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Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Medicinal Plant Guide

Introduction

The Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung prairie is all that remains of a large oak prairie savannah that once stretched along the Rainy River before European habitation of the area. Until the 1800’s, mesic prairie vegetation grew everywhere, but it was cleared for agriculture, drastically reducing the available habitat for the area’s native vegetation and wildlife. During this time, Ojibway people lived at Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung, thus ensuring the preservation of this unique habitat through conducting yearly burns.

The oak savannah prairie is nestled between the Long Sault Rapids and the mixed woodlands. It is a globally significant plant community and hosts many of Ontario’s rare plants, including Oval Leafed Milkweed, Hoary Puccoon, and Wild Licorice. The site is home to hundreds of plant species, 15 that are very rare in Ontario.

Today, preservation of this site is ensured through the stewardship efforts of the Rainy Rivers First Nations. Each spring the prairie is burned to mimic the traditional yearly burns, which facilitates the growth of prairie plants, and inhibits the encroachment of invasive species.

Ecoregion

This ecoregion is very limited in extent near the international border, lying between the Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake in Ontario. It correlates with the Northern Minnesota Wetlands Ecoregion in the United States. It is marked by warm, moist summers and cold winters. The mean annual temperature is approximately 2°C (35.6°F). The mean summer temperature is 15.5°C (59.9°F) and the mean winter temperature is -12.5°C (9.5°F). The mean annual precipitation ranges 600–700 mm (23-27”). This mixed forest includes a succession from trembling aspen, paper birch, and jack pine to white spruce, black spruce, and balsam fir. Warmer portions of the ecoregion support red and sugar maple, and white pine.

Geology

The Rainy River region takes in a portion of the Severn Upland, which is underlain by massive, crystalline, acidic, Archean bedrock that forms broad, sloping uplands and lowlands. Bedrock outcroppings and Dystric Brunisols occur on ridged to hummocky, discontinuous, sandy morainal deposits on uplands. Lowlands are covered by rock-bound lakes, fine, carbonate-rich sediments, and deep organic deposits. Significant inclusions are Mesisols, Fibrisols, and clayey Gray Luvisols. Wetlands are widespread and characterized by bowl bogs that are treed and often surrounded by peat margin swamps.

Organization of this Guide

This booklet can be used as a resource guide to the plants found at the Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung site. These plants are found scattered along the trail, and have been selected to be in this guide because of their interesting and medicinal properties. The names of the plants are written first in Ojibway, English then Latin.

Disclaimer

We are not experts on the medicinal uses of plants and much of the information has been taken from a variety of other sources. You should talk to someone who knows how they should be used, before using any of these plants. The Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung staff cannot take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Sensitivity to a toxin varies with a person’s age, weight, physical condition, and individual susceptibility. Children are most vulnerable because of their curiosity and small size. Toxicity can vary in a plant according to season, the plant’s different parts, and its stage of growth; and plants can absorb toxic substances, such as herbicides, pesticides, and pollutants from the water, air, and soil.

Yarrow
Achillea millefolium L.
Common Names: Common Yarrow
Description: Flat-topped clusters of small, whitish flowers grow at the top of a gray-green, leafy, usually hair on stem.
Flowers: Heads about 6 mm (1/4") across, 4-6 ray flowers surrounding tiny central disk flowers; June-September.
Leaves: 15 cm (6") long, very finely dissected, gray-green, fern-like, aromatic; lanceolate in outline, stalkless. Basal leaves longer.
Height: 30-90 cm (1-3 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Old fields, roadsides.
Range: Most of temperate North America.
Discussion: Yarrow was formerly used for medicinal purposes, to break a fever by increasing perspiration, to treat hemorrhaging and as a treatment for rashes. By steeping the leaves a tea can be made to cure stomach. The foliage has a pleasant smell when crushed.

NAMEPIN
Wild Ginger
Asarum canadense L.
Common Names: Canadian Wild Ginger, Indian ginger
Description: Growing at ground level in the crotch between 2 leafstalks is a single darkish red-brown to green-brown flower.
Flowers: 3.8 cm (1 ?") wide, cup-shaped, with 3 pointed lobes; April-May
Leaves: A pair of large, hairy, heart-shaped, each 3-6" (7.5-15 cm) wide, overshadows the flower.
Height: 6-12" (15-30 cm).
Habitat: Rich woods.
Range: Quebec to New Brunswick; south to South Carolina; west through Kentucky to Missouri; north to Minnesota.
Discussion: The root of this spring flower has a strong ginger-like odor, and by simmering the rootstalks in sugar a candy can be made. It can also be used medicinally to treat whooping cough, dress wounds, settle the stomach and make childbirth easier.
Warning: Touching this plant can cause skin irritation in some people.

Indian-hemp
Apocynum cannabinum L.
Common Names: Hemp Dogbane, Clasping-leaved Indian hemp.
Description: The plant has a strong, erect, purplish stem, with branches ascending from the upper part. Long oval leaves often have a white coating or bloom as found on plums. Small cream-colored flowers are clustered at branch ends or on stalks from leaf axils. Tufted seeds form in spindle-shaped pods.
Flowers: Small, white to greenish-white, and produced in terminal clusters (cymes). The flower size is 1 cm (?") wide. Many small insect pollinators, such as wasps and flies, pollinate the flowers; May-August.
Leaves: Entire margins, ovate or elliptic, 5-12.5 cm (2-5") long, (0.5-1.5") 1-4 cm wide, and arranged oppositely along the stem. Leaves have short petioles (stems) and are sparingly pubescent or lacking hairs beneath. The lower leaves have stems while the upper leaves may not. The leaves turn yellow in the fall, and then drop off.
Fruit: 12.5 cm (5") long or more, narrow follicles produced in pairs that turn reddish-brown when mature and develop into two long pods containing numerous seed with tufts of silky white hairs at their ends.
Height: 1-1.2 m (3-4 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Roadsides, thickets, fields, lakeshores, waterways, and disturbed areas.
Range: Throughout the United States; scattered in Canada.
Discussion: This plant was used to make cordage and thread prior to the widespread use of cotton. The twine made from the plant was excellent for making fishing lines and nets because it kept its strength under water and did not shrink. It was also used in the manufacturing of many other items, including deer and rabbit nets, slings for hunting small game, nooses for snaring grouse and other game birds, hide stretchers, bowstrings, moccasins, clothing, straps, and woven bedding for baby cradles, wheels used in a type of dart game, carrying nets, and cat-tail mats.
Warning: This plant can be fatal to animals if eaten. Other plants in the genus have poisoned humans, and this species should not be ingested.

Lanceleaf Goldenrod
Euthamia graminifolia (Solidago graminifolia L.)
Common Names: Flat-top Goldentop, Grass-leaf Goldenrod, Grassy Goldenrod, Lance-goldenrod
Description: Smooth or finely downy stem branches above the middle, each branch bearing a flat-topped cluster of small yellow flower heads; July-October.
Flowers: Heads about 5 mm (1/5") long, with 10-20 ray flowers and 8-12 disk flowers.
Leaves: 7-12.5 cm (3-5") long, narrow, elongated, and pointed, with 3-5 veins.
Height: 60-120 cm (2-4 ft.).
Habitat: Roadsides, fields, and thickets.
Range: Across Canada; New England south to North Carolina; northwesterly to South Dakota and Minnesota.
Discussion: The fresh or dried leaves can be a tea substitute. Also, an infusion of the dried powdered herb can be used as an antiseptic. The root can be made into a treatment for chest and lung problems, and the blossom can be used to treat fevers.

Canada Goldenrod
Solidago Canadensis L.
Common Names: Meadow Goldenrod, Tall Goldenrod, Rock Goldenrod
Description: Tall, leafy, finely hairy stem has tiny yellow flower heads on arching branches in a long or flat-topped cluster at top.
Flowers: This handsome species produces showy displays, usually late in the summer. Each head is about 3 mm (1/8") long, with 3 short rays; May-September.
Leaves: 5-12.5 cm (2-5") long, lanceolate, finely hairy, with 3 prominent veins.
Height: 30-150 cm (1-5 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Meadows and open forest.
Range: Across Canada and throughout the United States.
Discussion: Although it and other goldenrods are commonly blamed for hay fever, this discomfort is usually caused by pollen from Ragweed (Ambrosia spp.), which are less conspicuous plants with greenish flowers that bloom at the same time. A poultice of the flowers has been used in the treatment of ulcers and burns. A poultice of the moistened, crushed root has been used in the treatment of boils. The leaves are also a source of latex, and a good source of rubber.

Common Tansy
Tanacetum vulgare L.
Common Names: Chamomile, Tansy
Description: Erect perennial with flat-topped clusters of bright orange-yellow, button-like flower heads.
Flowers: Heads 1.3 cm (1/2") wide, composed entirely of disk flowers with occasional ray-like extensions developing from marginal flowers; July-September.
Leaves: 10-20 cm (4-8") long, divided into linear, toothed segments, strongly aromatic.
Height: 60-90 cm (2-3 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Roadsides and edges of fields (escaped from gardens).
Range: Throughout much of North America, except Texas, South Carolina to Alabama, and Arctic.
Discussion: The fresh young leaves and flowers have been used as a substitute for sage in cooking, but given the potential toxicity of this plant, ingesting it is not recommended.
Warning: Tansy, and herbal extracts derived from it, can be poisonous and even fatal to humans. For centuries this plant was used medicinally to cause abortions, with occasionally fatal results. The bitter-tasting leaves and stem contain tanacetum, an oil toxic to humans and animals.

Wild Licorice
Glycyrrhiza lepidota Nutt. ex Pursh.
Common Names: American Licorice
Description: This tall plant has a stem that is covered with minute, sticky hairs. Found on the branches are brown fruits covered with hooked spines.
Flowers: Cream flowers, which resemble those of alfalfa, are crowded on a terminal spike June-July.
Leaves: Leaves are opposite and on long stems.
Height: 0.3-0.9m (1-3 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Prairies, stream valleys, sandy moist areas and roadsides.
Range: West Ontario to British Columbia, south to north-west Missouri, north Arkansas, Texas, Mexico, and California.
Discussion: The root can be eaten raw or cooked, but it is not the plant used for the production of commercial licorice. The root is sweet and fleshy, and when slow roasted is said to taste like sweet potatoes. The root contains 6% glycyrrhizin, a substance that is 50 times sweeter than sugar. Also, the tender young shoots can be eaten raw in the spring. Medicinally, the plant can be used for a birthing aid, foot care, toothaches, and treating sores on the skin.
Location on site: Found at the end of the trail.

Common Morning Glory
Ipomoea purpurea (L.) Roth
Common Names: Purple morning glory, Tall morning-glory
Description: A twining vine with hairy stems and funnel-shaped flowers of purple, pink, blue, or white in clusters of 1-5 rising from the leaf axils.
Flowers: 5-7.5 cm (2-3") long; corolla of 5 fused petals; sepals narrow, pointed, and hairy; July-October
Leaves: 5-12.5 cm (2-5") long; broad, heart-shaped.
Height: Vine, to 3m (10 ft.) long.
Habitat: Cultivated fields, roadsides, and disturbed areas.
Range: Ontario east to Maine, south to Florida, west to Texas, and north to North Dakota; also in southwestern United States and California.
Discussion: Originally introduced from tropical America as an ornamental, this plant has escaped from gardens and become naturalized. The seed is anthelmintic, diuretic and laxative. It is used in the treatment of oedema, oliguria, ascariasis and constipation. The seed contains small quantities of a hallucinogenic. This plant has been used medicinally in the treatment of various mental disorders.

Small Red Morning Glory
Ipomoea coccinea L.
Common Names: Redstar
Description: A twining, annual vine with small scarlet flowers, each with a flaring tube flattening into 5 shallow lobes.
Flowers: About 2 cm (3/4") wide; sepals 5, with bristle-like tips; stamens and stigma protruding; July-October
Leaves: 4-10 cm (1 1/2-4") long, heart-shaped, occasionally lobed.
Height: Vine; 0.9-2.7 m (3-9 ft.) long.
Habitat: Thickets, disturbed areas, and roadsides.
Range: Michigan east to Massachusetts, south to Florida, west to Texas, and north to Iowa and Illinois.
Discussion: This showy vine, introduced as an ornamental from tropical America, has now escaped in many areas. The genus name derives from the Greek word for "worm-like" and refers to the plant's twining habit. The closely related Scarlet Cypress Vine (I. quamoclit) has leaves divided into very narrow segments, like teeth on a comb.

Jack-in-the-pulpit
Arisaema triphyllum (L.)
Common Names: Bog-onion,
Indian Turnip, Steward’s-pulpit
Description: Distinctive "Jack-in-the-pulpit" formation grows beneath large leaves. Found on forest floor, as a low herbaceous plant.
Flowers: Curving ridged hood (the spathe or "pulpit), green or purplish-brown, often streaked or mottled, envelops an erect club (the spadix or "Jack") 5-7.5 cm (2-3") long. Spadix bears tiny separate male and female flowers at the base; April-June.
Leaves: 1 or usually 2, long-stemmed 3-parted, veined, dull green.
Height: 30-90 cm (1-3 ft.) tall.
Habitat Damp woods and swamps.
Range: Southern Quebec and New Brunswick; south through the Appalachians and coastal plain to Florida; west to Louisiana and eastern Texas.
Discussion: Although it causes a strong burning reaction and has a strong peppery taste if eaten raw, the underground tuber can be eaten if cooked, as cooking eliminates these unpleasant properties. The fleshy taproots were once gathered as a vegetable.
Warning: Containing needle-like calcium oxalate crystals and perhaps other acrid substances, the berries, foliage, and roots of this plant will cause painful irritation of the mouth and throat if ingested. The roots can cause blisters on skin if touched.

MAAZHI MISKWAA WAABIGWAN
Closed Gentian
Gentiana andrewssi (L.)
Common Names: Closed bottle gentian
Description: Conspicuous lavender, purple, or white, cup-shaped flowers, solitary or in few-flowered terminal clusters.
Flowers: The flowers have 5 Regular Parts and are up to 4 cm (1 1/2") long. They are blue sometimes violet. The corolla appears completely closed but can be opened at the top; August to September.
Leaves: The leaf arrangement is opposite. Leaves can reach 10 cm in length (4”). Each leaf is HYPERLINK "http://2bnthewild.com/gloss.htm" \l "lanceolate" lanceolate entire and stemless
Height: 61cm in height (24”) tall.
Habitat: Moist fields or open woods.
Range: From Quebec to as far south as Tennessee and North Carolina.
Discussion: The bitter root has long been used as a tonic and is known to be an appetite stimulant. It was used as a tonic, cathartic and laxative as well as to treat a weak stomach and, oddly, hysterical affections.

Northern Gentian
Gentianella amarella (L.)
Common Names: Autumn Dwarf Gentian
Description: A leafy plant with angled, erect stems, with small trumpet-shaped, purplish, bluish, or pinkish flowers from near base to top.
Flowers: Sepals joined at base; corolla 1/2-3/4" (1.5-2 cm) wide, varying from pale yellowish and lightly blue-tinged to clear blue, lavender, pinkish, purplish, or dark bluish purple, with 5 lobes flaring only slightly from tube and a fringe of hairs inside at base of lobes; June-September.
Leaves: 6-38 mm (1/4-1 1/2") long, oblong, opposite, without stalks.
Height: 5-40 cm (2-16") tall.
Habitat: Meadows and moist areas, mostly in mountains.
Range: Alaska south and east across much of Canada to Atlantic Coast and northeastern United States, and south to California, Arizona, New Mexico, and North Dakota.
Discussion: Gentian can be used for the treatment of digestive disorders. It is especially useful in states of exhaustion from chronic disease and in all cases of debility, weakness of the digestive system and lack of appetite. It is one of the best strengtheners of the human system and is an excellent tonic to combine with a purgative in order to prevent its debilitating effects. The root is anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, a bitter tonic, and has agents that destroy and expel worms from the intestines. It can also increase bile flow to the intestines, promote or assist the flow of menstrual fluid, reduce fever, and which give strength and tone to the stomach. It is harvested in the autumn and dried for later use. It is quite likely that the roots of plants that have not flowered are the richest in medicinal properties.

Large Cranberry
Vaccinium macrocarpon Ait.
Common Names: American cranberry
Description: The ascending branches of this evergreen, shrub has nodding, pinkish-white flowers with 4 backward- pointing petals in clusters arising in the leaf axils.
Flowers: 1.3 cm (1/2") long; stamens 8-10, with anthers united into a long, pointed cone projecting upward; June-August
Leaves: 5-16 mm (1/5-2/3") long; alternate, oval, blunt, shiny above but slightly whitish beneath.
Fruit: Dark red, globose berry.
Height: Creeper, with branches to 20 cm (8") high.
Habitat: Open bogs, swamps, and lakeshores.
Range: Ontario east to Newfoundland, south to North Carolina, west to Tennessee, and north to Illinois and Minnesota; also in British Columbia, Washington, and California.
Discussion: Wild cranberries often form low dense masses over peaty, boggy areas. The berries are ready for picking in the fall. An infusion of the branches has been used as a treatment for pleurisy, which is a respiratory disorder.

Jerusalem Artichoke
Helianthus tuberosus L.
Description: Stout, rough, branching stems bear large golden-yellow flower heads.
Flowers: Heads to 7.5 cm (3") wide, with 10-20 ray flowers; bracts beneath heads narrow, spreading; August-October
Leaves: 10-25 cm (4-10") long, ovate to lanceolate, thick and rough, toothed, opposite below and alternate above, with winged stalks, 3 main veins.
Height: 1.5-3 m (5-10 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Moist soil.
Range: Throughout east, except far north; also in northwestern United States.
Discussion: The edible tuber is highly nutritious and, unlike potatoes, contains no starch, but rather carbohydrate in a form that is metabolized into natural sugar. Today they are sold in produce markets stores and, when boiled or roasted like potatoes, are delicious. Raw, they have a sweet, nut-like taste. This plant is ideal for diabetics, because when ingested it does not increase glucose levels, and it is also high in iron.

Strawberry Bush
Euonymus americanus Nutt.
Common Names: American Strawberry Bush, Brook Euonymus, Hearts-a-busting
Description: This airy, deciduous shrub grows to be quite tall. Its ridged twigs become purplish when exposed to the sun. Pale green flowers with purple stamens have five, distinct clawed petals. Bright green, oval leaves become dark red in fall when bright red fruits open to reveal orange seeds.
Flowers: Axillary, few, small greenish-purple, 2.5-7.5 cm (1-3") wide; May to June
Fruit: 10 mm (1/4") wide, rough warty capsules, crimson when ripe and somewhat resembling strawberries, splitting open at maturity.
Leaves: Opposite, oblong, lanceolate, and broadly ovate, 3-9 cm (1.2-3.6") long and 1-3 cm (0.4-1.2") wide, base rounded or wedge-shaped, acute at apex, serrate.
Height: 1.8-3.6 m (6-12 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Deciduous woods, low, sandy thickets, and swamps.
Range: Most of eastern North America except extreme north.
Discussion: The Strawberry Bush is a member of the staff tree or bittersweet family (family Celastraceae), which includes shrubs, woody vines, and mostly small trees. Many authorities report that the fruit and bark of the Strawberry bush and its relatives contain glycosides that cause severe diarrhea in humans; when ingested the berries may also affect the heart, possibly causing cardiac arrest, and are especially dangerous for kids. Additionally, the leaves and twigs are considered to be deadly poisonous to domestic sheep and cattle. Regardless, the roots were used to make a tea for stomach and urinary problems.
Warning: The bark and fruit are considered poisonous and should never be ingested.

ODE’MIN
Wild Strawberry
Fragaria virginiana Duschesne.
Common Names: Virginia Strawberry, Heart berry, Scarlet strawberry
Description: This low perennial forms runners and produces several small, white flowers and long-stalked, 3-parted basal leaves.
Flowers: 2 cm (3/4") wide; 5 sepals, 5 petals, many numerous pistils on a dome-like structure; April-June.
Leaves: Leaflets 2.5-3.8 cm (1-1 1/2") long, toothed, and with hairy stalks.
Fruit: Dry, seed-like, sunken within enlarged, fleshy cone--the "strawberry."
Height: Creeper, with flower stalks 7.5-15 cm (3-6") high.
Habitat: Open fields, edges of woods.
Range: Throughout North America, except Arctic islands.
Discussion: Found in patches in fields and dry openings, this plant produces the finest, sweetest, wild strawberry. The edible portion of the strawberry is actually the central portion of the flower, which enlarges greatly with maturity and is covered with the embedded, dried, seed-like fruit. Cultivated strawberries are hybrids developed from this native species and the South American one. A tea from the leaves may stimulate appetite.

Pale Touch-me-not
Impatiens pallida Nutt.
Common Names: Jewelweed, Snapweed
Description: A tall leafy plant with succulent, translucent stems bearing nodding, usually pale yellow flowers occasionally splotched with reddish brown.
Flowers: 4 cm (1 1/2") long; calyx tube ending in a short hooked spur; June-October.
Leaves: 2.5-10 cm (1-4") long, alternate, thin, ovate, toothed.
Fruit: Fragile, swollen, elliptical capsule, exploding at maturity, expelling seeds.
Height: 90-180 cm (3-6 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Wet woods and meadows, often on mountainsides in wet, shady, limestone or neutral sites.
Range: Ontario east to Nova Scotia, south to Georgia, west to Oklahoma, and north to North Dakota.
Discussion: The leaves and seeds can be cooked and eaten in oriental dishes, but some caution is advised. The whole plant is diuretic, emetic and purgative. Externally, the soothing sap is a proven remedy for nettle stings and poison ivy rash. It can also be used for the treatment of warts, corns, ringworm and haemorrhoids.
Warning: Regular ingestion of large quantities of these plants can be dangerous due to their high mineral content. This is due to the high content of calcium oxalate. It can be harmful raw but is destroyed by thoroughly cooking or drying the plant. People with a tendency to rheumatism, arthritis, gout, kidney stones and hyperacidity should take especial caution if including this plant in their diet.

Canada Thistle
Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop.
Common Names: Creeping thistle, Noxious thistle
Description: Numerous fragrant pale magenta or lavender flower heads top this highly-branched, smooth-stemmed plant.
Flowers: Heads 2.5 cm (1") wide, all disk type, heads surrounded by spine-tipped bracts; June-October.
Leaves: 12.5-20 cm (5-8") long, grey-green with matted hairs, spiny, lanceolate, deeply cut, wavy-edged, mostly stalkless.
Height: 30-150 cm (1-5 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Pastures, roadsides, waste places.
Range: Throughout North America, except much of far north and southeastern United States.
Discussion: This is a European introduction that reached by way of Canada, hence the common name “Noxious Thistle.” Its smaller flowering heads and non-spiny stem distinguish it from the Bull Thistle (C. vulgare). This plant has a variety of uses, the root is used as a tonic, diuretic, astringent, and hepatic. It is also chewed for a treatment for toothache, and the seed fluff is useful as tinder for starting fires.

Kentucky Bluegrass
Poa pratensis L.
Common Names: Junegrass, Speargrass
Description: A densely tufted grass with smooth, erect stems topped by pyramidal clusters of ovoid, green spikelets borne on thread-like, spreading or ascending branches.
Flowers: Tiny, lacking petals; stamens 6; styles 2. Flowers enclosed in scales; scales grouped into spikelets at the ends of branches, together forming a cluster to 6" (15 cm) long; May-August.
Leaves: Up to 20 cm (8") long and 6mm (1/6") wide, basal and on lower part of stem.
Height: 30-90 cm (1-3 ft) tall.
Habitat: Moist or dry soil, meadows, and fields.
Range: Throughout much of North America.
Discussion: This grass is often cultivated as a lawn or pasture grass. It gives Kentucky the name Bluegrass State. The Bluegrass Region near Lexington is noted for its famous racehorses that graze on the limestone-rich grasses. The many species of Poa are difficult to distinguish from one another.

Common Dandelion
Taraxacum officinale Weber.
Common Names: Dandelion, Blow-ball, Piss-weed
Description: A common weed, its solitary flower head, each with numerous yellow ray flowers, tops a hollow, leafless stalk that rises from the center of a rosette of toothed leaves. Stem juice is milky.
Flowers: Heads 2-3.8 cm (3/4-1 1/2") wide, with outer bracts short, curled back, inner bracts longer, curling back when fruits mature; flowers all of ray type; mostly the winter months in the South and summer in the North.
Leaves: 5-40 cm (2-16") long, lanceolate, broadest near tip, with jagged, backward-pointing lobes or teeth.
Height: 5-50 cm (2-20").
Habitat: Lawns, pastures, fields, and roadsides.
Range: Throughout North America, but rare in extreme southeastern United States.
Discussion: The popular name comes from dent de lion, French for "lion's tooth," referring to the teeth on the leaves. This plant has many uses; the leaves, root and flowers can be eaten. It is an extremely nutritious plant as it contains many vitamins, minerals. Medicinally, it can be used as an herbal remedy for both internal and external ailments. It can be employed in the treatment of gall bladder and urinary disorders, gallstones, jaundice, cirrhosis, dyspepsia with constipation, diseases associated with high blood pressure and heart weakness, chronic joint and skin complaints, gout, eczema and acne.

Red Clover
Trifolium pratense L.
Common Names: Chevron clover, Meadow clover
Description: Deep pink "pea flowers" in round or egg-shaped heads on an erect, hairy stem, with leaves divided into 3 oval leaflets.
Flowers: 1.3 cm (1/2") long, in heads about 2.5 cm (1") long and 1.3-3.8 cm (1/2-1 1/2") wide; upper petal (standard) folded over 2 fused lower petals (keel) and lateral petals (wings); May-September
Leaves: Compound, with 3 broad leaflets, each 2-6.3 cm (3/4-2 1/2") long; with a lighter, V-shaped pattern near the middle; upper 2 leaves usually close to head, but no collar around stem beneath it.
Height: 15-90 cm (6-36") tall.
Habitat: Fields, roadsides, riverbanks.
Range: Throughout North America, except far north.
Discussion: Recent studies show that genistein is a component in clover that can assist in combating cancer, especially among smokers. Additionally, this plant is helpful in reducing respiratory irritation. This plant has soft diuretic properties to be used to treat problems like obesity, or rheumatic illnesses.

Smooth Brome
Bromus inermis Leyss.
Common Names: Awnless bromegrass, Common bromegrass, Hungarian bromegrass, Northern awnless brome
Description: A rhizomatous, clump-forming, perennial grass bearing many light green (sometimes purple- or bronze-tinged), narrow, usually hairless spikelets in a loose, much-branched terminal cluster.
Flowers: Enclosed in 5-12 scales sometimes tipped with short bristles to about 2 mm (1/16") long; spikelets 2-4 cm (3/4-1 1/2") long, 3-5 mm (1/8-1/4") wide, on thread-like, flexible stalks mostly shorter than spikelets; cluster 10-30 cm (4-12") long; May-July, sporadically to September.
Leaves: Blades 15-40 cm (6-15") long, 5-16 mm (1/4-5/8") wide, smooth or slightly rough, rising from long-tubular sheaths surrounding stem; often with a crimp forming a more or less distinct W or U at blade midsection.
Height: 40-120 cm (16-46") tall.
Habitat: Roadsides, fields, pastures, nursery plots, and waste places.
Range: Throughout most of North America, except parts of far north, and least common in southeastern United States.
Discussion: This drought-resistant Eurasian species was deliberately introduced into the United States around 1880 as a hay and pasture grass and for reseeding western ranges. It has since spread throughout the United States and much of Canada, (except the far north) and is now one of our most common weedy grasses; in some areas it is considered an undesirable plant because of its aggressiveness. However, its deep roots make it an excellent soil binder, protecting against erosion. Relished by all kinds of livestock, it is fine forage.

Blue Giant Hyssop
Agastache foeniculum (Pursh.) Kuntze
Common Names: Lavender giant-hyssop
Description: The stem is square with heart-shaped leaves in opposite pairs. The flowers are blue-violet and densely clustered in the shape of a tube.
Flowers: Small bluish flowers clustered in a spike; blooms in July-August. Attracts wildlife.
Leaves: Ovate-lanceolate leaves, 10 cm (4") long are downy beneath and have a pleasant mint fragrance.
Height: 0.6-1.2 m (2-4 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Dry thickets, fields and waste ground on prairies and plains.
Range: Western N. America - Ontario to Washington, south to Colorado.
Discussion: The leaves can be brewed into a liquorice-flavoured tea, and it treats various infections and digestive problems. They are used as flavouring in raw or cooked dishes. Excellent raw, they have a sweet flavour and are used for flavouring salad. The only drawback to the leaves is that they tend to have a drying effect in the mouth and so cannot be eaten in quantity.

Hoary Puccoon
Lithospermum canscens (Michx.) Lehm.
Common Names: Indian-paint, Indian-paint gromwell
Description: Herbaceous, early blooming prairie plant, which has a tendency to sprawl across the ground. The stems are covered with long white hairs. The leaves have sparse white hairs on their upper sides, ciliate hairs along their margins, and a white pubescence on their undersides. The flowers occur in showy clusters at the ends of major stems, and are bright yellow or yellowish orange. The root system consists of a central taproot.
Flowers: 5 regular parts and flower are up to 1.3 cm (0.5") wide. The lower half is fused into a tube hiding the stamens. Flowers are arranged in a flat-topped cluster, and have no noticeable floral scent; April to June
Leaves: The leaves are alternate, and can reach 6 cm (2.3") in length. Each leaf is narrow hairy and entire, and has a prominent central vein, and absence of serration along the margins. They are oblong, with rounded tips, and are sessile at the base.
Height: 15-45cm (6-18") tall.
Habitat: Dry open woods, thickets and glades. High quality habitats, such as virgin prairie remnants, otherwise it is rare or absent.
Range: Saskatchewan in the west to southern Ontario in the east and southward (primarily in the Mississippi Valley) to Georgia and Texas.
Discussion: The name 'Puccoon' is a Native American term applied to several plants used for making reddish pigment. Carolina Puccoon (L. Caroliniense) grows taller, has larger flowers and hairs, more narrow leaves and a wider range. This plant has a long taproot and seeds that look like little pieces of bone or ivory. The seeds from this plant can be used in rattles.

MAZAAN
Stinging Nettle
Urtica dioica L.
Common Names: European stinging nettle
Description: This herbaceous perennial has a hairy erect, square stem with dark green-toothed leaves that grow in pairs up the stem. Small green flowers sprout in clusters from the leaf axils in summer and are sometimes tinged pinkish. This plant spreads by rhizomes, and often grows in colonies.
Flowers: 1-2 mm (1/8”) long, grown in cluster, with 4 tiny sepals and no petals. Male and female flowers on separate plants or in separate clusters on the same plant; May-September.
Leaves: Opposite 7-15 cm (0.4- 6”) long. Leaf blades from narrowly lanceolate and rounded or pointed at base to broadly ovate and often cordate at base, coarsely sharp-toothed.
Height: 0.6-1.8 m (2-6 feet) tall.
Habitat: Wetlands, meadows, and at the edges of woods.
Range: Throughout Canada and the United States.
Discussion: The small, hollow hairs in stinging nettle contain several irritating substances such as histamine (the mediator of some allergic reactions), serotonin, acetylcholine and formic acid (ants contain a high concentration of formic acid). These substances, coupled with the hairs ability to scratch the skin and mucus membranes, results in almost immediate burning, itching and irritation. Typically, signs are present for a few minutes to a few hours, and resolve on their own. If oral contact was made, the animal may shake its head, salivate, and rub its mouth. Skin irritation is possible, especially with short-coated dogs, and eye irritation is also possible. This plant has a variety of medicinal and edible purposes. Young plants can also be used to make nettle tea, wine or beer. They can also be dried for winter use. Nettles are a very valuable addition to the diet, they are a very nutritious food that is easily digested and is high in minerals (especially iron) and vitamins (especially A and C). Older plants become fibrous and gritty from an abundance of small crystals.
Warning: This plant's tiny stinging hairs contain an acid that can cause a severe, burning skin irritation.

Seneca Snakeroot
Polygala senega L.
Common Names: Milkwort, Mountain flax, Rattlesnake root
Description: A perennial that has several stems arise from its crown, sometimes slightly tinged with red. Leaves are numerous, alternate, and linear-shaped. Dense spikes of white or pinkish flowers tinged with green terminate the stem. This plant produces seeds in capsules.
Flowers: 2cm (1/8”) long that grow in spikes that are several inches long; April to July.
Leaves: The leaves alternate on the stem are lance shaped or oblong lance shaped, thin in texture, (2.5-5cm) 1-2” long, and stemless.
Height: 15-60cm (? ft.-2 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Dry woods on limestone, rocky soils, and higher altitudes.
Range: New Brunswick and western New England to Minnesota and the Canadian Rocky Mountains, and south along the Allegheny Mountains to North Carolina and west to Missouri.
Discussion: This plant has traditionally been used as a cure for snakebite. It was also used for earaches, toothaches, sore throats, croup and colds. Its main use today is as an expectorant in cough syrups, teas and lozenges, and as a gargle for sore throats. It has also been used in larger doses as an emetic and cathartic.

Big Bluestem
Andropogon gerardii Vitm.
Common Names: Gerard's bluestem, Hall’s beard grass, Turkey foot
Description: This prairie grass has flowering stalks that grow in three finger-like branches. Deep roots help the big bluestem survive in times of drought, some reaching to a depth of 3.6 m (12 ft). It reproduces primarily via rhizomes, and is found growing in clumps.
Flowers: The purplish flowers are at the top of the stalks, usually in 3-4 tight clusters from a common point; August through September.
Leaves: Flat, 30-60 cm (6 to 24”) long, 6.6-17 mm (1/5-1/2”) wide, usually glabrous on the underside and scabrous (rough) above, with rough margins, and hairy at the collar.
Habitat: Prefers deep, fertile, dry soils of prairies, plains, and open woods. It is seen more frequently in lowland prairies, but can also be found on shallow, gravelly ridges during wet periods.
Height: 60-180cm (2 to 6 ft.) tall.
Range: North America from Oklahoma to Canada.
Discussion: This plant was used by to treat digestive problems.

SASAPKWANINS ANIIBIISHAN
Wild Bergamot
Monarda fistulosa L.
Common Names: Wild bergamot, Wild horsemint
Description: Herbaceous perennial, fragrant leaves, rose-purple to lavender, two-lipped, tubular flowers.
Flowers: 4 cm (1.5”) long; July-August. The flowers are very attractive to bees and hummingbirds.
Leaves: 5-10 cm (2 to 4”) long.
Height: 60-120 cm (2 to 4 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Dry soils, usually in dry woods, thickets, and forest clearings.
Range: North America, east of the Rockies
Discussion: The leaves of the plant have been used traditionally to make a strongly mint flavored tea, and it is supposed to have a number of medicinal qualities, 1 teaspoon of dried leaves to 8 ounces of boiling water. The leaves can be added fresh, in small quantities, to salad, desserts and drinks. Wild bergamot was often employed medicinally, and it is most often used for treatment of the digestive system. It is still sometimes used in modern herbalism. Also, the leaves have been used as an insect repellent.

Pearly Everlasting
Anaphalis margaritacea (L.) Benth. & Hook.
Common Names: Large-flowered everlasting, Pearly everlasting
Description: This drought-resistant perennial has one single leafy stem, and grows to be quite tall. The leaves are long, slender, and lance shaped they grow along the entire length of the stem. The flowers are tiny and unique with a yellowish middle. They form a disc in the center of many pearly dry bracts, giving the flower a peal-white appearance.
Flower: Tiny yellow flowers surrounded by white, petal-like bracts, 1cm (?”) wide; July-September.
Leaves: 7.5-12.5 cm (3- 5") long, narrow, alternate and entire.
Height: 30-90 cm (1-3 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Moist meadows, by rivers, on wall tops and in sandy and waste places.
Range: Most of North America; south to New Mexico, southern California, Arizona, Kansas, and eastern United States.
Discussion: Pearly everlasting was often employed medicinally as a treatment for different ailments. The whole plant is anodyne, antiseptic, astringent, expectorant and sedative. Used internally, it is a good remedy for diarrhea, dysentery and pulmonary affections. A poultice of the flowers or the whole plant is applied to burns, sores, ulcers, bruises, swellings and rheumatic joints. An infusion of the plant is steamed and inhaled in the treatment of headaches. A cooled infusion of the roots and shots has been used as a laxative and emetic to treat 'poison stomach. It was also used as a natural dye, as it would produce a yellow to gold colour from the flowers, stems and leaves.

Panicled Aster
Aster lanceolatus Willd. (Aster simplex Willd.)
Common Names: Lance-leaved aster, Tall white aster
Description: Tall stem bearing a panicle of flower heads with numerous white (occasionally violet-tinged) rays.
Flowers: Head 2-2.5 cm (3/4-1") wide. Central disk yellowish to pinkish; bracts narrow, green-tipped. Flowers spread out, but not on one side of the stem; August-September.
Leaves: Lanceolate, sharp-pointed, sometimes toothed, sessile or short-stalked, lower ones 7.5-15 cm (3-6") long, upper ones smaller.
Height: 1.2-1.5 m (4-5 ft.) tall.
Habitat: Damp roadside ditches and thickets
Range: Throughout much of North America, except far north.
Discussion: An infusion of the plant, combined with other plants, has bee used in the treatment of fevers. A decoction of the plant has been used to dress wounds. The dried and powdered plant has been used as a salve on abrasions. Smoke from the crushed blossoms has been inhaled in the treatment of nosebleeds.

MESKOJIIBIKAK
Bloodroot
Sanguinaria canadensis L.
Common Names: Puccoon-root, Red puccoon
Description: This indigenous plant is among the earliest to bloom of our spring flowers, the waxy-white blossom, enfolded by the grayish green leaf, appears just after the snow has melted. The stem and root contain a blood-red juice. Bloodroot is a perennial that has a thick, horizontal rootstock and produces a single leaf and flower. The plant is smooth and both stem and leaves, especially when young, present a grayish green appearance, being covered with a "bloom" such as is found on some fruits. The under side of the leaf is paler than the upper side and shows prominent veins. The flower is white, waxlike in appearance, with numerous golden-yellow stamens in the center.
Flowers: 2.5 cm (1”) across. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs); blooms in April.
Leaves: The leaves are palmately 5 to 9 lobed, the lobes either cleft at the apex or having a wavy margin, and are borne on leaf stems about 12.5-35 cm (5-14”) long. The leaves continue to grow after the plants have ceased flowering the leaves, at first only 7.5 cm (3”) long and 10-12.5 cm (4-5”) broad continue to expand until they are about 10-17.5 cm (4-7”) long and 15-30 cm (6-12”) broad.
Height: 0.2 m by 0.3 m (6”) tall.
Habitat: Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade, Shady Edge.
Range: Eastern N. America - Nova Scotia to Arkansas and N. Florida, west to Nebraska.
Discussion: Bloodroot was a traditional remedy to treat fevers, blood disorders, rheumatism, to induce vomiting and as an element in divination. In modern herbalism it is chiefly employed as an expectorant, promoting coughing and the clearing of mucus from the respiratory tract. Externally, the root is used in the treatment of skin diseases, warts, nasal polyps, benign skin tumours, and sore throats.
Warning: The root is toxic, containing a number of opium-like alkaloids that are also found in other members of this family. An excessive dose depresses the central nervous system, causes nausea and vomiting, and may prove fatal. This remedy should not be prescribed for pregnant or lactating women. The sap, fresh or dried, can cause intense irritation to the mucous membranes.

Resources
Manitoba Agriculture Food and Rural Initiatives
Montana Plant Life
Field Guide to the Prairie
Fermilab Science Data
Hostas and Ornamental Grasses
Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses
Dessert Tropical
Oak Point Nursery
Laurentian Outdoor Environmental Education Centre
Ontario Wildflowers
Lamoille County Nature Center, Wildflower Meadow Gardens
The Publics Library and Digital Archive
Science Views, The Plant Kingdom
Connecticut Botanical Society
Ministry of Natural Resources, Natural Heritage Information Center

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