Actaea racemosa – Black Cohosh

This plant’s fine-textured foliage and soaring flower spikes make it a choice background plant for the shade garden or woodland edge. The wandlike flower spikes emerge in summer and continually reorient to the vertical as they grow, giving them a vaguely serpentine quality – indeed another common name is Snakeroot. The flowers have a bit of a sour, musky aroma so avoid placing too near frequently traveled paths. Many beneficial insects find the flowers attractive.