A single whorl of four net-veined leaves like a cross, with a lone star-shaped green flower above, and later one glossy blue-black berry
Herb Paris — Paris quadrifolia.
Nature · Wildflowers & flowers
Herb Paris
Native · flowers May–Jun · ancient woodland on moist, chalky soils
Paris quadrifolia — Melanthiaceae
Herb Paris is a striking, rare woodland plant with a single whorl of four leaves in a cross, topped by a lone spidery green flower and later a single blue-black berry. It grows on damp, chalky soils in ancient woods and is used as a reliable indicator of woodland continuity. Its name has nothing to do with the French capital.
How to spot them
- ▸A single whorl of usually four broad, net-veined leaves, sometimes three or five, on an unbranched stem up to about 40 cm
- ▸One star-shaped flower at the top: long, lance-shaped green outer segments, thread-like greenish-white inner ones, and golden-yellow stamens
- ▸A single round blue-black berry in summer, which is harmful if eaten
- ▸Grows in damp, chalky, ancient woodland, sometimes with bluebell and primrose
- ▸No native look-alike: the nearest plants are garden trilliums, which have three leaves, and Solomon's-seal, whose leaves alternate up an arching stem
How to know it
Medieval herbalists called it the herb of equality because of its symmetrical layout, and it featured in marriage rituals and charms against witches
Herb Paris — per the Wildlife Trusts.
Its old names include one-berry, true-love and devil-in-a-bush
Herb Paris.
Named from the Latin par, meaning equal — not from the French capital — for its evenly paired leaves and flower parts
Herb Paris — Paris quadrifolia.
A rare, reliable indicator of ancient woodland on damp chalky soil, scarce in Scotland and West Wales
Herb Paris.
The Woodland Trust lists this four-leaved plant, with bluebell, primrose and wild service tree, as an ancient woodland indicator
Herb Paris.
Quick-fire facts
- •Family Melanthiaceae (previously Trilliaceae or Liliaceae)
- •Wildlife Trusts: flowers May to June; very scarce in Scotland and West Wales, absent from the extreme south-west of England
- •RHS: harmful if eaten; wear gloves when handling
- •Woodland Trust names herb Paris as one of the ancient woodland indicator plants
- •RHS: a rhizomatous perennial to around 40 cm, with a single whorl of usually four, sometimes three or five, ovate leaves
- •RHS: a solitary star-shaped flower with long lance-shaped green outer segments and threadlike greenish-white inner ones, followed by a single round blue-black berry
- •Other names: herb true-love, one-berry, devil-in-a-bush, four-leaved grass, leopard's bane
- •The four leaves paired like lovers, and the loops of the true lover's knot, are behind its love-related names
Drill it — 6 cards
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Sources
- The Wildlife Trusts — Herb-Paris
- Royal Horticultural Society — Paris quadrifolia | herb paris
- Woodland Trust — How to identify ancient woodland