Summer Flowers of the High Alps

The White Veratrum is a tall weed with large green leaves, very abundant in moist meadows and pastures in all parts of the Alps between 2000 and 6000 feet. Before the flowers appear it strongly suggests one of the larger Gentians, but the flowers, which come out in July and August, are quite different. It is a widely distributed plant, being found in Russia, Siberia, Lapland, as well as in most of the mountain ranges of Central and Southern Europe. It appears to have been left as a relic of the glacial period in the higher parts of Silesia and the Black Forest. The large green leaves are downy beneath, and the flowers, which are always green externally, may be pure white (var. typicum), or more commonly yellowish-green (var. Lobelianum), internally. Some would regard these two varieties as distinct species. The whole plant is extremely poisonous. Sometimes it is eaten by the sheep and goats with disastrous results to the herdsmen, but the cattle are wiser and rarely make this mistake. The poison is an alkaloid Veratrin, which is contained in largest quantities in the root from which it is extracted for medical purposes. If the root be tasted it will at first appear sweet, but its acrid, bitter flavour soon overpowers this first impression. The Swiss herdsmen look upon the White Veratrum as a noxious weed, not only because of its poisonous properties but also because it grows in the richest soil and robs the true fodder plants of nourishment. In the Jura, on the other hand, the farmers rather welcome it. They say that the shade of its large leaves preserves the grass for the cattle and prevents it becoming dried up by the scorching sun.

The White Veratrum will be easily recognised. Its nearest relative, the Black Veratrum (Veratrum nigrum), is a much rarer plant that grows in woods. It has reddish-black or chocolate flowers, which grow in large spikes like those of the plant here illustrated, but each individual flower has a relatively longer flower-stalk.