Mayapple is a unique native wildflower that emerges in wooded areas and shady garden beds across much of North America With its umbrella-like leaves and solitary white flower, mayapple can lend an exotic touch when allowed to grow as a garden accent However, left unchecked, mayapple can multiply quickly and aggressively via underground rhizomes, becoming a challenging weed. Here, we’ll explore mayapple’s growth habits and share organic methods and chemical controls to effectively remove unwanted plants.
What is Mayapple?
Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum) is a perennial wildflower species native to damp, wooded habitats in much of the eastern and midwestern United States. Other common names for mayapple include American mandrake, wild mandrake, and wild lemon.
Mayapple emerges in early spring from a thick underground rhizome system Each plant initially forms a single palmately lobed leaf resembling an open umbrella. Later in spring, a second leaf unfolds as the plant rapidly expands. In late spring, plants produce a solitary nodding white flower under the paired leaves, followed by a lemon-shaped green fruit that ripens to yellow in summer. Once fruiting completes, the aerial growth dies back entirely until the next spring
While native to shady areas, mayapple can spread aggressively in garden settings via its rapidly expanding root system When uncontrolled, it quickly crowds out desirable ornamental plants. Manual removal is challenging due to the extensive rhizomes So what’s the best way to get rid of mayapple? Let’s look at some effective control options.
Organic Methods to Remove Mayapple
For gardeners wishing to avoid chemical herbicides, a combination of manual removal and smothering can help rid beds of mayapple over time:
Manual Removal – Using a sharp spade, carefully dig out mayapple plants. Try to extract as much of the connecting rhizome system as possible. Discard all plant parts, as broken fragments may resprout. Spring and fall are best times, when the soil is moist and roots are most vulnerable. Repeat regularly to deplete the rhizome network over several seasons.
Covering Plants – Smother established mayapple growth by completely covering the area with overlapping sheets of cardboard, burlap or heavy landscape fabric. Overlap seams and weigh down the edges with rocks, boards or soil. Leave covered for at least one full growing season. The lack of light will eventually kill the covered vegetation.
Mulching – For areas where mayapple is just beginning to emerge, spread a 3-4 inch deep layer of mulch in spring to block light and prevent growth. Natural mulch materials like wood chips, pine needles or shredded leaves all work. Maintain mulch depth.
Solarization – In smaller areas, solarization with clear plastic sheeting can heat the soil and kill plants and seeds. Seal the edges and leave in place for at least a full summer growing season. Repeat if needed.
Plant Competition – Establishing thick groundcover plants or aggressive perennials may eventually outcompete mayapple. Options include pachysandra, vinca minor, epimedium or ferns. Combine with mulching for best results.
While organic methods require persistence over multiple seasons, the diligent gardener can eventually reclaim beds for ornamental plantings. Next, let’s discuss some faster chemical control options.
Using Herbicides to Kill Mayapple
For faster control, systemic herbicides that kill the entire plant including the root system are most effective. Two options include:
Glyphosate – This broad-spectrum herbicide, marketed as Roundup and other brands, can provide effective control when applied directly to actively growing mayapple foliage in spring. Use a small brush or foam applicator to avoid contact with desired plants. Glyphosate is absorbed through the leaves and translocated down to the roots. Visible symptoms take 7-10 days but the rhizomes will die. Multiple applications are likely needed.
Triclopyr – An herbicide sold as Turflon Ester, Ortho Max Poison Ivy Killer and other brands, triclopyr is selective to broadleaf plants and will not harm lawn grasses. As a foliar spray, it damages only the visible upper growth of mayapple but has little effect on the roots. For more complete control, use triclopyr as a cut-stem treatment in summer when fruiting is finished. Simply cut each stem near ground level and immediately apply or drip the herbicide onto the cross-section of the cut stem. This delivers the chemical directly down into the root zone.
When using any herbicide, always carefully follow label directions for correct dosage and safe usage. Herbicides must contact the foliage to be absorbed, so caution is needed around non-target plants. Though faster acting, chemical controls can still take a couple seasons of persistence to fully eradicate established mayapple stands through the rhizome network.
Tips for Preventing Mayapple Growth
Prevention is always preferable to control. Here are some useful tips to avoid mayapple becoming a problem:
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When planting new landscape beds, carefully screen the soil and remove any mayapple roots or sprouts. Discard offsite.
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Maintain a 2-3 inch layer of mulch over garden beds to inhibit seed germination and rhizome spread. Replenish as needed.
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Allow garden beds to achieve a dense coverage of desired ornamental plants. Avoid sparse plantings vulnerable to weed invasion.
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In wooded areas, selectively remove only a portion of the mayapple patch each season. Total removal risks erosion issues.
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Monitor the garden perimeter for any new sprouts spreading from neighboring habitat. Remove immediately while small.
With persistence using the control methods described, you can safely eliminate unwanted mayapple over time and reclaim your landscape beds for more desirable plantings. Just remember that totally eradicating this vigorous native plant from adjacent natural areas is generally neither feasible nor recommended. But keeping it in check within your cultivated garden space is very achievable.
Piedmont Master Gardeners • Sharing knowledge, Empowering communities PMG News
- By Cathy Caldwell
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- May 2020-Vol 6 No. 5
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This plant, called a mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum), grows naturally in wet or dry woods in Virginia and most of eastern North America. If you don’t have them already, keep an eye out for them when you go for a walk in the woods. It’s an unusual plant with an unusual story. Each leaf, which looks like a small umbrella, grows from a single stem. There may be one leaf or two leaves. Only plants with two leaves will bloom in any given year. The flowers are pretty and white, but they are mostly hidden by the big leaves, which can actually reach a foot across. In the wild, mayapple grows under trees that lose their leaves in the fall. There, it tends to form large colonies through rhizomes. And in my yard, that is exactly where it is located and how it behaves.
Before I found out there were Mayapples on my property, many years had passed. They were hiding in an area with mostly invasive plants, and it wasn’t until we started to get rid of those plants that we saw the Mayapples. Actually, the discoverer was the knowledgeable person who helped us clear; he knew them well, and we could feel how excited he was about this find. Nowadays I eagerly look forward to the stems as they push up through the earth in early spring. They’re worthy of daily inspection so you can catch the enchanting sight of unfurling leaves. But these plants are very toxic, so gardeners with young children may wisely avoid planting them.
Mayapples prefer moist, acidic soil but can withstand drought, dry soil, and black walnut. They do not like competition from other plants, nor do they like mowing. Mayapple plants are available from online purveyors of native plants as well as from some local retail sources, including Monticello, www.monticelloshop.org/may-apple-podophyllum-peltatum and other native plant nurseries.
Mayapples are quite difficult to propagate from seed, on top of which, they seem to have difficulty producing seed at all, mostly because they attract very few pollinators, and also because the plant is not self-fertile. If a plant does manage to produce seed, it is not likely to germinate — as some scientists discovered to their dismay. These scientists had a little better luck with seeds sown with fresh mayapple fruit pulp. Other scientists have reported that seeds that had been ingested by turtles germinated faster and had a higher probability of success. If you’d like to read more about this research, take a look at “Mayapple: A Review of the Literature from a Horticultural Perspective,” www.researchgate.net/pub,228502025. Despite the pessimistic research results, my own experience suggests there’s room for optimism on seed germination. Otherwise, why would a few mayapples suddenly appear in a grassy area fairly far from my colony? I’m guessing I got a helpful hand from a turtle.
This plant doesn’t do well in borders because it goes dormant in the summer and most of the flowers are hidden. But they’re great for a wild or woodland garden, and if you don’t mind them dying off in the summer, they make a beautiful ground cover under deciduous trees. A gardening friend told me that the best place for her Mayapple was on the edge of a retaining wall that ran along a walkway below. This way, the flowers would be at eye level. From her walkway, you can see the flowers turn into fruits, or “apples.”
Since Mayapples are very effective colonizers via underground rhizomes, a gardener need not worry about propagating using seeds. Once you’ve got a colony going, you’ll be able to transplant a few to a new location. Take more than one underground node, as suggested. I’ve tried this myself and can confirm that it works.
I should have known this: all parts of the Mayapple are poisonous, except for the fruits when they are fully ripe. This is because deer and rodents don’t bother them. A leading horticulturist, A. S. Weakley says, “The ripe fruits can be eaten; the rest of the plant is poisonous and medicinal and contains many alkaloids.” Compounds from Podophyllum are used in wart removal, and show anti-viral and anti-cancer promise. ” (Weakley 2015). However, DO NOT eat those apples! Scientists may be able to tell when a Mayapple fruit is fully ripe and therefore safe to eat, but don’t do it yourself.
I don’t understand what “poisonous-medicinal” means, but the more I learn about plants, the more I want to learn. What gardeners don’t like about Mayapple can also be used to kill cancer cells. That’s a bit of an oversimplification, but it gets the point across. It’s really no surprise that about half the new drugs on the market come from plants. In the case of Mayapple, podophyllotoxin came from a Himalayan variety called Podophyllum hexandrum. It is a cytotoxic compound that is the building block for the cancer drug Etoposide. The drug has been used since 1983 to treat dozens of different cancers, from lymphoma to lung cancer. The Himalayan relative is now in danger of going extinct, so drug companies turned to the American Mayapple. However, there wasn’t enough podophyllotoxin to go around. Scientists have recently created a bio-engineered source for podophyllotoxin. I won’t try to explain it here, but if you’re interested, you can read about it in the journal Science (link below).
The Mayapple is the best native perennial that will grow well as a ground cover under trees and won’t get eaten by deer.
SOURCES:
“Genetic Engineering Turns a Common Plant into a Cancer Fighter,” Science (Robert F. Service, Sep. 10, 2015) ,https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2015/09/genetic-engineering-turns-common-plant-cancer-fighter
“Fighting Cancer While Saving the Mayapple,” https://www.researchgate.net/publication
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FAQ
Is it safe to touch mayapple?
Are Mayapples invasive?
Are Mayapples good for anything?
How long do Mayapples last?
Does mowing affect Mayapples?
Mayapple plants do not like mowing. They do not like competition from other plants and are available from online purveyors of native plants as well as from some local retail sources, including Monticello, www.monticelloshop.org/may-apple-podophyllum-peltatum and other native plant nurseries.
Is the Mayapple plant poisonous?
All parts of the Mayapple plant are poisonous, except for the ripe fruits. A.S. Weakley, a leading horticulturist, states: ‘The ripe fruits are edible’, but the rest of the plant contains a variety of alkaloids and is poisonous-medicinal.
Why is my Mayapple losing color?
The issue is that this can block the photosynthesis process from starting, which would cause the plants to gradually lose their color. This would also make the pests happy, a real descent into hell for your Mayapple. Take a microfiber cloth and gently massage the plant’s leaves to get rid of the dust.
Is a Mayapple a shrub?
This low-growing, two-leafed plant loves the rich, moist, shady soil of forests. And while not a shrub, they are part of the barberry family (Berberidaceae). Above: Each mayapple plant has two large leaves and one flower growing underneath them.
How many leaves does a Mayapple plant have?
Above: Each mayapple plant has two large leaves and one flower growing underneath them. Photograph by Judy Gallagher via Flickr. The Native Americans used the plant for medicinal purposes, mainly as a purge and to rid themselves of parasites; the plant is extremely poisonous, though, and can be fatal.
Does a Mayapple go dormant?
The Mayapple goes dormant in the summer. It is not a good choice for a border plant due to this dormancy and the fact that its blossoms are mostly hidden. However, it makes a lovely ground cover for a wild or woodland garden under deciduous trees.