Sméhhahh

Short introduction

Sméhhahh is a low shrub with fine, fern-like leafs sprouting from a network of gnarled branches. The plant overall looks weird, like the deformed vegetation seen in tundras or at higher altitudes in the mountains. Its branches and twigs are covered with flaking, reddish bark. Sméhhahh flower in early summer which come from small umbels carrying light-yellow blossoms. After a while these turn into small, spongy berries which stay green for a long time, then turn red in late summer and fall off after a few days if they're not eaten by animals before.

Habitat and range

The natural range of the Sméhhahh are the Moiyeli Swamplands were they grow in small groups were the land rarely or never gets flooded. The need a constant high humidity though, especially during the summer months when they carry their fruit. That is why they can hardly be grown outside the swampland. Sméhhahh also doesn't tolerate huge swings in temperature. That is why it only grows in the western parts of the Moiyeli Swamplands where temperatures is more stable because of the proximity of the Grey Sea.

Usage

The wood of the sméhhahh is of a very high quality, since the plant is very slow growing. So its wood is naturally very dense and heavy. Due to the growth pattern it exhibits though, it can hardly be used for anything. Sometimes, if wood of sméhhahh comes into circulation somehow it is regularly used for ornamental carvings, especially by the Messellat Mdûlûn and the Andaperna.

Far more important are its berries which can be used as a spice and are highly sought after especially in Tarrabaenian cuisine. The berries have to be harvested while red as all parts of the plant are poisonous and even the berries are highly poisonous when they are not yet ripe. The taste of the berries can be described as fresh and spicy, very different from onions and chili. The famous cook book Olla Loeda ('The Fragrant/Flavouful Pot' in Tarrabaenian) describes the sensation of eating sméhhahh as 'a crispy cabbage strip with a herbaceous, yet dry spicyness to it'.