Over the years certain plants have become favourites, and it has become a pleasure watching them emerge in the spring. Although not yet out, the Vanilla Leaf is one of those plants as it is distinctive for its unusual leaf shape; a plant palmately divided into 3 wavy leaflets. It spreads by rhizomes to carpet the understory in a sea of foamy green, holding aloft flowers of creamy spikes. The vanilla scent only emerges when a large clump of leaves have been dried and crushed and in a pinch, hikers plagued by mosquitoes, have used the leaves to deter biting insects.