American pokeweed is a big, fast-growing native perennial of the eastern US, easy to spot by its magenta stems and drooping clusters of glossy purple-black berries. Every part is poisonous, yet in the South the young shoots have long been boiled and eaten as "poke sallet." It's also called poke, pokeberry, or inkberry.
Appearance
- Growth form
- A herbaceous perennial that can grow 4–10 ft (1.2–3 m) tall in a single summer from a thick taproot up to 12 in (30 cm) long. The stout, smooth stems turn red or purple, especially late in the season.
- Leaves
- Large, smooth, lance-shaped leaves up to about 16 in (41 cm) long. Crushed leaves have an unpleasant smell.
- Flowers
- Small white to greenish flowers with no true petals, in long up to 8 in (20 cm), from early summer into early fall (mostly July–September).
- Fruit
- Berries ripen from green through white to shiny purple-black from late summer through fall. They're full of crimson juice and contain glossy black seeds.
Look-alikes
Indian pokeweedPhytolacca acinosa
Indian pokeweed has green stems and flower and fruit spikes that stay upright. American pokeweed has reddish stems and fruit clusters that droop.
Why they get mixed upA related Asian pokeweed with similar leaves and flowers that occasionally escapes from cultivation in North America.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- woodland openings
- fencerows
- pastures
- recently cleared land
- yards and vacant lots
- Range
- Native across eastern North America, from the East Coast through the Midwest and along the Gulf Coast, with scattered populations on the West Coast. It has also spread to parts of Europe and Asia, including Korea and Japan.
- Preferred conditions
- Grows in full sun to part shade and likes moist soil, but handles short dry spells. It's hardy in USDA zones 4–8 and quickly moves into disturbed ground.
- Flowering
Flowers Jul–Sep
Flowers Jul–Sep
Life cycle
- Seed dispersal
- Birds eat the berries without harm and spread the seeds, which is why pokeweed pops up along fences and under trees where birds perch.
Cautions
- Cautions
- All parts are poisonous to people and pets, especially the root, then the leaves and stems, then the berries. The berries are dangerous even when green. Sap can be absorbed through broken skin and can cause a rash, so wear gloves when pulling it.
Name and classification
- About the name
- Two varieties are recognized: common American pokeweed (var. americana), found through most of the range, and maritime pokeweed (var. rigida), which grows only along the seacoast and is often confused with the common form. Some references treat the coastal plant as its own species, Phytolacca rigida.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- NENot EvaluatedNot yet assessed
Culture and stories
- Culture and stories
- "Poke sallet" is made from young shoots and leaves boiled two or more times with fresh water each time; mature plants and roots are never eaten. Even so, poisonings have happened.
- The berry juice was once used as ink, giving it the name inkberry. In the mid-1800s it was often used to color wine.
- The name "poke" likely comes from an Algonquian word for the plant, and Tony Joe White's 1969 hit "Polk Salad Annie" is named for the dish.
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