Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading.

We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription.

Your current subscription does not provide access to this content. Please use the button below to manage your account.

Verify your print or online subscription account here. Full week print subscribers are entitled to FREE unlimited online and eEdition access through the Daily Guard Online All-Access.

Get access to ALL of our site and our brand new electronic edition! 

Please log in, or sign up for a new account to continue reading.

Thank you for reading! We hope that you continue to enjoy our free content.

Welcome! We hope that you enjoy our free content.

Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in or create an account to continue reading.

Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribe purchase a subscription to continue reading.

Thank you for signing in! We hope that you continue to enjoy our free content.

Thank you for reading! We hope that you continue to enjoy our free content.

Thank you for reading! We hope that you continue to enjoy our free content.

Thank you for reading! We hope that you continue to enjoy our free content.

Thank you for reading! We hope that you continue to enjoy our free content.

Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading.

Please purchase a subscription to continue reading.

Your current subscription does not provide access to this content.

Verify your print or online subscription account here. Full week print subscribers are entitled to FREE unlimited online and eEdition access through the Daily Guard Online All-Access.

Get access to ALL of our site and our brand new electronic edition! 

Sorry, no promotional deals were found matching that code.

Promotional Rates were found for your code.

Partly cloudy. Low around 65F. Winds light and variable..

Partly cloudy. Low around 65F. Winds light and variable.

Shade gardens present an opportunity to grow a wide variety of plants native to the forested woodlands of eastern North America. One of my favorites is goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis), a plant more commonly thought of as a medicinal herb than a garden ornamental.

Goldenseal is an herbaceous plant that rises from the ground each spring from a tight clump of yellow rhizomes. It reaches about a foot tall when fully grown. A single forked stem arises from the terminus of each rhizome and produces a pair of celery-green leaves in early spring. The pubescent leaves are displayed flat on top with five prominent lobes and can be as much as 10 inches across.

In mid-spring an inch-wide white apetalous flower consisting of a dense cluster of stamens appears at the fork between the two leaves. Following the flower in July is a ball-shaped red berry about 1.5 inches across. Goldenseal belongs to the buttercup family and is monotypic, with only one closely related species occurring in Japan.

Goldenseal has long been used in herbal medicine. Native Americans – including the Cherokees – used the root as a treatment for cancer and to treat localized lesions. Modern medicine has identified the drug berberine (and several others) in the root extract. Berberine, which is produced by several other plant species, has been shown to have antibiotic properties.

Though traditional medicine feels there is little scientific evidence to support its use as an herbal remedy, modern herbalists disagree. It’s the sixth most common drug used in herbal preparations.

Plants for drug extraction have been collected from the wild in its native range – primarily high ground from southeastern Canada and through most of the eastern woodlands – for more than two centuries. Because of over-collection, it is becoming rare in the wild and has been listed as threatened or endangered in some states. Fortunately, the herb is easy to grow, and commercial plantings are now common throughout its native range and in the Pacific Northwest. Plants large enough to dig are produced in five to six years from rhizome divisions, while it takes six to seven years for plants grown from seed.

In the garden, goldenseal is easy to grow in any moderately moist and well-drained soil supplemented with an abundant supply of organic matter. It mixes well with other woodlanders, such as Solomon seal, bloodroot, mayapple and trilliums. Plant it in patches along the woodland path or in clusters, where the bold leaf display can be enjoyed.

Your comment has been submitted.

There was a problem reporting this.

Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.

Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos.

Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles.