Medicinal Monday - Cow Parsnip

Cow Parsnip cannot be missed with its bright beacon of clusters of white showy flowers. This plant, native to the United States, has many interesting ethnobotanical uses by Native American communities from culinary to medicinal, as well as a few interesting practical uses in everyday life.

About Cow Parsnip

This plant is the only member of the genus Heracleum native to North America and is in the carrot family. Cow parsnip is a perennial herbaceous plant that can grow up to ten feet high. Its stems are hollow and very hairy and the three-lobed maple-shaped leaves can grow up to 16 inches across. The flowers are umbrels, which are characteristic of the carrot family and they can reach up to 15 inches across and are composed of tiny white flowers. With so many tiny flowers, cow parsnip is an excellent source of pollen and nectar for many insects and is a larval host for the anise swallowtail. This plant can be found throughout most of the continental United States with the exception of the states along the Gulf Coast. It can be found as far north as Alaska, on the west coast, and in Newfoundland, Canada on the east coast. Cow Parsnip is often found on forest edges, floodplains, wet meadows, and riverbanks, and in open clearings of hardwood forests.

Cow parsnip contains chemicals called furanocoumarins which can cause rashes and burn-like lesions depending on one's sensitivity to the chemical after the skin is exposed to the sun. This chemical is thought to act as a defense against insects, mammals, and fungi. If you don't know your sensitivity to the phytochemicals in parts of this plant, it is best to wear gloves when working with it.

Culinary

Many Native American communities including Yuki, Wet'suwet'en, Tolowa, Thompson, Spokan, Shuswap, Montana, Nitinaht, Ojibwa, Okanagan-Colville, Oweekeno, Pomo, Quinault, Gitksan, Cree, Karok, Makah, Mendocino, Haisla, peeled young shoots and ate them raw like celery, and boiled or steamed them. The Meskwaki cooked the roots like we cook potatoes, the Blackfoot roasted stalks over hot coals, Alaskan Natives would eat the inner pulp of the stem with seal oil, and the Hesquiat ate the leaves, stalks, and flower buds with honey. 

Practical Uses

The stems were used as straws by many Native American communities. Another clever use was found for the hollow stems which were made into flutes for children by the Haisia, Cheyenne, and Blackfoot, to name a few. The Karok use the roots to make a yellow dye that is applied to porcupine quills. The Makah combine stems of large blossoms with seaweed to make baskets. The Menominee and Ojibwa use this plant as a smudge to drive away evil spirits as well as to drive away bad spirits from the camp of a hunter. The Ojibwa also boil the roots and sprinkle them on fishing nets to attract fish. The Pomo used the hollow stems to carry water and also use the dried-out hollow stems as toy blow guns to shoot berries or small pebbles. 

Medicinal Uses

Some of the most common medicinal uses were to make a poultice of the heated leaves and apply them to sores and wounds. For chronic swelling, a poultice of roots was applied.  A soothing drink was made to treat sore throats and colds; dried roots were often chewed for sore throats. A compound infusion of the root was used as a poultice to treat rheumatism. A poultice of baked roots was applied to boils and used to treat hip pain. An infusion of blossoms was rubbed on the body to keep flies and mosquitos away. The root of the plant was placed on cavities to treat toothaches. A compound infusion of the plant was used as a steambath for headaches and rheumatism. Dried, pounded roots were combined with oil and used as a hair ointment and as a wash for dandruff. A poultice of roots was used to treat sore eyes. A decoction of the roots was sometimes used as a wash for purification.

Did You Know...

Cow parsnip is also referred to as American cow parsnip, Satan celery, Indian celery, Indian rhubarb, and pushki.

The genus name, Heracleum is from Heracles and refers to the considerable size of parts of this plant. 

This plant is listed as "Endangered" in Kentucky and as a "Special Concern" in Tennessee.

Never harvest this plant unless you are sure of what it is because there are several look likes including poison hemlock.