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Poke salad days

2007 October 25

By Ken Moore
Flora Columnist
“My poke’s bigger than your poke!”

Believe it or not, that challenging brag has passed between more than two energetic gardeners in this area. While folks may consider the common American Pokeberry, Phytolacca americana, merely a weed, more and more really sophisticated gardeners admire and grow this giant native perennial.

Poke is a striking plant for all seasons.

The tiny flowers, arranged separately on pendulous branch tips, bloom throughout the growing season. Close examination of the flowers reveals white petals surrounding emerald green centers, contrasting with pink to burgundy colored stems. I am always stopped in my stride, unable to believe such color schemes. Though I am known to sing the praises of any native plant presently in my view, no other wild plant evokes my exuberance more than the common poke!

I love everything about this plant. Continuing from the flowers, we have those little emerald green centers maturing into berries turning from green to pink and finally shiny black. Daily entertainment is provided by our year-long resident mockingbird competing furiously with the summer resident catbird for the ripe berries, an obvious favorite treat for both birds.

From late summer through the entire fall, the 4-to-7-foot-tall branching stems of the poke are a brilliant scarlet to rhubarb burgundy color. When highlighted by the low angle of the morning and evening sun, there is, to my eyes, no more spectacular effect in the wild or managed landscape.

Even in the dormant months, the dried tan-colored stems of poke remain an interesting architectural feature. I never cut my stems down until the emergence of the lush green leaves from the base of the plant in the early spring. Then we refer to this special plant as poke salad. If you have never eaten poke salad, you’re missing out. Visit the farmers’ market and get some favored cooking strategies from some of the old timers there. Make certain you note the details, because poke is also a poisonous plant; you have to know what you’re doing to safely enjoy this culinary treat.

Poke has everything. In addition to the sheer beauty of the plant, it is edible, it is poisonous and it is medicinal. Wish I had the space to relate my annual conversation with a friend who collects the dried berries by the pint jars and carries them to her 90-year-old aunt, who concocts a special tea to relieve the pains of arthritis and rheumatism. But don’t you try it until you know what you’re doing!

Poke stories abound. Some notable ones from the local folks were recorded years ago by local legend Paul Green, in his Paul Green Word Book, repeated recently in the colorful Paul Green’s Plant Book. Check out the wild story about poke as a poison ivy cure. I suspect you won’t try the cure, but you will never forget the tale.

Email Ken Moore at flora@carrborocitizen.com. Find previous Ken Moore Citizen columns at The Annotated Flora (carrborocitizen.com/flora).

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