Red Archives - The Cargo Cult Café

Cardinal Flower: Poison, Medicinal & Other Uses

August 24, 2016 by Mike Leave a Comment

Cardinal Flower, Lobelia cardinalis, is a striking but irregular flower of mid to late summer. Medicinally, the Iroquois considered this plant one of the highest of medicinal plants and they used it to strengthen all other medicine. A common theme amongst the Iroquois, Meskwaki and Pawnee was the use of Cardinal Flower as a love medicine. It was either used as a wash, charm, or placed in another food to end quarrels, cause someone to fall in love, or to prevent divorce. The plant was also used as a ceremonial tobacco but it was not smoked. It was used to ward off storms and strewn onto graves.

Cardinal Flower Sources:

Audubon Guides Box Set – Birds, Tree, Wildflowers & Mammals. Computer Software.Green Mountain Digital. Version: 2.3. Web. Jul 10, 2014.

Felter, Harvey Wickes, M.D., and John Uri Lloyd, Phr. M., Ph. D. King’s American Dispensatory, Vol. 2. Cincinnati: The Ohio Valley Company, 1905. pg. 1199-1205

Foster, Steven and James A. Duke. The Peterson Field Guide Series; A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants and Herbs of Eastern and Central North America. 2nd. ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2000. Print. pg. 207-209

Hamel, Paul B. and Mary U. Chiltoskey. Cherokee Plants and Their Uses- A 400 Year History. North Carolina: Herald Publishing. 1975. Print. pg. 28

Herrick, James William. Iroquois Medical Botany. Ph.D. Thesis, New York: State University of New York, Albany 1977. Print. pg. 218

Moerman Daniel E., Native American Ethnobotany, Portland: Timber Press. 1998. Print. pg. 311-312

Newcomb, Lawrence. Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1977. Print. pg. 52-53

United States Department of Agriculture. Natural Resources Conservation Services. Web.

Trumpet Creeper: Cautions

July 27, 2016 by Mike 2 Comments

Trumpet Creeper, Campsis radicans, is also known as cow-itch vine because some people experience skin redness and itching after coming in contact with the leaves. For some this is a great vine that will attract hummingbirds, protects against erosion, and can provide a quick cover for fences and other structures. For others, this vine is very invasive, can quickly spread if not kept in check, is destructive to structures and property, and can be hard to get rid of.

Trumpet Creeper can be found in moist woods, roadside fences and thickets throughout most of the United States and in Ontario Canada. This member of the Bignonia Family can grow from 25 to 40 feet high and it has a woody bark. The flowers have five regular parts, is three inches long, trumpet-shaped, and it has orange and red flowers that can be seen from June to September. The leaves are divided into seven or eleven leaflets that are sharply toothed.

Keep your eyes and ears open and your powder dry!

Trumpet Creeper Sources:

Audubon Guides Box Set – Birds, Tree, Wildflowers & Mammals. Computer Software.Green Mountain Digital. Version: 2.3. Web. Jul 10, 2014.

Felter, Harvey Wickes, M.D., and John Uri Lloyd, Phr. M., Ph. D. King’s American Dispensatory, Vol. 1. Cincinnati: The Ohio Valley Company, 1905. pg. 460-461

Newcomb, Lawrence. Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1977. Print. pg. 328-329

United States Department of Agriculture. Natural Resources Conservation Services. Web.

Purple Dead Nettle: Edible & Medicinal

February 3, 2016 by Mike Leave a Comment

Purple Dead Nettle, Lamium purpureum, this member of the mint family resembles a small nettle plant and has hairs but they do not sting like stinging or wood nettles thus the nettles are dead or inactive. Dead Nettles are edible and contain vitamins, iron and fiber. The leaves can be eaten raw in early spring, afterwards they can be boiled or cooked as potherb. Medicinally, it was used for any kind of hemorrhage.

Keep your eyes and ears open and your powder dry!

Purple Dead Nettle

Audubon Guides Box Set – Birds, Tree, Wildflowers & Mammals. Computer Software.Green Mountain Digital. Version: 2.3. Web. Jul 10, 2014.

Culpeper, M.D., Nicholas. Culpeper Color Herbal. Ed. David Potterton. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc., 1983. Print. pg. 17

Fernald, Merritt Lyndon & Alfred Charles Kinsey. Edible Wild Plants of Eastern North America. New York: Dover Publications, Inc. 1996. Print. pg. 330

Newcomb, Lawrence. Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1977. Print. pg. 86-87

United States Department of Agriculture. Natural Resources Conservation Services. Web.

Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Web.

Toadshade: Edible, Medicinal & Cautions

May 19, 2015 by Mike Leave a Comment

Toadshade, Trillium sessile, is a beautiful spring flower that is both edible and medicinal. The leaves taste like raw sunflower seeds. It has been used medicinally by the Wailaki and Yuki Indians as a dermatological aid, as a panacea (cure-all) and to prevent sleep.

Toadshade Sources:

Audubon Guides Box Set – Birds, Tree, Wildflowers & Mammals. Computer Software.Green Mountain Digital. Version: 2.3. Web. Jul 10, 2014.

Moerman Daniel E., Native American Ethnobotany, Portland: Timber Press. 1998. Print. pg. 568

Newcomb, Lawrence. Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1977. Print. pg. 124-125

Peterson, Lee Allen. The Peterson Field Guide Series; A Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants; Eastern and Central North America. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1977. Print. pg. 96-97, 146-147

United States Department of Agriculture. Natural Resources Conservation Services. Web.

Wild Ginger: Edible, Medicinal, Cautions & Other Uses

February 13, 2015 by Mike 4 Comments

Wild Ginger, Asarum canadense, is a common spice of the woods that can be made into candy. It was used medicinally as a cough medicine, febrifuge, anti-convulsive, abortifacient, pain-reliever, antiemetic, ear ache medicine and a perfume.

Wild Ginger Sources:

Audubon Guides Box Set – Birds, Tree, Wildflowers & Mammals. Computer Software.Green Mountain Digital. Version: 2.3. Web. Jul 10, 2014.

Brill, Steve. Wild Edibles Plus. Computer Software. WinterRoot LLC. Version 1.5. 2012. Web. Feb. 15, 2014.

Felter, Harvey Wickes, M.D., and John Uri Lloyd, Phr. M., Ph. D. King’s American Dispensatory, Vol. 1. Cincinnati: The Ohio Valley Company, 1905. pg. 287

Hamel, Paul B. and Mary U. Chiltoskey. Cherokee Plants and Their Uses- A 400 Year History. North Carolina: Herald Publishing. 1975. Print. pg. 36

Herrick, James William. Iroquois Medical Botany. Ph.D. Thesis, New York: State University of New York, Albany 1977. Print. pg. 93, 49, 52, 55-56, 67, 115-116

Moerman Daniel E., Native American Ethnobotany, Portland: Timber Press. 1998. Print. pg. 105-106

Newcomb, Lawrence. Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1977. Print. pg. 116-117

Peterson, Lee Allen. The Peterson Field Guide Series; A Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants; Eastern and Central North America. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1977. Print. pg. 96-97, 160-161

United States Department of Agriculture. Natural Resources Conservation Services. Web.