A Little Herb Lore

[Mistwalker]

Thanks Mist for another great thread. I love your posts brother. 'Weeds' I used to walk by now have become more significant thanks to you. Was out this past weekend and found plenty of Solomon's Seal and what I used to think was just another wild onion but now know to be wild garlic

Nice knife too :thumbup:

Thanks Bruce! I always love to hear that someone found the posts useful!

 

[wildmanh]

Brian, this is a really neat post, thanks for sharing. I've been meaning to put together a slide show of sorts of the local edible and useful plants in my area along with the help of a friend who's the local tree and plant guy. You've given me some ideas.

One thing you reminded me is that Young Death Camus looks like Wild Onion and they grow in the same areas. Wild onion and garlic are so smelly that if it touches you, you won't be able to smell Death Camus. Knowing how to properly ID both is key in my area. I'll have to get good pictures of both for my slide show.

 

[Mistwalker]

Brian, this is a really neat post, thanks for sharing. I've been meaning to put together a slide show of sorts of the local edible and useful plants in my area along with the help of a friend who's the local tree and plant guy. You've given me some ideas.

One thing you reminded me is that Young Death Camus looks like Wild Onion and they grow in the same areas. Wild onion and garlic are so smelly that if it touches you, you won't be able to smell Death Camus. Knowing how to properly ID both is key in my area. I'll have to get good pictures of both for my slide show.

Cool, thanks, I always like hearing I inspired some ideas for things like that

Wow, Toxicoscordion venenosum commonly called death camas or meadow deathcamas sounds like some mean stuff! The neurotoxic alkaloids could be very bad to eat since ingesting only 2 to 6% of body weight could be fatal. Yeah, I'd say you should definitely include pics of that in as many stages as you can capture it in. I am glad that is one that is not in this area...at least it's not indigenous. I'll need to read up on it. If you get really nice photos of it, I wouldn't mind having some for my files as well if you want to share.

 

[wildmanh]

Cool, thanks, I always like hearing I inspired some ideas for things like that

Wow, Toxicoscordion venenosum commonly called death camas or meadow deathcamas sounds like some mean stuff! The neurotoxic alkaloids could be very bad to eat since ingesting only 2 to 6% of body weight could be fatal. Yeah, I'd say you should definitely include pics of that in as many stages as you can capture it in. I am glad that is one that is not in this area...at least it's not indigenous. I'll need to read up on it. If you get really nice photos of it, I wouldn't mind having some for my files as well if you want to share.

If we end up doing the slide show, I'll get some good pictures for you. Around here, there are a few poisonous plants that look a bit like edibles. My friend likes to keep us from picking and eating the wrong one.

 

[Mistwalker]

If we end up doing the slide show, I'll get some good pictures for you. Around here, there are a few poisonous plants that look a bit like edibles. My friend likes to keep us from picking and eating the wrong one.

Thanks! And sounds like a good friend to have!

 

[wildmanh]

He sure is.

Hope you don't mind: Last month I harvested a piece of dead standing Curlleaf Mountain Mahogany (Cercocarpus ledifolius). It's a slow growing hard wood in the rose family. Makes good fire wood, turns nicely and a local Violin maker uses it in his instruments. Gave the branch to relatives because they like to turn wood and to wood carvings and they didn't have any. I'm going to harvest more for Tool and knife handles. Here are some pictures of the piece that I got for my cousins:

The Dead standing branch was right next to a lot of Manzanita (Arctostaphylos?) bushes (we have the low growing bush variety here), Juniper (two different varieties), Pinion Pine, Douglas and white fir, Oregon Grape and other plants that I can't think of off the top of my head. Along with photographing the plants, I also want to list their uses. This valley that I live in has some many edible and useful plants that were used for hundreds of years. Most people today have no clue.