Hydrophyllum virginianum

Virginia Waterleaf Boraginaceae

Hydrophyllum virginianum, Virginia Waterleaf or Eastern Waterleaf, is a rather lovely woodland perennial that earns its common name from the curious white mottling on its young leaves, as though someone has splashed them with water. It forms spreading colonies of handsome, deeply divided foliage, topped in late spring and early summer by loose clusters of small white to lilac, bell-shaped flowers. A useful plant for naturalistic woodland planting, particularly in moist, fertile soil.

It also has a respectable culinary history. The young leaves and shoots are edible, with a mild flavour, and can be eaten raw when very young or cooked as a green; older leaves become tougher and more bitter. The Iroquois and Menominee are specifically recorded as eating the young plants and leaves after cooking. The plant’s alternative common name, Shawnee Salad, reflects its long association with Indigenous food traditions in eastern North America.

Its ethnobotanical uses extend beyond the kitchen. A tea made from the roots was traditionally used for diarrhoea and dysentery, while preparations of the root were used externally for cracked lips and sore mouths. 

A charming, useful native woodland plant — and one that gives the shady border considerably more than ornamental value alone.

Height: 30–60 cm
Spread: 30–60 cm, spreading by rhizomes
Flowering: May–July
Hardiness: H6, approximately −20 to −15°C
Position: Partial to full shade
Soil: Moist, fertile, humus-rich soil
Edible: Young leaves and shoots, raw or cooked
Ethnobotanical: Traditional food and medicinal plant of Indigenous peoples of eastern North America