I know these plants are can tolerate a good amount of shade but looking at various specific varieties I see some quite different characteristics:

For example for "Misty Blue" the flowers appear in the spring (with interesting berries in the fall)

By contrast "Carbonella" seems to have flowers in late summer.

As well I see on some sites that these plants can tolerate some drier conditions (in shade) whereas other descriptions mention the need for moist soil.

I am confused.

What has your experience been with snakeroot/bugbane/etc and what are your favourite varieites?

I just finished reading an article in my most recent issue of one of my garden magazines and the gardener being interviewed recalled that he had paid $80 in the 1980s for snakeroot "Hillside Black Beauty"!

In my opinion there are quite a few differences between the plants and I am still trying to figure out why scientist classify them together (Actaea/Cimifuga).

My personal favorite is the straight form of Actaea pachypoda-I gather seeds in the fall and am trying to move them about my gardens. They look great with Hostas.

Rhonda

The racemosa and the unknown one seems happy in both bright shade and another location with full sun until about 3 PM. The only problem with the one in shade is the flower spikes lean and stretch towards the sun which makes them kind of floppy. I don't have that problem with the ones in sun. In fact it always amazes me how upright these stay even after heavy rain and wind.

The ramosa atropurpurea has been kind of a dud for me. It doesn't seem happy wherever I put it and I've had it for YEARS. I think the only reason I keep it around is because the foliage is so nice I just don't want to give up hope. It seems to grow better with more sun, but if you don't keep it well watered it crisps-up very nicely, very quickly. My others handle dryness much, much better. Another downside of the ramosa atropurpurea are the flowers - unspectacular to say the least and it blooms so late as to be almost useless for me, but again the foliage is very nice which is why it continues to live - for the time being - until I give up hope forever - which will probably be never - again the foliage thing.

Kevin

The black leafed varieties are truly stunning plants,

By chance do you have any pictures you could share/post?

Approximately how tall do your Cimicifuga/Actaea get each season?

And do you have any of them in significant shade?

What has been your experience re their need for water...can you generalize given the many different ACTAEA you have in your garden?

though a price of $80 seems very high

This price was for the plant in the 1980s...maybe back then it ('Hillside Black Beauty') was quite rare?

General info:

The plants formerly known as Cimicifuga are typically later bloomers, get huge, and have seed pods as opposed to berries. They like some afternoon shade, but should be in a bright location with some direct morning or evening sun. They are typically woodland edge/savana plants. They don't want to be dry, but I don't find them to be water hogs once they're established either. Treat them like most plants and the'll be fine. They can tolerate full sun with extra water. I highly recommend A. 'Black Negligee' as it has been the fastest growing dark-leaved variety I've tried.

Actaea pachypoda, rubra, and a few others are the baneberries. I often see 'Misty Blue' being listed without its species name; it is a form of A. pachypoda. A. pachypoda gets white berries in summer. A rubra gets red berries, though there are white-berried populations. A. nigra is european and gets black berries. They are spring blooming woodland plants and tolerate shade very well. They all have white flowers followed by berries, either red, white, or black. All berries are poisonous. I find them growing here in maple/beech forests, which tend to be very dark. They get 2-3' tall depending on species and variety. A. pachypoda tends to be taller and more upright @ 2'-3', A. rubra is more bushy and shorter and closer to 18"-24". Best bet for success is rich soil with lots of organic matter and even moisture. Some morning sun is good for vigor, especially with A. rubra, but afternoon sun should be avoided. Currently the only one I'm aware of being vegetatively produced with any regularity is 'Misty Blue'. The rest are either seed grown (and fairly expensive- it takes up to 2 year to germinate the seed and another 5-7 years to be a salable plant) or wild collected. Wild collected material should be avoided unless you can certify it came from a construction site rescue. Plant to pay $10 or more for 4.5" quart pots for A. rubra, somewhat less for A. pachypoda as it's a bit faster growing.

Both groups are easy to grow, but require some patience.

The Plant Geek
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I grow both Cimicifuga (I refuse to call them Actaea quite yet) and Actaea and they both seed about a lot. Atropurpurea is my tallest at 6 to 7 feet with amazing flowers in the fall. White Pearl flowered too late for me to enjoy before a hard freeze. The dark leaf varieties color best in bright sunlight up until noon, but also grow fine in the shade. My soil has a lot of organic matter so it drains well, and I don't water these but once or twice a week through the summer.

Chris