Native Talk Tuesday #1

The plant featured in today's Native Talk Tuesday is Achlys triphylla, commonly known as Vanilla-Leaf, and has the nick-name Deer Foot. The picture below was taken somewhere along the Trail of Ten Falls in Silver Falls State Park.

The plant's name is from the leaves' vanilla-like fragrance when the plant is dry. The nick-name comes from the fact that it resembles a deers foot to some people. The leaves can be up to 12 inches long. Flowers develop on a narrow stalk that grows from where the leaves join. The flowers consist of 8-20 white stamens that develop a spike at the top of the stalk. This plant does not have any sepals or petals on it's flower. The veins persist through much of the fall and winter as a lacy network once the leaves have withered away.

The Vanilla-Leaf is often found in moist, shady forests (such as where I found the one in the picture); but also along forest edges and openings, and streambanks at low to middle elevations. I estimate that the plant in the picture was between 1300 and 1350 feet in elevation, as it was found near the top of Winter Falls. The Saanich Tribe of Vancouver Island used the leaves from this plant as an insect repellant by drying and hanging them in bunches to keep flies and mosquitoes away.