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Chimaphila maculata
Also called Spotted Wintergreen, Spotted Pipsissewa, Mottled Pipsissewa, Striped Prince's Plume, Striped Pipsissewa, Pipsissewa, Rat's Bane
Striped prince's pine is a small evergreen perennial herb of eastern North America with variegated dark green leaves and white or pinkish flowers in early summer. It grows best in shade, acidic, well-drained soil, and it relies on mycorrhizal fungi, so it is hard to grow in gardens.
Chimaphila maculata (spotted wintergreen, also called striped wintergreen, striped prince's pine, spotted pipsissewa, ratsbane, or rheumatism root) is a small, perennial, evergreen herb native to eastern North America and Central U.S., from southern Quebec west to Illinois, and south to Florida and Panama.
It can typically be found in sandy habitats, well-drained upland forests, wooded slopes, oak-pine woods, old-growth forests, and similar mesic habitats and woodlands. It is very tolerant of acidic soil and shade. Like many ericaceae species, the plant is believed to partially rely on delicate mycorrhizal (and possibly ericoid mycorrhizal) connections in order to thrive.
"The Creek Indians called it 'pipsisikweu' – which means 'breaks into small pieces' – after the supposed ability to break down gallstones and kidney stones. ... Native Americans used its leaf tea to treat rheumatism and stomach problems, and crushed leaves were applied as a poultice to sores and wounds."
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Chimaphila maculata by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
