Solomon the King was a very wise man…we all know that. So, since I wanted to talk about the plant named after him, I thought I’d offer some Wisdom (of sorts):

“In the Garden of Life, not all of us can be the centerpiece.”

Didn’t like that one? How about this one:

“In the Theatre of Life, not all of us can be the star.”

Still don’t like it? OK, one more, goofy saying and I’ll quit:

“In the Baseball Game of Life, some of us are left on the bench.”

There are some plants that just have to be the star. A gorgeous Japanese maple with burgundy foliage trailing gracefully to the ground gets all the attention – it’s just nature. They can’t help being beautiful and we can’t help but notice.

But the great majority of plants, just like us humans, are support players. Good, hard-working, nice plants, but not rock stars by any means – until you get up close and really see them for the little beauties they are.

In my Hosta bed, right by the trunk of a sweet gum tree, is a clump of variegated Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum biflorum). The wide green and white alternate leaves march up the stalk and terminate with a smaller leaf at the tip. The stalks themselves droop gracefully toward the ground. Then, very early each spring, a pair of tiny, white, bell-shaped flowers shyly appear in rows on the underside of the stalk.

Native in the Midwest, Solomon’s Seal is a shade-loving plant, appearing early in the spring. It spreads slowly by rhizomes, but won’t take over. I don’t bother watering mine and the soil where they grow is probably more clay than anything. so it’s definitely not a hard-to-grow plant.

Apparently, people eat the tuberous rhizomes and birds eat the tiny blue-black seeds, although the plant itself is deer-resistant.

Just when I thought, “Gee, ya can’t get much better than that!” I found that Solomon’s Seal has some medicinal uses, too. Although I didn’t do the research on how to prepare this, the juice from rhizomes can be applied on the skin to treat cuts, burns, and skin rashes.

So, one more word of wisdom: It takes all kinds of plants to make a lovely garden.

Stay Green, good Friends.