The perennial May apple is hiding its delicate flowers beneath lush foliage in the Woodland Garden.
A native of the United States Podophyllum peltatum is one of nine species of rhizomatous perennials which grow in woodlands of North America and Asia. All have peltate or palmately lobed leaves and solitary, terminal, cup-shaped, flowers. In this species the foliage is glossy, and the six to nine-petalled flowers white or pale pink, and having a slight fragrance. The flowers are followed by edible, ovoid, yellow-green fruits. In its native America these are used to produce jellies, and earn it the common name May apple. This species is a good choice for a woodland setting where it thrives in humus-rich, cool, moist soils, and will naturalize where grown well.