Canadian wild ginger, or snakeroot (A. canadense), grows about 15 to 30 cm (6 to 12 inches) tall in shady woods in eastern North America. It usually bears two heart-shaped, downy leaves and a single inconspicuous cup-shaped flower. The flower develops in the angle between two leafstalks at the surface of the ground and has three reddish brown lobes. This plant is a useful but coarse ground cover. European wild ginger, or asarabacca (A. europaeum), a creeping plant with glossy leaves and bell-shaped brown flowers, is native to Europe and Asia. It was formerly used in various medicines, particularly purgatives, and in snuff.