Medicinal Monday - Beautiful Bayberry

Bayberry is a small tree or a large shrub that grows in North and Central American and even on some of the islands in the Caribbean.  European settlers learned about the medicinal qualities attributed to this hardy shrub from Native Americans.  The root bark of bayberry was listed in the United States Pharmacopeia from 1916 to 1936.  Sometimes called wax myrtle this plant has a rich heritage of use by Native Americans.

About Bayberry Shrubs

Bayberry bushes are tough, hardy plants that have pleasantly scented foliage and berries. They usually have an upright rounded shape with a fragrance that makes them easy to identify.  This shrub can grow to a height of five to eight feet and has oval dark green leaves that are referred to as "simple" because they don't have any sections. The female plants of the bayberry bush species produce small waxy, gray-blue berries in the fall. The bushes are usually evergreen, although some plant species lose their leaves.  Bayberry bushes grow well in sandy salty soil near the ocean and can be found growing on sand dunes.  They can also be found in bogs, marshland and wet woodlands.

Medicinal Uses of Bayberry

Native Americans had numerous uses for the stems, leaves, and roots of the bayberry plant.  Many Native Americans made an infusion from the dried roots of this plant to treat coughs and colds. The Mohegans treated kidney disorders with tea made from the bayberry plant.  A wash was made from the bark of this shrub to treat skin infections. Bayberry contains a chemical called myricitrin that has antibiotic properties.

The Choctaw used a decoction of the leaves of this plant and stems to treat fevers.  A decoction of the roots was used to treat a sore throat. The Koasati used a decoction of roots to treat stomachaches in children. The Micmac used a poultice of hot pounded water-soaked roots to treat inflammation.

In addition to using a decoction of leaves for headaches and fevers and stomachaches, the Seminole used a decoction of the wood ashes as a love medicine. The decoction of the wood ashes would be placed on the tongue to cleanse the body and strengthen the marriage. They also used this plant as a tobacco substitute.

A beverage was made out of the berries, bark, and leaves that would have a stimulating effect and was called the "black drink."  Many Native American tribes, especially in the Southeast used the "black drink" in seasonal ceremonies. Osceola, a great chief of the Seminoles was named after this ceremonial drink. His name means"black drink singer."

Did you know....

A wax can be obtained by boiling the berries in water making the wax float to the top and easy to skim off.  The wax was and is still used to scent candles.

Birds love the berries of the bayberry bush.  They are an important source of food for quail, pheasant, the ruffled grouse and migrating songbirds such as eastern bluebirds, thrushes, and tufted titmice.

The wax from bayberry plants was used to scent candles in Colonial America.

European settlers to North America learned about the medicinal uses of bayberry from Native Americans and a description from 1737 states that the plant "removes air and relieves all kinds of pain caused by cold, and is a good remedy for colic, paralysis, convulsions, epilepsy and other disorders."

Modern research has found that bayberry has an astringent and antibacterial quality.

Because this plant contains a high amount of tannin it should be used with caution.

Medicinal Monday...The Benefits of Ragweed

By early August, Connecticut is in full bloom with ragweed.  This flowering plant is in the genus Ambrosia in the Aster family.  Most ragweed pollen is released between August and October and is one of the most important causes of fall hay fever symptoms. Pollen counts are highest in the morning hours on windy days or shortly after a rainstorm when the plant is drying out.  Native Americans found many valued this pesky plant for medicinal uses and took advantage of its topical and internal applications.

About Annual Ragweed

Ragweed can be found just about anywhere this time of year from roadsides to fields, vacant lots and meadows. They are annual and perennial herbs and shrubs. Many species grow anywhere from a few inches high to about three feet high and their flowers contain both male and female flowers.  The male flowers are found in the cylindrically shaped spike on the top of the flowering stalk and the female flower is found on the axils of the leaves. The plant produces two types of leaves. Large leaves divided into three to five lobes with serrated edges and long petioles are located on the lower part of the stem.  Smaller, lanceolate leaves, covered with hairs on the bottom side can be seen near the base of the flowers.

Common annual ragweed produces diamond shaped seeds after wind- induced pollination. A single plant may produce about a billion grains of pollen per season that is transported on the wind. Ragweed pollen is light and fluffy and can stay airborne for days and travel great distances affecting people hundreds of miles away from where the pollen originated.

Medicinal & Other Uses of Annual Ragweed

 The Cherokee used annual ragweed as a ceremonial plant as an ingredient in their green corn medicine. The plant was also used as a dermatological aid; the leaves were crushed and rubbed on an insect bite, an infusion of the leaves were also used to treat hives. The Delaware made a poultice out of the plant and applied it to wounds to prevent blood poisoning. The Iroquois and the Dakota compounded a decoction of the leaves and the top part of the plant to treat diarrhea and an infusion of the roots was used as a heart medicine. The Lakota made an infusion of the leaves and used it to treat swelling. The Houma uses a decoction of this root for menstrual trouble.

In addition to medicinal uses, Native Americans found several other uses for ragweed.  There is evidence that Native Americans planted, cultivated, and harvested ragweed seeds. These seeds have an amazing percentage of crude protein (47%) and fat (38%) making them an important food source during the long winter months.  It is said that the seed tastes like wheat.  The sturdy stems of ragweed were also used by Native Americans to make rope.

Did You Know...

Cows, sheep and horses like to eat common ragweed. Excess consumption of this plant can change the taste of milk due to high content of bitter substances in the leaves of common ragweed.


Eastern cottontails, voles, grasshoppers like to eat leaves of common ragweed, while dark-eyed juncos, red-bellied woodpeckers, and purple finch prefer seed.


Common ragweed effectively removes lead from the soil in the polluted areas.

The Institute for American Indian Studies

Located on 15 woodland acres the IAIS has an outdoor Three Sisters and Healing Plants Gardens as well as a replicated 16th c. Algonkian Village.  Inside the museum, authentic artifacts are displayed in permanent, semi-permanent and temporary exhibits from prehistory to the present that allows visitors a walk through time. The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington Connecticut and can be reached online or by calling 860-868-0518.

The Institute for American Indian Studies preserves and educates through discovery and creativity the diverse traditions, vitality, and knowledge of Native American cultures. Through archaeology, the IAIS is able to build new understandings of the world and history of Native Americans, the focus is on stewardship and preservation.  This is achieved through workshops, special events, and education for students of all ages.

Medicinal Monday - The Many Uses of Blackberries

Native Americans are renowned for their medicinal plant knowledge worldwide.  Some believe that they began to use certain plants after watching animals eat them, and by trial and error, they discovered what plants they could use to help cure certain illnesses.  Blackberries were used in culinary dishes and for medicinal purposes and were greatly prized.

About Blackberries

The blackberry or bramble is known worldwide with the majority of this plant species and subspecies being found in the Northern hemisphere.  This unusually prickly fruit-bearing plant is related to the rose family, and very closely related to raspberries.

According to botanists, the blackberry is not an actual berry, it is an "aggregate" of drupelets that ripen into black or dark purple berries. The leaves usually feature three to five oval coarsely toothed stalked leaflets and the flowers are white, pink or red.

Worldwide there are more than 375 species of the blackberry plant. This plant tolerates poor soil conditions and some species can be invasive, at one time American colonists considered them a serious weed problem.  The berries on this hardy plant are big, juicy and refreshingly tart and usually ripen in mid. to late summer when they are harvested.

Medicinal and Culinary Uses of Blackberries

Evidence suggests from all over the world that humans have eaten blackberries for thousands of years.  Native Americans used this berry to flavor stews and would eat them fresh off the stalk and make juice and tea from them.

More importantly, their leaves, roots, and berries were used as a medicinal herb by Native Americans. The Cherokee, Kiowa-Apache, Chippewa, Ojibwa, Menominee, Delaware, and Iroquois all make a decoction made from either blackberry roots or leaves to treat diarrhea. The Chippewa make a tea from the roots to treat lung problems.

A  cough medicine was made from honey or maple syrup mixed with blackberry root to heal sore throats and relieve coughing.   Some tribes would gargle with an infusion of blackberry roots and leaves to relieve mouth ulcers.  Some tribes chew blackberry leaves to sooth bleeding gums. The tannins in the plant not only tighten tissue, they also help to control minor bleeding.

Native Americans also constructed piles of the thorny stems of the blackberry plant around their village.  These piles of blackberry stems acted like a barrier that protected the village from predators.  Native Americans also extracted a dull blue dye from the fruit of the blackberry plant and used the dye for decorative purposes.

Did you know

Blackberries were called ‘bramble’ or brymbyl in old English and ‘brombeere’ in German.

The ancient Anglo-Saxons baked brambleberries into primitive pies to celebrate the first fruit feast of Lughnasadh at the beginning of August.

Blackberries are native to Asia, Europe. North America, Australia, Africa and South America and have the most widespread geographic origin of any fruit crop.

Blackberries are very high in antioxidants which are known to protect against inflammation, cancer, neurological diseases and aging.

Blackberries were supposed to give protection against all evil runes if gathered at the right time of the moon.

The Institute for American Indian Studies

Located on 15 woodland acres the IAIS has an outdoor Three Sisters and Healing Plants Gardens as well as a replicated 16th c. Algonkian Village.  Inside the museum, authentic artifacts are displayed in permanent, semi-permanent and temporary exhibits from prehistory to the present that allows visitors a walk through time. The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington Connecticut and can be reached online or by calling 860-868-0518.

The Institute for American Indian Studies preserves and educates through discovery and creativity the diverse traditions, vitality, and knowledge of Native American cultures. Through archaeology, the IAIS is able to build new understandings of the world and history of Native Americans, the focus is on stewardship and preservation.  This is achieved through workshops, special events, and education for students of all ages.

Medicinal Monday - Astounding Bloodroot!

Many Native Americans are brought up with a rich cultural practice that teaches them that every living thing, plant or animal has a special purpose and a place in the world. Bloodroot has a long and fascinating history and was used by Native Americans in many ways from romantic pursuits to poison.  The Algonquin called bloodroot puccoon or paucon which means "blood red."  This name comes from the Powhatan Indian word, poughkone or pohcoons, which colonists in Virginia recorded as meaning red paint or red dye.

About Bloodroot

Sanguinaria canadensis or bloodroot is a beautiful wildflower that emerges in the spring and usually blooms between April and June in Connecticut. It is native to the Eastern North American woodlands from Nova Scotia through New England and can be found as far south as Florida. It is found in shaded areas surrounded by tall hardwood trees and prefers rich soil.

Bloodroot is a member of the poppy family and like its cousin, it contains opium alkaloids.  Bloodroot has an ephemeral quality because it blooms for only one or two days.  The plant reaches six to nine inches and the blossoms are about three inches across and have eight to twelve pedals making the flower rather large for its relatively small size.  

Medicinal and Decorative Uses

The name bloodroot comes from the fact that red sap is bled from the roots of these wildflowers.  This sap is used by many tribes as a dye for clothing and baskets, as well as for face paint.  The Chippewa dig up the roots in the fall and use the sap to make brilliant red dyes. The Iroquois extracted the rhizomes of the bloodroot plant to make an orange or yellow fabric dye.

In some of the Algonquin villages, bloodroot was associated with romance and men would wear bloodroot paint when they courted women. It was used as a charm by the young men of the Ponca tribe who would put the sap of this plant on their palm and shake hands with the maiden they desired to marry.  If this charm worked, the maiden would marry within five or six days.

Bloodroot was also widely used by Native Americans as a poison, and in small doses as an herbal medicine for treating ringworm, warts, polyps, fungal growths, and skin cancer.

Did you know....

Bloodroot depends on ants to spread its seeds. The ants carry the seeds to their nests and consume part of the plant discarding the seeds in their nest which is the perfect environment for germination.

Bloodroot does not have nectar, however, its large yellow anthers trick insects into transporting its pollen.

In the early years of North American settlement, bloodroot was exported to France and used to dye wool.

Today bloodroot is used in very small doses in herbal remedies to treat severe throat infections and bronchial problems.  An extract is used in some toothpaste to fight plaque.

The FDA considers bloodroot unsafe and discourages the use of this plant in herbal medicine.

The Institute for American Indian Studies

Located on 15 woodland acres the IAIS has an outdoor Three Sisters and Healing Plants Gardens as well as a replicated 16th c. Algonkian Village.  Inside the museum, authentic artifacts are displayed in permanent, semi-permanent and temporary exhibits from prehistory to the present that allows visitors a walk through time. The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington Connecticut and can be reached online or by calling 860-868-0518.

The Institute for American Indian Studies preserves and educates through discovery and creativity the diverse traditions, vitality, and knowledge of Native American cultures. Through archaeology, the IAIS is able to build new understandings of the world and history of Native Americans, the focus is on stewardship and preservation.  This is achieved through workshops, special events, and education for students of all ages.

Digging the Past - By Land and Lake

The Institute for American Indian Studies is hosting a free event on July 22 and on July 28 on Lake Waramaug at the Warren Town Beach located on North Shore Road off of Rte. 45 on the New Preston and Warren Town line.   From 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. participants will experience the historic legacy of our Native American past by taking a free ride in an authentically made Native American dugout canoe and watching an archeological dig that is taking place in a meadow across the street.

Dugout Canoe Rides

Today cars, cell phones, social media, and the Internet connect us, it is the way most of us share ideas and keep in touch with each other.  For the Eastern Woodland Indians, rivers and waterways served as the high-speed highways that connected tribes as the quickest way to move from place to place. The importance of dugout canoes or mishoon as they are called in Wampanoag and Algonkian languages were like today's digital cables because they connected tribes and spread ideas.  Dugout canoes also facilitated fishing, hunting, and trade during pre and post contact time. 

This free opportunity to paddle in an authentically made dugout canoe is a once in a lifetime experience that gives us a glimpse into Native American's rich cultural history of how indigenous people lived in the Eastern Woodlands.  Jeff Kalin, one of the leading primitive technologists in the country made this dugout canoe using traditional Native American construction methods.

About Native American Dugout Canoes

Making a dugout canoe is a mammoth undertaking and began with taking down a massive tree that was usually located near a river or lake.  To fell a tree for a dugout canoe, Native Americans coated the base of a tree with mud and straw and built a fire that charred the trunk.  As soon as the tree was down, the bark (that would be used to build wigwams) was removed and the ends of the trunk was cut and shaped into a point so that the canoe would move either direction. A small fire was started on top of the stripped tree trunk to burn out the top and bottom surface of the trunk.  Stone hand tools would be used to scrape out and hollow the log and flatten the bottom of the canoe.  The final step was to coat the canoe in bear grease to waterproof the wood.

Archeological Dig - July 22

If you are interested in archeology, this is your chance to dig into the past with The Litchfield Hills Archaeology Club on July 22.  The excavation will take place within walking distance of the dugout canoe launch spot on North Shore Road from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. 

                                     

It is exciting to watch the challenge of finding where and how ancient people once lived in Connecticut where there are so few above ground clues.  Perhaps, in this newly excavated area, an artifact may be found that has not been touched by human hands since it was discarded hundreds, perhaps thousands of years ago – artifacts that may shed light on how ancient man lived in Connecticut and in our beautiful Eastern Woodlands.

The Institute for American Indian Studies

Located on 15 woodland acres the IAIS has an outdoor Three Sisters and Healing Plants Gardens as well as a replicated 16th c. Algonkian Village.  Inside the museum, authentic artifacts are displayed in permanent, semi-permanent and temporary exhibits from prehistory to the present that allows visitors a walk through time. The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington Connecticut and can be reached online or by calling 860-868-0518.

The Institute for American Indian Studies preserves and educates through discovery and creativity the diverse traditions, vitality, and knowledge of Native American cultures. Through archaeology, the IAIS is able to build new understandings of the world and history of Native Americans, the focus is on stewardship and preservation.  This is achieved through workshops, special events, and education for students of all ages.

Medicinal Monday - Gooseberries or Currants?

A flavorful shrub in the currant family produces a flavorful fruit popular with Native Americans called a gooseberry.  The gooseberry is another name for several of the many varieties of currants that grow all over North America. The name gooseberry is a direct translation of the Kiowa, Omaha and Ponca terms for this fruit.

About Gooseberries

Currant bushes are small and grow no more than six feet tall and usually measure about three feet. They have fragrant yellow five petal flowers in May or June and round black, red, or blue color fruit that usually ripens in July and August. Gooseberries usually grow on hillsides or on the border of woods or near swamps and beside rivers and streams.

Cultivated forms of gooseberries are divided into either European or American; the difference is in the size of the fruit and the flavor.  North American gooseberries are said to be smaller and have less flavor than there European counterpart, however, they are more resistant to diseases.

Medicinal and Culinary Uses

Native Americans ate gooseberries raw, they also cooked with them. Gooseberries were also dried or preserved and made into jellies or jams.  The Hidatsa tribe considered gooseberries a desireable wild fruit, while the Hopi, would caution against eating too much of this fruit because it could make you sick to your stomach. The Gitksan of British Columbia put them in thin dry cakes that they ate with oil of eulachon, salmon, groundhog, or bear during the winter months. Many tribes made dried currant cakes and also used them in soup and to flavor stews.  The leaves of the plant were dried for tea and the young leaves were cooked with meat.

The Kiowa used the raw fruit of the gooseberry as a remedy for snakebite because they believed that snakes did not like this berry and kept away from this shrub. A decoction made from the steam of the skunk red current was used to prevent blood clotting after giving birth.  Other parts of this plant were used to treat colds, coughs, diabetes, diarrhea and to prevent miscarriages.

Did You Know...

There are many types of gooseberries or currants including the wax, bear, squaw, buffalo, clove, black, Missouri, golden and flowering currants.

Gooseberries are tart, low in calories, fat and cholesterol free and high in Vitamin C and A.

Gooseberries and currents can be easily distinguished by thorns; gooseberries usually have thorns and currants do not.

In the early 1900s the Federal and State Governments outlawed the growing of currants and gooseberries to prevent the spread of white pine blister rust.  Massachusetts still prohibits the cultivation of this plant.

Medicinal Monday - Beautiful Blueberries

Blueberries of the genus Vaccinium is a species that is Native to America and were used for food and medicinal purposes for centuries by Native Americans.  They cherished these berries that were used year-round in many ways.  There is also a spiritual quality to this berry.  The blossom at the end of each blueberry, called the calyx, forms a five-pointed star, Elders of the Tribe told of how the Great Spirit sent "star berries" to relieve the hunger of children during a famine.

About Blueberries

Blueberries are a perennial shrub-like flowering plant with a beautiful indigo colored berry. The flowers are bell-shaped and white, pale pink or red and the berry has a flared crown at the end of the fruit.  The berry starts off as pale green in color, then turns a reddish-purple, when ripe, usually mid.-summer, the berry is a dark blue color. Cranberries, bilberries, and grouseberries are in the same family as blueberries.

Today's cultivated blueberries are distinct from wild blueberries in a few ways. The cultivated blueberry plants are called highbush and the wild blueberries are called lowbush. The real difference has to do with size, the wild berry is much smaller than their bigger, juicy cultivated cousins.

Medicinal and Culinary Use

Today we know that blueberries are good for us because they have such high levels of antioxidant phytonutrients, especially beneficial are the anthocyanins that come from the blueberries rich color that helps neutralize damage that can lead to a multitude of ailments in our skin, tissue, and cells.

Native Americans prescribed blueberry tea as a muscle relaxant, especially for women during childbirth.  Blueberries were also boiled and reduced down into a thick heavy syrup that was used to treat coughs, colds, and sore throats. The Algonquin used an infusion of leaves for infants with colic. They also used an infusion of the roots to induce labor.  The Chippewa would put blueberry flowers on a hot stone and use the fumes as an inhalant for "craziness."  The Iroquois used blueberries in ceremonies for those desiring health in the coming season.

The First Thanksgiving Jean Louis Gerome Ferris

It is said that Native Americans gave blueberries to the pilgrims to help them through their first winter. A favorite dish of the Native Americans was Sautauthig which is like a simple pudding made with blueberries, cracked corn (or samp), and water.  The settlers liked this dish too; and eventually added sugar, milk, and butter to it.  Many historians believe that some form of this was served at the first Thanksgiving.

Native Americans enjoy this berry year round.  They dried the berries, added them whole to stews, soups, and meat as well as to puddings and cakes.  They also crushed blueberries into a powder and rubbed it on meat to help preserve it.

Did you Know...

In the early 20th century, people didn't think blueberries could be domestically cultivated.  In 1911, Elizabeth White, the daughter of a farmer from New Jersey worked with botanist Frederick Coville to crossbreed and create new blueberry varieties. In 1912, the team had a successful field of blueberry plants and by 1916 White and Coville harvested and sold the first commercial crop of highbush blueberries in New Jersey, and the rest is history!

Blueberries are grown in 38 states.  Ten states account for more than 98% of U.S. commercial production: California, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, and Washington.

The largest producer of blueberries in the world is the United States followed by Canada, Poland, Germany, Mexico, France, Netherlands, and Spain.

The Institute for American Indian Studies

Located on 15 woodland acres the IAIS has an outdoor Three Sisters and Healing Plants Gardens as well as a replicated 16th c. Algonkian Village.  Inside the museum, authentic artifacts are displayed in permanent, semi-permanent and temporary exhibits from prehistory to the present that allows visitors a walk through time. The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington Connecticut and can be reached online or by calling 860-868-0518.

The Institute for American Indian Studies preserves and educates through discovery and creativity the diverse traditions, vitality, and knowledge of Native American cultures. Through archaeology, the IAIS is able to build new understandings of the world and history of Native Americans, the focus is on stewardship and preservation.  This is achieved through workshops, special events, and education for students of all ages.