Plant of the Week: Smilax herbacea

Plant of the Week! A beautiful and elegant vining plant, Smilax herbacea (Smooth Carrion Flower) features beautiful leaves with wavy margins and parallel veins, globes of white flowers followed by large berries that ripen to dark blue-black, and last but not least, rotten meat-scented flowers! Don’t let that stop you from admiring and utilizing this plant in your landscape. Smilax is just trying to attract its main pollinator, flies. Beetles and bees also consume the pollen and/or nectar, and a variety of caterpillars feed on the foliage. The berries are eaten by songbirds and some small mammals. It’s a unique and useful plant that grows in a variety of soils and full to partial sun. Just maybe don’t plant it near your outdoor kitchen!