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False Lily of the Valley

Quinault - kle´qwan
Quileute - tse'a'tsilput, "kind of sour"

Family:  Lily (Liliaceae)     
Genus:  Maianthemum     
Species: dilatatum

Botanical Description:  Elegant perennial, straight stems to 40 cm. Broad heart-shaped, alternate, smooth leaves, 1-3 with long stalk. Sweet smelling, small, white, 4 petaled flowers.  Light green to mottled brown then turning red, round berries to 6 mm diameter.  Prefers low to medium elevations, moist-wet shady woods, riverside areas, often dominant groundcover.

Ethnographic Information: Berries are occasionally eaten. Soaked, pounded roots used by Quinault to treat sore eyes. Seldom regarded a quality food, some claimed the berries needed to be ripe and oiled or they would cause stomach pains. Leaves were heated and applied to cuts. Young leaves were eaten as a  'spring purge'. Internal injuries were treated with a root tea.