Medicinal Monday - the "Star" of the Show- "Earth Stars!"

Earthstars are a charming fungus that looks like they should be found on a coral reef and not in the woods. There are 120 species of earthstars with one of the most common being the Geastrum triplex. Native Americans found several uses for this small and unusual-looking mushroom. 

About Earth Stars

Geastrum triplex is an inedible fungus found in the leaves of hardwood forests or on rotted tree stumps.  It can be found on every continent in the world except Antarctica and is the largest of the genus Geastrum.  This fungus derives nutrients from decomposing organic matter. Immature fruit bodies of this mushroom resemble puffballs only this fungus has a pointed top and is partially buried in the ground. As the fungus matures the outer layer called the exoperidium splits into four to eight-pointed segments that spread outward and downward forming a star shape and exposing the egg-shaped inner spore sac.  The spore sac contains a mass of spores called the gleba and fertile mycelial tissue that is white and firm when young but turns brown and powdery as the mushroom ages. The outer layer often splits around the perimeter of the spore sac so that it appears to be sitting in a saucer. The top of the spore sac is pointed and has a tiny hole at the top from which spores are released. The round spores are quite small and brown or cinnamon in color.

Medicinal Uses

Earthstars are used medicinally by Native Americans. The Blackfoot called them ka-ka-toos, meaning "fallen stars", and according to legend, they were an indication of supernatural events. The Cherokee put fruit bodies on the navels of babies after childbirth until the withered umbilical cord fell off, "both as a prophylactic and a therapeutic measure" The Tewa in the desert of the southwest blew ripe spores into the ears of infected patients to cleanse and heal ear and hearing disorders.

Did You Know...
Geastrum triplex is also called the collared earthstar, the saucered earthstar, or the triple earthstar.

The name triplex refers to the three-layer peridium or outer skin found on the fruiting body of a fungus.

In Chinese medicine, earthstars were used to treat inflammation in the respiratory tract and to staunch bleeding, and reduce swelling.

A recent study found that Geastrum triplex has a relatively high antibacterial activity.

Medicinal Monday - White Snake Root - As Poisonous as It Sounds!

It is amazing how well Native Americans understood the flowers, herbs, and trees that populate the landscape that they live in. They found a use for nearly every natural thing that they encountered. Nothing went to waste. Take the poisonous perennial herb known as White Snakeroot, they even found a use for this! The flowers, leaves, roots, sap, seed, and stems are all poisonous. 

About White Snakeroot

White Snakeroot, Eupatorium rugosum is very common throughout the eastern hedgerows, brush thickets and woodlands including Connecticut where it can be found growing as tall as five feet high. This herb is native to the woodlands in the Eastern United States. The plants grow upright producing single or multi-stemmed clumps in mid. to late summer and fall. The white flowers are fluffy and made of many tiny disks and the leaves are tooth and grow opposite the flowers on purple stems. After blooming, small seeds with fluffy white tails are released and blow in the wind. The White Snakeroot contains the toxin tremetol; when the plants are consumed by cattle the meat and milk become toxic and if eaten in large enough quantities it can poison humans. The poison was called milk sickness because of the presence of the ingested toxin in the milk of cows that had eaten this herb. In addition to cattle and humans, this plant is also poisonous to horses, goats, and sheep.

Medicinal Uses

Native Americans that made poultices with white snakeroot understood its toxic properties. The poultice was used to treat snakebite. The roots were also used as a snake deterrent and were worn as a charm against poisonous snakes. A strong decoction of this toxic herb was used to treat snake bit as an antidote to the poison. A tea was made from the roots to treat diarrhea, kidney stones, and fever.

Did You Know...

During the 19th century before European Americans understood the toxin many died of milk sickness in the midwest and south. It is thought that Nancy Hanks Lincoln, mother of Abraham Lincoln died in 1818 from milk sickness.

Dr, Anna Pierce Hobbs Bixby is credited with identifying the plant in the 1830s. It is believed that she was taught about the properties of this plant by a Shawnee woman, whose name, unfortunately, is lost to history.

The plant is susceptible to leaf miners and flea beetles that attack the foliage.

Flowers are attractive to butterflies and other pollinators including leaf-cutting bees. Songbirds eat the seeds.

Poison symptoms include weakness, nausea, abdominal pain, vomiting, delirium, cardiac damage, prostration and, eventually coma.

Medicinal Monday...Lovely Liverwort - One of the Earliest Flowers of Spring

This lovely early spring flower in the buttercup family can be found in Connecticut and throughout the Eastern United States. Besides skunk cabbage, this pretty flower with its not so pretty name is one of the first spring flowers to bloom in Connecticut. Native Americans found several interesting uses for this pretty perennial. 

About The Liverwort

This delicate plant has ground-level fuzzy stems and blooms in the early spring. The flowers have three lobs and are delightfully rounded. The blossoms can be white, pink, or purple. After the plant flowers, it remains evergreen until the following spring. The leaves turn a deep red color in the fall. Because this plant retains its leaves it is able to photosynthesis on mild winter days to get a jump start on the spring season.  The plant's name refers to the three-lobed flower which was thought to resemble a liver. Liverwort prefers partial shade and dry soil and can be found in deciduous, pine, and sometimes in spruce woods.

Medicinal Uses

The Chippewa made a decoction of the roots to treat children with convulsions and a poultice of this plant was made to treat sores and bruises. The plant is also used as a hunting medicine with the roots made into a charm and put on traps of fur-bearing animals. The Menominee made a compound decoction of the root and used the mixture to treat dysentery. The Nanticoke would chew the leaves to treat fever and the Potawatomi drank an infusion of the root and leaves to treat dizziness.

Did You Know...

Because of the shape of the flower, early herbalists assumed the plant would be effective in treating liver disease. This belief was based on a theory called the doctrine of signatures that held that a plant's resemblance to a part of the body was an indicator that it could be used to treat the disease of that organ.

This flower produces pollen but no nectar.

It is the official flower of the Sweden Democratic political party.

Medicinal Monday - The Magnificent Grand Fir Tree

Since time immemorial indigenous people of North America have been using plants and other natural substances and materials as medicine. Most of the time, the medicine was prepared in a similar way. All different parts of the plant were used - leaves, roots, stems, bark, buds, flowers, fruit, sap, and even pitch. One of the most widely used medicinal plants used by Indigenous peoples in New England and Canada is the Abies Grandis or the Grand Fir Tree.

About the Grand Fir Tree

Native to the Pacific Northwest, Northern California, and parts of British Columbia this tree is native to moist coastal bottomlands and alpine slopes from sea level to over 6,000 feet.  With a trunk up to six feet in diameter and a height of up to 250 feet, this quick-growing tree is the tallest Abies species in the world. The leaves with their notched tip are needle-like and make the branch appear flat so that it has a distinct upper and lower side. The leaves are glossy green in the front and on the back they have two white stripes. An identifying characteristic is that the leaves are different lengths but they all line up on a flat branch. The leaves emit a balsamy, tangerine-like aroma when crushed. 

The bark is gray and becomes brown with reddish furrows as the tree ages. The cones are cylindrical and stand upright above the needles near the tips of the upper branches. The cones are green in the spring when they emerge and mature into yellowish brownish cones that sometimes are tinged with purple. Pollen cones are yellow. Another characteristic of fir trees is that the scales on the pinecone drop and disintegrate in autumn after the seeds ripen. In the landscape, this tree has a near-perfect pyramidal, Christmas tree shape.

Medicinal Uses

The Indigenous people of the First Nation used pitch from bark blisters, bark needles, and cones as a poultice for sores, wounds, bruises, cuts, sprains, burns, bites, and infections. A tea is made from the bark and branches of the Grand Fir tree to treat sore throats, coughs, colds, digestive tract ailments, and as a tonic and purgative. Pitch is also used as an eye medicine, hair tonic, and deodorant. The branches of the tree were burned and inhaled as a kind of incense to treat headaches, and for spiritual protection.

Did You Know...

The largest Grand Fir is located along the Duckabush River Trail in Olympic National Park in the state of Washington.

The foliage has a citrus-like scent and is sometimes used for Christmas decorations in the United States.

It is sometimes called the Lowland Fir because it is the only Fir tree found at lower elevations.

Grand Fir trees live about three-hundred years.

Firs are useful to many animals for cover and for nesting sites. Grouse eat the needles. Deer and elk eat the foliage and twigs in the winter. Birds, chipmunks, and squirrels eat the seeds.

Lumber from the Grand Fir tree is considered a softwood and is used for paper making, packing crates, and construction.

New This Year - Two Maple Syrup Workshops @ Institute for American Indian Studies

Maple syrup is among the oldest natural food products produced in North America. Native Americans were the first to discover maple syrup and refine the process of how this magically sweet amber elixir is made. If you have ever wondered how sap is transformed into maple sugar then don't miss the new two-part, in-person outdoor Maple Sugar Workshops at the Institute for American Indian Studies in Washington, Connecticut on Saturday, February 20, and Saturday, February 27. This hands-on workshop is perfect for people that want to learn about the history of this sweet tradition as well as the ins and outs of making maple syrup. The two-part Maple Sugar Workshop is part of the Institute's Winter Survival Program taught by Susan Scherf, an Educator at the Institute.

At the first workshop, “The Sweet Taste of Success” on Saturday, February 20, with one-hour time slots running from 11:00 a.m. until 4 p.m. for twenty people per session. Participants will learn the basics of modern maple syrup production. This workshop is designed for backyard hobby producers that want to start collecting sap for their own enjoyment. The first thing participants will learn is proper tree identification and how to prepare the tree for the tapping season. They will learn about tree health and why and when sap flows. The final lesson is to learn about the tapping process, what to look for, and what to avoid, and examples of the different methods of collecting and boiling sap. There will also be a discussion on the impact of climate change on maple syrup production. 

The Second Maple Syrup Workshop, “The History of a Sweet Tradition” taking place on Saturday, February 27 also offers one-hour time slots for twenty people running from 11 a.m. to 4 pm. This workshop focuses on the fascinating history of maple syrup as it was produced and enjoyed through the centuries. The workshop begins with a demonstration of the traditional techniques including the collection of and boiling down of sap into maple syrup used by Native Americans living in the Eastern Woodlands. The demonstration will include different traditional technologies used for the collection and boiling process in order to gain an understanding of what methods were used and why. A highlight of the program involves the history of this sweet tradition as participants gather around the fire in the Indian village and listen to traditional Native American stories about maple syrup that have been handed down from generation to generation. 

To sign up for Maple Workshop #1, “The Sweet Taste of Success” and Maple Workshop #2, “The History of a Sweet Tradition” visit the museum website in order to reserve a space through Eventbrite or email the museum at events@iaismuseum.org. The workshop is booked in one-hour time slots from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. for twenty people. The price for each Maple Syrup Workshop is $15 for adults, $13 for seniors, $11 for children, and $5 for members. If you have questions, call the museum at 860-868-0518. All reservations must be made in advance, as space is limited. 

About Institute for American Indian Studies 

Located on 15 acres of woodland acres the Institute For American Indian Studies preserves and educates through archeology, research, exhibitions, and programs. They have the 16th c. Algonquian Village, Award-Winning Wigwam Escape, and a museum with temporary and permanent displays of authentic artifacts from prehistory to the present that allows visitors to foster a new understanding of the world and the history and culture of Native Americans. The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road, Washington, CT.

Skills that Help Native Americans Survive the Winter - Winter Survival Workshop @ Institute for American Indian Studies February 13, 2021

Connecticut has just experienced a major snowstorm with some areas having blizzard conditions. Imagine being a Native American and living off the land in this extreme weather. It makes you wonder how they found shelter, stayed warm, and foraged for food when it so cold and snowy. Intimate knowledge of the landscape, its' resources and how to use them are the keys to how Native Americans survived winter in New England. The Institute for American Indian Studies located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington is hosting an in-person Winter Survival Program with IAIS educator, Griffin Kalin on Saturday, February 13 at 1 p.m.

Participants will head to the atmospheric replicated Algonkian Village on the grounds of the Institute to see how Native Americans lived in the eastern woodlands. Native Americans used a variety of approaches to stay warm including wearing animal skins and heating rocks in fire pits to warm the ground. Another aspect of this program is to understand what signs of nature Elders looked for to predict the weather. Highlights include how to make a shelter out of things from the natural environment such as snow, rocks and branches, how to make a fire in the snow, and what was worn to protect body heat. New this year, the Winter Survival program will focus on the basics of trapping, one of the oldest methods of hunting since the days of prehistoric hunter-gatherers. Although no animals will be harmed, this portion of the program will be interactive and informative giving participants a glimpse of how this method of hunting was practiced. For Native Americans, the great outdoors was both a department store and a grocery store; they trapped wild animals for food, fur, and leather for clothing. Native Americans were very good at using animal parts. Once the meat was eaten or dried, the bones were used for tools and the hides were tanned and turned into clothing.

The winter survival program is suitable for all ages. The winter survival program is suitable for all ages. Make sure that you bundle up as this in-person program is outside. Please note that for all in-person events masks are required inside and outside the museum and social distancing is practiced. Space is limited and pre-registration is required. The cost of the program is $15 for adults, $13 for seniors, $11 for children and $5 for members. To reserve your spot click here. If you have questions, or would like additional information call 860-868-0518 or email events@iaismuseum.org. About The Institute for American Indian Studies Located on 15 acres of woodland acres the Institute For American Indian Studies preserves and educates through archeology, research, exhibitions, and programs. They have a 16th c. Algonquian Village, Award-Winning Wigwam Escape, and a museum with temporary and permanent displays of authentic artifacts from prehistory to the present that allows visitors to foster a new understanding of the world and the history and culture of Native Americans. The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road, Washington, CT.

Medicinal Monday... Healing Properties of the Rattlesnake Fern

The Rattlesnake fern has an ominous name. It is actually an attractive plant that grows in moist forests. Native Americans found many uses for this fern that is the most widespread member of the genus Botrychium in North America. It is also the most common species found in New England. Ferns in general had many practical as well as medicinal uses in traditional Native American life. Ferns were eaten as greens, boiled into herbal teas, and were used to make mats.

About the Rattlesnake Fern

This species of fern is slow-growing and very difficult to cultivate. Rattlesnake fern is part of the Botrychium family. It got its name because the tip of this fern reminded people of the tail of a rattlesnake and because it grows where rattlesnakes were thought to be found. At maturity, it can reach a height of three feet. The fertile portion of the plant is the main stem that is bicolored, being pinkish at the base and green near the leaves. The bright green fronds appear in the spring and are soft to the touch. This fern has two types of leaves, sterile and fertile, both have a prominent midvein and are deeply lobed. The sterile arises halfway up the stalk and the fertile part of the plant exists at the tip. Spores are released between September and November when the leaves turn from green to yellow to brown. Rattlesnake ferns prefer partial sun to light shade and fertile loamy soil with an abundance of decaying organic matter upon which their survival depends.

Medicinal Uses

Native Americans found the fronds of this fern were helpful in relieving pain from open sores. Some Native American communities pulped the plant and applied the poultice to snakebites. The Algonquian and Abnaki use it to relieve irritation and as a children's medicine. The Cherokee use a root decoction as emetic and as a concentrated syrup for snake bites. They also use the juice from the fronds to treat insect bites. The Chippewa used a poultice of fresh root for snakebite and as a repellant. The Chicksaw make tea from the fern and drink it as an expectorant. The Ojibwa use it for lung trouble and made a poultice of the roots to treat cuts.

Did You Know

Rattlesnake fern is also found in Australia, some parts of Asia including India, Norway, Finland, and Russia.

In India, rattlesnake fern has been used for centuries to treat dysentery. 

The Rattlesnake fern is also called the grape fern because the spores on its tip also look like small grapes.

Unlike other grape ferns, the rattlesnake fern is not an evergreen.