White Rattlesnake Root
Prenanthes alba
White rattlesnake root carries drooping clusters of creamy bell-shaped heads on smooth purple-tinged stems in late summer, when little else blooms in shade. Leaves vary wildly in shape on the same plant, from triangular to deeply lobed. The milky sap gave rise to its folk use against snakebite.
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Type
- wildflower
- Lifespan
- biennial
- Height
- 2–5 ft
- Spacing
- 1–2 ft apart
- Light
- part shade, shade
- Soil moisture
- dry
- Soil pH
- neutral
- Bloom
- August, September
- Bloom colors
- white
- Wildlife value
- pollinators, butterflies
- Landscape uses
- naturalizing, border
- Native states
- AR, CT, DC, DE, GA, IA, IL, IN, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, NC, ND, NH, NJ, NY, OH, PA, RI, SD, TN, VA, VT, WI, WV