Achlys (plant)

''Achlys'' is a small genus of flowering plants in the barberry family (Berberidaceae), which it shares with genera such as ''Berberis'' and ''Vancouveria''.Gilkey, Helen M. & Dennis, La Rea J. (2001). ''Handbook of Northwestern Plants''. Oregon State University Press. p. 161 It is named after the Greek legendary figure associated with shade and mist, Achlys, because the plants grow in the shade.

Species

There are either two or three species, depending on the authority. ''Achlys triphylla'' and ''Achlys californica'' are both native to western North America. Another ''Achlys'' is found in Japan: some authorities treat this as a subspecies of ''A. triphylla'', while others, especially in older treatments, call this ''Achlys japonica''. Still others consider ''A. triphylla'' and ''A. californica'' too similar to be separate species. The common names for these plants include vanilla leaf (sometimes written as vanilla-leaf or vanillaleaf, depending on the taxonomist or flora), deer's foot and sweet after death, referring to the vanilla scent of its crushed leaves.Pojar & MacKinnon (2004). ''Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast'' (Revised Edition). Lone Pine Publishing. p. 312

The Plant List recognizes two species, with ''A. californica'' regarded as a subspecies of ''A. triphylla''

Description

''Achlys triphylla'', known in western North America as vanillaleaf, is an erect perennial plant that sprouts from a creeping rhizome. Leaves are long-petioled and palmately divided into three leaflets. Flowers are small and lack sepals and petals, but instead have long showy white stamens that form single erect spikes. The leaflets give a great hint to the identification of the plant: bend back the middle leaflet and you have an upside-down set of moose antlers. Alternatively, bend back the two side leaflets and you have a goose or deer foot (hence the common name). In the Pacific Northwest, ''Achlys triphylla'' is ubiquitous in moist shady forests west of the Cascades at low to middle elevations from Vancouver island and southern British Columbia south to northern California.

The plants are spaced widely on the rhizomes, but often overlap in large networks that result in carpets of ''Achlys'' that dominate the near-surface understory. ''Achlys'' seems to prefer moist soil, so at middle to higher elevations it is easier to find them along streambanks or well-shaded ravines.

File:Achlys japonica 5.JPG, ''Achlys japonica'' flowers
File:Achlys triphylla 0973.JPG, Covered with fine hairs, ''Achlys triphylla'' achenes are concave toward stem and fleshy.
File:Achlys triphylla 15379.JPG, ''Achlys triphylla'' at Standup Creek Trail 1369 Wenatchee National Forest
File:Achlys japonica 6.JPG, ''Achlys japonica'' growing in Kitakami Mountains, Iwate prefecture, Japan

Insect repellent

When dried properly, the plants are strongly aromatic and smell of vanilla. Besides serving as an excellent tent air freshener, ''Achlys'' has been used by native tribes of southern British Columbia as an insect repellent. The dried leaves were hung in bunches in doorways to ward off flies and mosquitoes, and it's not unheard of for naturalists to rub the dried or even fresh leaves on exposed skin when hiking the Olympics or Cascades during the summer mosquito season.

Japanese ''Achlys'' are quite similar to those found in western North America.

References

External links

*
Jepson Manual eFlora (TJM2) treatment of ''Achlys''

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4673829

Berberidaceae
Berberidaceae genera
Flora of British Columbia
Flora of California
Flora of the West Coast of the United States
Insect repellents
Plant toxin insecticides