The bowstring hemp (Sansevieria hyacinthoides (L.) Druce) is native to southern Africa. The leaves are marked with pale irregular streaked spots and arise from a rhizome (an underground stem) in loose rosettes. The plant blooms in winter. The inflorescence, a raceme, grows up to 75 centimeters (30 inches) in length from a leaf axil (the angle between a leaf and the rhizome). Although seldom mentioned, the translucent white flowers are fragrant, especially during the evening.

Bowstring hemp may well have come to the New World early and probably with the slave trade. In Africa, the plant was and still is traded for its medicinal value. The rhizomes, chewed or steeped as a decoction, are thought effective against intestinal parasites, stomach ulcers, and hemorrhoids. The leaves, heated to extract the juices, are said good for earaches, ear infections, and toothaches.

As its name suggests, the bowstring hemp was most useful for its fibers. Each leaf contains hundreds of 'threads' associated with the vascular bundles (phloem and xylem). The fibers run the length of the leaf and may be 60 or more centimeters (24 inches) long. The fibers were twisted into twine and string or woven to make sails.

(Compiled from: "Sansevieria", Hortus Third, Staff L.H. Bailey Hortorium, NY State College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Cornell University, Macmillan, NY, 1976; "Sanseveria", A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants, C. Brickell and J.D. Zuk, eds., American Horticultural Society, DK Publishing, NY, 1996; and "Sansevieria hyacinthoides", R.P. Wunderlin and B.F. Hansen, Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants, Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa, 2004)