Transformational Gardening


Red Baneberry (Poisonous) (Actaea rubra): Images

Date Location Notes Images
May 11, 2012 Southeastern, New Hampshire There are not many plants in New England with a ball of flowers, so it makes it easy to remember. White Baneberry (Actaea pachypoda) looks similar to Red Baneberry (this plant), but with the following differences:
  • For Red Baneberry, the hood/cap (stigma) sitting on top of the ovary (inside the flower cluster) is less wide than the ovary. See the picture of the copper-colored stigma on the pale-yellow ovary (first picture in the 3rd row of the table). White Baneberry has a stigma that is wider than the ovary.
  • Red Baneberry often has some hairs on the back side of the leaflets. See closeup image below. White Baneberry leaves are hairless or nearly so on the back side.
  • Red Baneberry flower ball tends to be as wide as it is tall. White Baneberry tends to have a taller flower cluster than it is wide.
  • Most pictures I have seen shows White Baneberry leaflets somewhat smaller and thinner than Red Baneberry leaflets.
  • Red Baneberry pedicel width is 0.3-0.7 mm. White Baneberry pedicel width is 1.0-2.5 mm.
On rare ocassions, Red Baneberry can have white berries and White Baneberry can have red berries.
Date Location Notes Images
July 1, 2012 Southeastern, New Hampshire