Hairy-Jointed Meadow Parsnip, Thaspium barbinode, is a member of the parsley family found during spring in rich woods and open rocky slopes. Though this plant is a parsnip it is not known to be edible like its larger counterpart Wild Parsnip. Hairy-Jointed Meadow Parsnip looks similar to Golden Alexanders except the leaves are not as finely or sharply toothed as Golden Alexanders and the leaf joints are, of course, hairy. But like Golden Alexanders the flowers have five regular parts, are yellow, and grow in umbel clusters. Medicinally this plant was not widely used but American Indians such as the Chippewa did use this plant as a gastrointestinal and pediatric aid. They would make a decoction of the roots and then it was given to children with colic.

Keep your eyes and ears open and your powder dry!

Hairy-Jointed Meadow Parsnip 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. 555

Newcomb, Lawrence. Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1977. Print. pg. 226-227

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