Goodyera pubescens (Willd.) R. Br.

Downy rattlesnake plantain, downy rattlesnake orchid

About plant names...

Downy rattlesnake plantain is native to eastern North America. The name reflects the snakeskin-like network of silvery white lines that make the leaves resemble the scales of a snake. It prefers dry woods and mildly acidic soils. Technically, these are orchids, not plantains.

Plants: 8-16" (20-40 cm), woolly, evergreen. It spreads via stolons, rootlike runners. It is often nestled in moss.

Leaves: Leaves are basal, rarely more than half an inch above the ground, and oval or narrowly oval, 1¼-2½" (3.2-6.3 cm). They are dark green, with a broad white central stripe and a distinctive network of white veins.

Flowers: On cylindrical spikes, 2½-4" (6.3-10 cm) tall. (The entire plant is up to 16" (40 cm) tall.) Each flower is ¼-⅜" (6.3-9.5 mm) in size. Flowers appear May-September, mostly in late July.

Online References:

Goodyera pubescens on www.plants.usda.gov

Goodyera pubescens on the Connecticut Botanical Society's Connecticut wildflowers site

Goodyera pubescens on

Goodyera pubescens at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

References:

Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest, Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 378

8/27/2016 · Williams Barn and Sørhaug Woods, Groton, Mass­a­chu­setts

8/14/2013 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire
≈ 7 × 6" (18 × 15 cm)

5/15/1991 · King George, Virginia · By Tim Chandler

8/16/2020 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine
≈ 5 × 8" (13 × 20 cm)

7/15/2019 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, New Long Loop, Hollis, New Hamp­shire
≈ 7 × 6" (16 × 15 cm)

7/15/2019 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, New Long Loop, Hollis, New Hamp­shire
≈ 6 × 6" (16 × 16 cm)

8/5/2019 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Wildflower Trail, Hollis, New Hamp­shire
≈ 4½ × 6" (12 × 14 cm)

6/26/2017 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 8 × 6" (19 × 15 cm)

6/26/2017 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, Mass­a­chu­setts
≈ 4 × 3" (10 × 8 cm)

8/5/2019 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Wildflower Trail, Hollis, New Hamp­shire
≈ 9 × 7" (23 × 17 cm)

7/31/2021 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine
≈ 3½ × 6" (9.4 × 14 cm)

Seed pods in early spring · 4/8/2021 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine
≈ 4 × 5" (10.0 × 12 cm)

Goodyera pubescens description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 7 Oct 2021.

© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.

8/16/2020 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine
≈ 8 × 5" (20 × 13 cm)

8/5/2019 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Wildflower Trail, Hollis, New Hamp­shire
≈ 8 × 8" (19 × 20 cm)

8/16/2020 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine
≈ 12 × 8" (31 × 20 cm)

I was saddened to see that a small patch of these delicate plants, which I have visited many times, was carelessly uprooted by a hiker. · 8/17/2019 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Wildflower Trail, Hollis, New Hamp­shire
≈ 4 × 6" (10 × 15 cm)

8/27/2016 · Williams Barn and Sørhaug Woods, Groton, Mass­a­chu­setts

5/23/2016 · Wildflower Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire

7/15/2019 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, New Long Loop, Hollis, New Hamp­shire
≈ 4 × 4" (10 × 11 cm)

8/16/2020 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine
≈ 3½ × 5" (9.8 × 12 cm)

8/5/2019 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Wildflower Trail, Hollis, New Hamp­shire
≈ 4 × 6" (10 × 14 cm)

Range:

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