perennial native to eastern North America with an arching habit and reddish-purple stems. It features large, alternate leaves and white to greenish flowers arranged in racemes, followed by purple-black berries that ripen in late summer to fall, all supported by a large fleshy taproot and a distinctive unpleasant odor when leaves are bruised. The plant typically reaches 4 to 10 feet in height and occurs in disturbed habitats such as roadsides, open woods, pastures, and fencerows. For cultivation, it tolerates full sun to partial shade and a wide range of soils, preferring evenly moist, well-drained conditions; it is easy to grow and propagates by seed or root cuttings, often self-seeding and potentially naturalizing. All parts are poisonous to humans, with berries especially toxic, though young shoots have historical culinary uses when boiled, and berries serve as a food source for birds that disperse the seeds. Because of its vigorous self-seeding and weedy tendencies, it is commonly regarded as a weed in landscapes, though its flowers and berries also provide wildlife value and ornamental interest.
Lifecycle
Perennial
Height
4-10 feet
Hardiness Zones
Zones 4-8
Sunlight Requirements
Ideally Full Sun, tolerates Partial Sun to Partial Shade.
Soil Type
No single ideal soil type; loamy, well-drained soil rich in organic matter.
Soil Drainage
Well-drained to moist, loamy soil rich in organic matter that remains moderately moist but not waterlogged
Soil pH
No single ideal pH, 4.7-8.0, tolerates acidic to alkaline soils
Bloom Color
White, sometimes pinkish-tinged or greenish-white
Bloom Time
Summer
Foliage Color
Green
Fall Foliage Color
Gold/YellowGreen, Green, Green and purple
Leaf Lifecycle
Deciduous
Growth Rate
Rapid growth
Seasons of Interest
Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter.
Propagation Methods
Seeds, Division
Attracts Wildlife
Attracts bees and other pollinators, attracts birds
Taxonomy
- Taxonomic Rank
- Species
- Author
- L.
- Publication
- Sp. Pl. : 441 (1753)
Superior Taxa
- Kingdom
- Plantae
- Subkingdom
- Pteridobiotina
- Phylum
- Angiosperms
- Order
- Caryophyllales
- Family
- Phytolaccaceae
- Genus
- Phytolacca
Inferior Taxa
Phytolacca americana var. rigida