SKUNK CABBAGE Lysichiton americanum
Description
Skunk cabbage is a flowering perennial
plant that is known for its flowers pungent skunk-like smell. The many
petal-less flowers are born in a fleshy inflorescence (or spadix) that is
surrounded by a bright yellow spathe. As the flowers matures, the spathe
opens more to allow pollinators to enter. Pollinated flower heads develop
berry-like fruits containing seeds (5). The leaves can grow up to 135cm long
and 80 cm wide. They are a long lived plant that can reach up to 80 years in
age (1).
They have the ability to produce heat,
and buds can warm up to 70 degrees in the winter months, melting any snow
that is surrounding the plant (5).
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Ecology
Skunk cabbage requires wet or damp
humus-rich soil in full sun or semi-shade. They grow well by water or in
bogs. They can grow to at least -15 degrees Celsius.
Their smell attracts flies, beetles
and midges in great numbers to pollinate the flowers. Spiders often build
webs in the plant in order to catch a lot of prey (3).
Bears often eat the roots after
hibernating as a laxative or cathartic. (4)
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Ethnobotany
Skunk cabbage contains calcium oxalate
crystals that give a prickling sensation on the tongue and throat (4). The leaves
and roots are edible, and the shoots MUST be cooked or dried otherwise they
are poisonous. Native Americans would cook them in several changes of water,
making them tasteless. They would be ground and used as a thickening agent or
used to wrap baking food. It is unsafe to eat more than three stalks at a
time. The root has a hot flavor like ginger.
It is an antispasmodic and would be
used as a poultice to treat a variety of complaints such as swelling, sores,
thorns/splinters, boils, burns, cuts, and chest pains. Women would chew the
raw root to secure an abortion.
The large, water resistant leaves were
also used as lining for baskets, berry containers, and drinking cups (3).
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References:
(5)
http://www.nwf.org/wildlife/wildlife-library/plants/skunk-cabbage.aspx
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DEER FERN Blechnum spicant
Description
Deer fern is a fern that has
wavy-margined leaflets. The sterile leaflets are 5-8 millimeters wide and the
fertile leaves have much narrower leaflets, each with two rows of sori on the
underside (1). The infertile fronds spread low to the ground and the fertile
fronds stand upright in the center of the plant (3). The fertile fronds are
deciduous, but the infertile fronds are hardy and evergreen (1) and can grow
up to 2 feet tall (2).
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Ecology
Deer fern can grow in dry to wet areas
and prefers partial to full shade (2). It prefers neutral to acidic soils. It
grows in woods, heaths, moors, mountain grasslands and on rocks up to 1200
meters (6).
Deer fern is an important browse for
deer and elk (5).
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Ethnobotany
The leaves were chewed by Native Americans
as a hunger suppressant when hunting or traveling. It was an emergency food
when there was nothing else to eat. They observed that deer rubbed their
antler stubs on the plant after they were shed, leading to the belief that
the deer fern could be used for skin ailments (7).
Deer fern can contain carcinogens and
many also contain thiaminase, which robs the body of its vitamin B complex.
Cooking the plant thoroughly destroys the thiaminase (6).
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References
(7)
http://centralcoastbiodiversity.weebly.com/deer-fern-bull-blechnum-spicant.html
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