Medicinal Monday... Blue Giant Hyssop

Giant Blue Hyssop or Agastache foeniculum (Pursh) Kuntze is in the Mint or Lamiaceae Martinove family. Although it is not native to New England it can be found in parts of Connecticut, Rhode Island,  and New Hampshire. It is native to most of Minnesota and other mid-West states. 

About Blue Giant Hyssop

The Blue Giant Hyssop can be found growing in sandy to loamy soils in full or partial sun on erect stems that grow up to four feet high. The heavily veined leaves are somewhat triangular in shape and have sharp teeth and have an anise scent when crushed. The flowers grow in clusters on a spike up to eight inches high in a whorl-like pattern that is commonly seen in the mint family. The spikes are commonly packed with flowers. Large plants can create many spikes with whorls of flowers. The tube-shaped flowers have sharply pointed teeth and range in color from blue to violet. The flowers grow in clusters from ovate light green bracts on the spike. Fertile flowers produce one brown seed that is dispersed by the wind. Seeds that fall to the ground will self-germinate in the spring.

photo credit: Jean Pol Grandmont

Medicinal & Culinary Uses

The most common use of the Blue Giant Hyssop was to treat coughs, colds, and fevers. A tea or infusion was made from the root or the leaves to relieve congestion by acting as an expectorant. An infusion of the leaves was also traditionally used to treat chest pains and a weak heart. A cold infusion of the leaves was taken for chest pains caused by coughing. Specifically, the Cheyenne put the leaves in a hot steam bath to induce sweating, they also made a powder from the leaves and rubbed it on the body to treat high fevers. The Chippewa made a simple poultice of the leaves and stalk and applied the mixture to burns, they also used the plant as a charm for protection. The Cree often included the flowers of this plant in medicine bundles and used an infusion of the stem to treat those coughing up blood. The Iroquois made a compound infusion which they used as a wash to relieve the poison ivy rash.

The Dakota, Winnebago, Omaha, Lakota, Paeness, and Ponca used the leaves to make tea that they drank with meals. Some communities also used the leaves as a sweetener when cooking.

Photo: Cephas

Did You Know...

Common names of this plant include Lavendar Giant Hyssop, Fragrant Giant Hyssop, Anise Hyssop, and Wild Anise. 

The genus name, Agastache is derived from the Greek words - agan meaning very much, and stachys meaning an ear of wheat.

The species foeniculum is from Latin and is the word for fennel.

The name Pursh refers to a botanist who wrote A Systematic Arrangement and Description of Plants of North America.

Many species of bees are attracted to these flowers. American Goldfinches eat the seeds.

Medicinal Monday...Brewer's Angelica

There are many different types of Angelica.  This elegant plant in the carrot family called Brewer's angelica is native to the Sierra Nevada Range and the high mountain ranges of eastern California that flowers from June through August. The rounded cluster of blossoms of this plant radiate out from the center of the stalk, and to me this cluster resembles fireworks! In botanical terms, it is called a compound umbel.

About Angelica breweri

This tap-rooted perennial herb has an erect hairy stem that is hollow and rather stout. The stem which can grow up to six feet high is commonly found in coniferous forests. It is distinguished by its large leaves and many leaflets that have serrated edges. The most eye-catching part of this plant is the umbel composed of up to 50 long rays holding clusters of hairy white flowers. The flowers have five small white petals that surround five large white stamens and a greenish-white pistil.

Medicinal Uses

Traditionally, the most common use of Angelica breweri was to make a decoction of the roots to treat colds, coughs, and chest ailments. The Miwok, Paiute, Shoshoni, and Washo, all used the roots in this way. The Miwok traditionally rubbed the roots on their body to ward off snakes and the Paiute and Shoshoni mashed the roots and applied them to cuts and sores as an antiseptic. The Shoshoni made a poultice of pulped roots and applied this mixture to the chest to treat pneumonia. They made and used a decoction of the roots as a wash for venereal disease.

Did You Know...

Angelica breweri is great source of food for bees and butterflies.

This plant is a larval food source for anise swallowtail butterflies.

The Shoshoni used the smoke from the roots as a treatment for distemper in horses.

Angelica comes from the Latin angelicus, "angelic", which in turn comes from the Greek, angelos meaning messenger of god.

Annual Founders Day Clambake to Raise Funds for the Institute for American Indian Studies Local Indigenous Artists to be Celebrated

 The Institute for American Indian Studies is celebrating its annual Founders Day Clambake on Saturday, September 14, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Riverwalk Pavilion in Washington Depot, 11 School Street. Along with the traditional Indigenous foods of lobster, clams, corn, and potatoes, guests will be treated to an array of artworks by two featured artists, painter Claudine Purdue and fashion designer Brandi Sawyer-Emmons. A silent auction will feature original artwork by local artists such as Elizabeth McDonald and Ruth Jaffe, as well as prints by Cora Marshall, a Native American artist, gift certificates and items from local businesses, and many other items and collectibles. Ojibwe flute artist Allen Mahahbee will perform and is offering one of his hand-made flutes to the silent auction.

The cost to attend this fundraiser is $75.00 per person. Tickets are limited and must be purchased in advance. No tickets will be sold at the door. To register, visit online at https://www.iaismuseum.org by September 12.

The focus on Indigenous visual arts is new this year, as the IAIS is publicizing its annual art scholarship program. The Institute gives a small stipend to an emerging Native American artist currently enrolled in an arts program and offers them an opportunity for a one-person show at the museum. This year’s recipient will be announced at the event. Claudine Purdue is the 2023 artist. Her paintings explore the stories of Mi’Kimaq and Acadians who are her ancestors. Brandi Sawyer-Emmons, known as BThunder, creates Native American-inspired apparel and accessories including her popular Teepee handbag. Clambake attendees will have an opportunity to bid on items created by these two award-winning artists, along with the other silent auction items. Winners will be announced after this dinner.

About the Institute for American Indian Studies

Located on 15 acres of woodland, the IAIS offers educational programs, both permanent and changing exhibits and a replicated 16th-century Algonkian village. Its research department maintains extensive archeological and ethnographic collections and conducts archeological digs and other research. Its “Wigwam Escape” escape room offers an opportunity to solve a puzzle while learning about Indigenous life before European settlement. With a focus on “two-eyed seeing”, visitors can learn about the history of the American continent that incorporates more than 12,000-year history of human habitation. The Institute for American Indian Studies is located at 38 Curtis Road, Washington, Connecticut.

 

 

Medicinal Monday - Almost Unknown - Turbinate Sand- Verbena

Almost every plant had a medicinal use, some plants had more uses than others. Although there is only one documented use by Native American Communities for Sand Verbena, we thought we would review that use and interesting facts about this plant. It is actually quite rare with only eight known populations in existence in Oregon as of 2008. Despite the name, Verbena, they are not in the vervains or lantanas family Verbenaceae.

About Sand Verbena

This sprawling flowering plant is in the four o'clock family or the Nyctaginaceae family with the common name of Abronia turbinata. It is native to the high desert regions of California, Nevada, and Oregon and thrives in sandy soil, amid desert scrub, and in  Pinyon-Juniper woodland, sage, and creosote bush scrub. The slender, glandular, slightly hairy stem grows straight up to about 4 inches in height and has many branches that are decumbent to ascending. It has ovate-shaped leaves and clusters of white or lavender tubular-shaped flowers that bloom from  April to October.  This herb is a hermaphrodite having both male and female organs. The seeds are small and black and develop hollow wings.

Medicinal Uses

The most commonly documented use of this herb was that a poultice of mashed leaves was made and applied to swellings by many Native American communities where this plant is found.

Did You Know

This plant must have full sunlight.

This plant is also called Turbinate Sand- Verbena as well as Abronia exalata and Abronia orbiculata.

This herb can be found in  Death Valley National Park and Mojave and Colorado Deserts Biosphere Reserve.

Today, many people grow this plant as an ornamental to attract hummingbirds and butterflies.

The name Abronia comes from the Greek abros meaning graceful or delicate and the name turbinata from Latin about the shape of the flowers like a spinning top.

Medicinal Monday... St. Peterswort

Hypericum crux-andreae or St. Peterswort is technically considered a shrub, even though it is small and has a woody stem and a beautiful butter-yellow flower.

About St. Peterswort

This evergreen shrub is in the Clusiaceae or Mangosteen family and is native to Eastern North America. It can be found in New York and New Jersey and extends as far south as northern Georgia and west to central Texas. It is not found in Connecticut.  It flourished in wet flatlands and open sandy areas, stream banks, wet prairies, ponds, woodlands, and bogs. It is a small slender shrub that grows up to three feet tall. It has pale green oblong leaves, similar to myrtle leaf, and bright yellow flowers with four petals that grow in an X pattern with five stamens. It has two outer and two inner sepals. The flowers bloom from June to October and are similar to St. Andrew's cross.  Old bark sheds off this shrub and the seeds are oblong capsules.

Medicinal Uses

The most commonly documented traditional use of this shrub is to make a decoction of the roots and use it as an analgesic and to treat colic. It was also used to treat skin conditions and digestive issues. Specifically, the Choctae made a decoction of the leaves and used it as a wash for sore eyes. 

photo Eric Hunt

Did You Know...

Bees and small butterflies are attracted to the flowers of this shrub.

It is listed as threatened in Kentucky.

Another common name for this plant is Atlantic St. Peter's -wort.

Some people grow this shrub and trim it to make it an attractive low hedge that flowers.

Medicinal Monday - Summer is for Berries - Blackcap Raspberry!

Summer is the season for berries...strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and the less common blackcap raspberry that most often grows in the wild. At first glance, you might mistake these berries that grow in the western part of the United States as blackberries, but unlike the solid center of a blackberry, the blackcap raspberry is hollow in the center. 

About Blackcap Raspberries

The Rubus family, of which blackcap raspberries are part has more than 2,000 naturally occurring and hybrid types. This shrub-like vine, called Rubus leucodermis has trailing stems (canes) with sharp prickles on it. The bark is red but as it matures, it turns a light bluish color because of a wax-like coating. The ovate-shaped leaves are covered in a soft whitish down and are sharply serrated. The leaves are green on top,  paler green on the bottom, and grow in alternate clusters of 3 and 5 leaflets. 

The crown of this shrub is perennial however, the canes or stems are biennial, and new stems do not produce flowers the first year. In the second year, up to five white to pink flowers form on lateral shoots on the canes. The canes often grow downward and take root and form tip layers that become new plants. As the flowers mature red druplets or berries appear.  When the fruit turns a dark purple they are ripe. In the wild, blackcap raspberries can be found in full sun or dappled in sand, clay, and other types of soil that have poor drainage. They can be found growing as far north as Alaska, down through California, and east to Utah and Montana. You will find them at the edge of mixed evergreen forests, and in rocky and open places growing up to six feet.

Culinary Uses

Who can resist a ripe delicious berry any time of year? Many Native American communities and the First People of Canada, traditionally ate the berries raw, dried them for use in the winter, made tea or a beverage from them, cooked them into jams, and put them in stews. Sometimes the berries were mashed and dried in square frames and stored for winter. Some Indigenous communities ate the young leaves and sprouts. One other interesting use of this shrub was to make a purple-reddish dye from the berries.

Medicinal Uses

The most common use of this plant was to make an infusion of leaves and the root and take it for an upset stomach and to treat diarrhea. Traditionally the Shoshoni made a poultice of the stems and applied a powderlike mixture to wounds and cuts. The Thompson made an infusion of the roots and drank it to treat coughs, colds, and influenza.

Did You Know...

They were introduced for sale by David Douglas in 1829.

Blackcap raspberries have a high concentration of antioxidants, including ellagic acid that has been associated with the death of cancer cells in lab tests.

Other names for this plant include whitebark raspberry, blue raspberry, thimbleberries, and western raspberry.

The flowers attract hummingbirds, butterflies, bees, and other pollinators. The fruit is eaten by birds and many small mammals.

Medicinal Monday - Corn is Good for More than Eating!

Corn was cultivated through the centuries by Native Americans. Eventually, it became a staple food in many Native American diets. Corn continues to play a central role in the arts, culture, health, and lifestyle of many Native Americans, nationwide, today. Many tribes hold special ceremonies such as the Green Corn Festival which gives thanks when the corn first ripens and can be eaten by the tribe. Corn was also used medicinally in a variety of interesting ways. The Insitute for American Indian Studies is holding its annual Green Corn Festival on August 11 from 1 p.m. to 4 pm @ Hollow Park, off Rte. 6 in Woodbury.

About Corn

Scientists believe that people living in central Mexico developed corn at least 7000 years ago. It started from a wild grass called Teosinte whose kernels were small and not fused together like the husked ear of modern corn. Also known as maize, the best plants for eating were systematically collected and cultivated.  The first maize was a few inches long with only eight rows of kernels but through systematic selective cultivation, cob length and size continued to grow.

Maize along with beans and squash did not reach southern New England until 1,000 years ago or so. Native Americans in New England planted corn in fields close to their wigwams.  Corn and beans were planted together in raised piles of soil. The beans supported the cornstalk and fertilized it with atmospheric nitrogen as they climbed the stalks. Squash was planted between the mounds and helped to keep insects, raccoons, and other wild animals at bay. The large leaves of the squash also shaded the ground and kept the soil moist. The three crops complemented each other both in the field and in their combined nutrition and were referred to as the three sisters.

Corn in New England

Many Native American traditions, stories, and ceremonies surround corn.  In New England, maize is described as a gift of the creator; in several stories, a crow or blackbird delivered kernels of maize and beans to the tribes of the Eastern Woodlands, while other Algonquian stories also recount maize being brought by a person sent from the Great Spirit as a gift of thanks. Each year in August the Institute for American Indian Studies holds a Green Corn Festival with dancers, drummers, food, and educational activities to honor corn.

Medicinal Uses of Corn

Although corn was a staple that many Native American communities relied on as an important source of food and nutrition, corn was also used medicinally. The Western Keres ate the pollen as medicine. The Mohegan made a decoction of dried cobs and used them as a wash for the poison ivy rash. The Navajo made a poultice of the plant and applied it as ceremonial medicine for sore throats. The Tewa mixed cornmeal and water and used it for palpitations and pain. They also would rub a warm ear of corn on swollen glands. Many Native American communities used the tassel of silk on an ear of corn to treat urinary conditions. Corn was also used as a diuretic and mild stimulant. Many communities made an emollient poultice of cornmeal and used it to treat ulcers, swellings, and rheumatic pain. Parched corn was given to treat vomiting and nausea.

Did You Know...

Modern corn silk supplements are used to help prevent urinary tract infections and kidney stones.

Corn is the only native American grain, cultivated by Central American Natives for more than 7,000 years before it migrated north where it became part of the "three sisters" - corn, beans, and squash, a staple of Native American agriculture.

Corn is considered to be a wild grass and the corn kernels are the plant's seeds, while the ear or cob makes up part of the flower.

Corn's scientific name is Zea mays.

Some countries call corn, maize, a word that came from the word Mahiz in the Arawak language of Haiti.