Polygala senega

Description

A perennial plant not only with lovely white spikes of flowers but also with a long history in the traditional medicine of Indigenous People. 

The plant part used in herbal medicine is the root. Main uses among Indigenous People include: inflammations, cold, sore throats, and the most important, to treat snakebites, hence its common name. Later it was used to treat pneumonia and bronchitis.
The plant is still harvested from the wild in Canada and also cultivated on a small scale in a few other countries. The demand for Seneca snakeroot is estimated to grow in the future with the herbal remedies becoming more and more in demand.

Germination: sown in the fall or early spring after 2-3 months of cold/moist stratification.