"reckon up all the names of these wild apples"

 [From October 18, 2008]

So as I say poetry is essentially the discovery, the love, the passion for the name of anything. – Gertrude Stein



The odd perversity of human nature. How else can you explain it? The fruit associated with our expulsion from Paradise is the fruit we hold in highest regard.

The forbidden fruit,
The golden apples,
The apple of discord,
Adam’s Apple,
William Tell’s apple,
Isaac Newton’s apple,
Johnny Appleseed’s apple,
Apple of my eye,
Apple a day,
Baseball hot dogs apple pie and Chevrolet,
An apple for the teacher,
The Big Apple
And one bad apple.
How ‘bout them apples?

On a brisk October afternoon in the 1850s Silas McDowell wandered the Cullasaja Valley searching for wild apples. On that same afternoon, hundreds of miles to the north, Henry David Thoreau set out from Concord searching for wild apples. Silas left us the Nickajack, the Alarkee, the Equinetely, the Cullawhee, the Junaluskee, the Watauga, the Tillequah and the Chestooah. Henry left us a treatise on Wild Apples in which he contemplated the naming of them.



Oh, the delights of pomaceous nomenclature! When enthobotanist Gary Nabhan visited Highlands recently, he spoke of the many varieties of apples originating from the Southern Appalachians:

I think the names of these apples are interesting because some of the varieties go by multiple names. The Nickajack apple that was first promoted in Franklin was also known as Carolina Spice, Spotted Buck, Colonel Summerhour and World’s Wonder. What a great name for an apple – World’s Wonder. You have things like Hubberson’s Nonesuch and Seek-No-Further. Just park yourself under that tree and wait for them to fall into your lap! That’s about the highest compliment you can give another species. Seek No Further!




When apple breeders breed apples they must eventually name those apples. That was the challenge facing some Minnesota apple breeders after they crossed a Gala with a Braeburn:

We put a very scientific 'keep an eye on this one' note on the Sugar Shack tree. Of course, we hadn't named it yet, and we are the type of people who would name an apple 'Keep An Eye On This One,' but we later thought 'Sugar Shack' was a better name. The guys who named the apple variety 'Westfield Seek-no-further' in Connecticut 'way back in the mid-1700's didn't do too bad with a novel name, though. Antique apple collectors are still growing the variety, and the intriguing name certainly has something to do with that. We could name an apple 'Minnesota Never-stop-growing-this-one' and then hang around a few hundred years and see if it worked. It's worth a shot.



Some UK orchardists consider how the naming of apples has become yet another corporate enterprise in this fallen world:

Part of the appeal of the old heritage apple varieties is their good honest names. In the "good old days" apples were named without fuss. A common strategy was the name of the person who discovered them - Pott’s Seedling, Cox’s Orange Pippin, Kidd’s Orange Red, Granny Smith, Chivers Delight and so on. If that didn’t have quite the right ring to it, the name of the local village might suffice: Ribston Pippin, Barnack Beauty, Allington Pippin, Braeburn. Another popular strategy was to borrow the name of a famous person such as Lord Lambourne, Freyberg, Bismarck for example. If you were stuck (or not very inventive) you just went for something really simple like Red Delicious or Golden Delicious. In the 21st century however the important job of naming (or branding) new apple varieties is no longer left to the happy grower, but has been taken over by marketing departments, who see apples as just another consumer item, and might as well be naming a new car as a new apple. Thus we have Kanzi, a brand new 21st century apple, which means "hidden treasure" in Swahili - of course.

For the last word on this subject, I’ll yield to Henry David Thoreau for a passage from Wild Apples:

The Naming of Them

[73] It would be a pleasant pastime to find suitable names for the hundred varieties which go to a single heap at the cider-mill. Would it not tax a man's invention,--no one to be named after a man, and all in the lingua vernacula? Who shall stand godfather at the christening of the wild apples? It would exhaust the Latin and Greek languages, if they were used, and make the lingua vernacula flag. We should have to call in the sunrise and the sunset, the rainbow and the autumn woods and the wild flowers, and the woodpecker and the purple finch and the squirrel and the jay and the butterfly, the November traveller and the truant boy, to our aid.

[74] In 1836 there were in the garden of the London Horticultural Society more than fourteen hundred distinct sorts. But here are species which they have not in their catalogue, not to mention the varieties which our Crab might yield to cultivation.

[75] Let us enumerate a few of these. I find myself compelled, after all, to give the Latin names of some for the benefit of those who live where English is not spoken,--for they are likely to have a world-wide reputation.

[76] There is, first of all, the Wood-Apple (Malus sylvatica); the Blue-Jay Apple; the Apple which grows in Dells in the Woods, (sylvestrivallis), also in Hollows in Pastures (campestrivallis); the Apple that grows in an old Cellar-Hole (Malus cellaris); the Meadow-Apple; the Partridge-Apple; the Truant's Apple, (Cessatoris), which no boy will ever go by without knocking off some, however late it may be; the Saunterer's Apple,--you must lose yourself before you can find the way to that; the Beauty of the Air (Decus Aëris); December-Eating; the Frozen-Thawed, (gelato-soluta,) good only in that state; the Concord Apple, possibly the same with the Musketaquidensis; the Assabet Apple; the Brindled Apple; Wine of New England; the Chickaree Apple; the Green Apple (Malus viridis);--this has many synonyms; in an imperfect state, it is the Cholera morbifera aut dysenterifera, puerulis dilectissima;--the Apple which Atalanta stopped to pick up; the Hedge-Apple (Malus Sepium); the Slug-Apple (limacea); the Railroad-Apple, which perhaps came from a core thrown out of the cars; the Apple whose Fruit we tasted in our Youth; our Particular Apple, not to be found in any catalogue,--Pedestrium Solatium; also the Apple where hangs the Forgotten Scythe; Iduna's Apples, and the Apples which Loki found in the Wood; and a great many more I have on my list, too numerous to mention,--all of them good. As Bodæus exclaims, referring to the cultivated kinds, and adapting Virgil to his case, so I, adapting Bodæus,--

"Not if I had a hundred tongues, a hundred mouths,
An iron voice, could I describe all the forms
And reckon up all the names of these wild apples."

Under the Hiccory Tree

[From October 3, 2010]

If we had lived here during the hunter-gatherer days, then we would have been paying closer attention.

I’ve been thinking about this while taking short strolls on the mountain where I live.



At the very top is a secluded spot where I go to sit and listen sometimes. A large hickory tree stands tall there, and this weekend, I collected a few hickory nuts that had fallen from the tree. Hickory nuts have a delicious flavor.  However, the tiny nutmeat morsels hide inside stubborn shells.

If we had lived here during the hunter-gatherer days, then we would have known where all the productive hickory trees stood and visited them often, to get there before the small animals building their winter stores.

And we would have likely spent hours cracking out enough hickory nuts to amount to a handful.

When he traveled upriver from present-day Augusta, Georgia on his trip through the Southeast, William Bartram observed the Creeks processing great quantities of hickory nuts:

We then passed over large, rich savannas, or natural meadows, wide-spreading cane swamps, and frequently old Indian settlements, now deserted and overgrown with forests. These are always on or near the banks of rivers, or great swamps, the artificial mounts and terraces elevating them above the surrounding groves. I observed in the ancient cultivated fields:

1. Diospyros; [Persimmon, Diospyros virginiana]
2. Gleditsia triacanthos; [Honey Locust]
3. Prunus chicasau; [Chickasaw Plum, Prunus angustifolia]
4. Callicarpa; [French Mulberry, Callicarpa americana]
5. Moras rubra; [Red Mulberry, Morus rubra]
6. Juglans exaltata; [Shell-barked Hickory]
7. Juglans nigra, [Black walnut]

which inform us that these trees were cultivated by the ancients on account of their fruit as being wholesome and nourishing food. Though these are natives of the forest, yet they thrive better, and are more fruitful in cultivated plantations, and the fruit is in great estimation with the present generation of Indians, particularly Juglans exaltata, commonly called shell-barked hiccory. The Creeks store up the last in their towns. I have seen above an hundred bushels of these nuts belonging to one family. They pound them to pieces, and then cast them into boiling water, which, after passing through fine strainers, preserves the most oily part of the liquid; this, they call by a name which signifies hiccory milk; it is as sweet and rich as fresh cream, and is an ingredient in most of their cookery, especially homony and corn cakes.

In his 1873 book, Antiquities of the Southern Indians, Charles Colcock Jones described the stone implements used to crack hickories and other nuts:

We have thus, at some length, referred to the use of nuts as an article of food among the Southern Indians, because we hence derive the meaning and employment of these cup-shaped cavities. In our judgment these relics are simply the stones upon which the Indians cracked their nuts. Their cavities are so located that one, two, three, four, five, and sometimes more nuts could be cracked at a single blow delivered by means of the circular, flat crushing-stone so common, and so often found in direct connection with the rude articles now under consideration.

The cups are just large enough to hold a hickory-nut or a walnut in proper position so that, when struck, its pieces would be prevented from being widely scattered. Particularly do the soap-stones indicate the impressions left by the convex surfaces of the harder nuts. Upon some of them the depressions seem to have been caused simply by repeatedly cracking the nuts upon the same spot so that in time a concavity was produced corresponding to the half of the spherical or spheroidal nut. Such is the most natural explanation we can offer with regard to the use of these stones.

Foraging for Sochan

 [From August 8, 2010]

Eventually, the food movement had to go this far. As soon as a lot of people started buying organic, locally grown farmers'-market fare, food snobs had to do something else to feel superior. They had to look down on the masses' reliance on the whole modernized "growing food on purpose" thing. They had to go back to a more honest, preagricultural method: foraging.
Time Magazine, July 26, 2010

I was on my way home from a weekend of permaculture study.

With no reason to be in a hurry, I turned from the Blue Ridge Parkway at Craggy Gardens and walked the trail to the summit. Always one of my favorite short hikes, it was no exception this time. I nibbled on wild blueberries and watched the roiling fog obscure and reveal range upon range of mountains, looking like waves in the ocean.

When I got to the observation deck at the top, a man and his teenage son were enjoying the sky show. One second, the quickly dropping sun gilded a row of clouds, and then the fog would take away the view of the sun completely.

They both had some good stories, and the three of us talked for a while. I mentioned “permaculture” and explained it in brief, and that I’d just been briefed in the culinary potential of native woodland plants. Coincidentally, the dad had just read a Time article on high-end chefs using foraged ingredients. I told him I’d look it up and read it, and he said he’d find out more about permaculture. After I got home, I did find the Time story, Joel Stein’s “Into the Woods.”

…searching the woods or parks or even cracks in the pavement for edible plants has become the latest culinary obsession. In June, forageSF's Iso Rabins gathered 70 vendors and 2,000 customers in San Francisco for his once-a-month Underground Market for foraged food. There's a restaurant in Los Angeles called Forage that lets people take in stuff they find (or, for slackers, grow in their gardens) to exchange for credit toward their dinner. Meanwhile, menus across the land are listing wild leeks, fiddlehead ferns, stinging nettles and berries you've never heard of.

Chris Hastings of the Hot and Hot Fish Club in Birmingham, Ala., often goes foraging and explains its appeal: "You can pursue a bunch of b_______ cooking like sous vide this or sous vide that or foam this or foam that, but to celebrate wild, foraged things and get back to an elemental place is an intellectually much more interesting place for me as a chef." In early summer his customers can order a completely foraged dessert. "It freaks them out," he says. "The flavors are intense. They're unique. They're not like a cultivated strawberry."

…Tyler Gray of Oregon-based Mikuni Wild Harvest sometimes rides the New York City subway with $50,000 worth of foraged truffles in his backpack. "It's such a crazy subculture," he says of food finders, who speak in "traveling-gypsy code," as he puts it. "You don't want anyone to know where you're foraging," says Gray, whose truck has been shot at while he was out searching for food.

Ava Chin, who blogs about urban foraging for the New York Times, won't say where in the city she once found nearly 100 morels. She recently tapped a maple tree near her Brooklyn apartment, which upset her neighbors. "In New York, everyone freaks out and figures you must be hurting the tree," she says. "I don't know where they think maple syrup comes from."

Even with its many jumps around the map, the Time article leaves out a lot. The story succeeded in bringing a worthwhile topic to broader awareness, while it came close to trivializing the subject.

Actually, foraging can be as simple or as complex as you want to make it. We could talk about it from the perspective of anthropology, biology, spirituality, economics, ecology....or as a pop culture fad.

Euell Gibbons told us how to fry up a batch of elderberry blossom fritters. The question is, why would you want to? A new generation of wild foodies is advancing the concept of knowing when to pick, and how to prepare, native plants so they aren’t merely edible, but delicious. Among the books to emerge from this new wave is Edible Wild Plants: Wild Foods From Dirt To Plate, by John Kallas.



Green-headed Coneflower

Here in the Southern Appalachians, one wild plant that happens to be blooming right now, is considered by many the number one native plant deserving a place on the plate. If you know it by the flower, you might call it green-headed coneflower. But if you treasure it for the spring greens from the young plants, then you might call it sochan. Several years ago in the Smoky Mountain News, George Ellison described it.

Sochan (“Rudbeckia laciniatum”), called green-headed coneflower by non-Indians, is one of the most prized spring greens the Cherokees gather. They sometimes call it “sochani.” Many of their gardens have semi-cultivated patches of the plant in protected areas. Closely related to black-eyed Susan (“Rudbeckia hirta”), it grows to 10 feet tall in wet areas and along damp woodland borders. The flower heads that appear in mid-summer are about three inches wide with drooping yellow rays and a center disk (unlike the purple disk of black-eyed Susan) that’s greenish-yellow.

The Cherokees recognize sochan as soon as it comes out of the ground in mid-spring by its distinctive irregularly divided leaves and smell. Consult your wildflower field guides for flower and leaf-shape diagrams of green-headed coneflower. Then you will be able to locate the plant this summer along backcountry roadways when it’s in full bloom. Mark the spot and return next spring for greens. Prepare the young shoots and leaves (boiled with several changes of water) have a rich texture and zesty flavor. It’s even good cold as a snack with a little vinegar added. In the opinion of many - this writer included - sochan is the very finest of the traditional potherbs gathered in the Blue Ridge region.

Though you certainly would not have to go that far to find it, the walk to the top of Clingman’s Dome takes you through acres of green-headed coneflower blooms...or next year’s sochan patch. Considering how these things go, I wouldn’t be surprised to find sochan on the menu of any hip restaurant in Asheville or Sylva come next spring.

As permaculture makes more inroads into the culture, what’s old is new again. (After thinking further on this, I'm not sure it is a matter of permaculture making inroads. Permaculture reflects the deepest and most eternal laws of nature, and nature has plenty of self-correcting strategies to deal with anyone who would defy those laws.)

For more links on this - http://lifeisfare.wordpress.com/2010/07/26/the-latest-culinary-obsession-foraging/

Heart of the Cowees - A Wildflower Walk in May

Sunday afternoon, I crossed to the other side of the mountain for a quick wildflower ramble.  At an elevation of 3400' +/- and near the crest of the Cowees, the area abounds in spring wildflowers.  The site's unusual geology contributes to extraordinary plant diversity.  In Western NC, limestone outcrops are uncommon compared to the acidic bedrock underlying most of the region.  Higher calcium levels in the soil are optimal for species requiring less acidity.  The cast of characters is not the usual bunch.  For anyone attuned to the subtleties of plant communities, even just a little, it is like stepping into a different world.

Forgive the marginal quality of the photos, but I had limited time for this expedition.  It was shoot-and-run.  And dodge the rain!  From start to finish, in a span of 63 minutes, these are the species encountered, in the order I found them.  Regarding the annotations, in case anyone asks, it is  "folklore" and not medical advice.

Pink Lady's Slipper (Cypripedium acaule) Orchis family. 

Usually found near pines and that was the case for this one. I've been visiting this colony almost every year for the past decade, and it has stayed fairly constant in size.  From what  I saw, this was the last one in bloom.  Cypripedium does not reproduce or transplant well, so it must not be picked or dug.  The arrangement of the pouch-like bloom poses an obstacle for bumble-bees and other pollinators, and the flower doesn't provide nectar, so after pollinating a few flowers, the bees determine that the reward is not worth the effort.  Hence, pollination rates are relatively low.  And the seeds rely upon the the presence of specific soil fungi in order to thrive.  

Once called "American Valerian" for its sedative properties, it was used in the 19th century for nervous headaches, insomnia and hysteria.   Due to its scarcity, it should NOT be harvested for medicinal use.

False Hellebore (Veratrum viride)  Lily family. 

The species pictured here grows abundantly this time of year, but I've never succeeded in comfirming a proper ID.  Seeing a reference to false hellebore prior to my plant walk, I thought the mystery was over.  Now, I'm still not sure.  The leaves of Veratrum viride appear to be more deeply grooved or pleated than the leaves on this plant.  I've never managed to find it while in bloom, so that has stymied me.  I had always thought it to be a lily, and Veratrum viride is indeed in the lily family.  The leaves of the V. viride wither away before summer, so I need to keep close watch on it the next few weeks.  

If it is false hellebore, then it is a no-go medicinally.  In the past, alkaloids from the plant were extracted for use as a hypertensive, but this is nothing to play around with.  The leaves and roots are extremely toxic.  As the (questionable) legend goes, Native American braves would consume the plant and the ones who survived were considered sufficiently robust to become leaders. 

 

Wild Geranium, or, Crane's Bill (Geranium maculatum)  Geranium family. 

This is one of the most prevalent wildflowers in these parts during April and May.  The beak-like capsule at the flower is the reason it is called Crane's Bill, and the Greek word for crane, "geranos," is the origin of the genus name.  

The tannin-rich root has many uses: astringent and styptic, it has been used to stop bleeding and to treat diarrhea, dysentery, piles, gum disease, kidney and stomach problems.  It has been used externally as a cancer treatment.  The powdered root has been used to treat canker sores.

Foam Flower (Tiarella cordifolia) Saxifrage family.

This fairly common flower spreads by underground stems in shady areas. I often see it near the banks of brooks and streams and other moist places.  

Native Americans used a tea from the leaves as mouthwash and as a remedy for eye ailments.  Root tea was a diuretic. And it was used as a poultice on wounds.  Its tannic content is likely the reason for its effectiveness.

Black Cohosh, or, Black Snakeroot, or, Fairy Candle, among other common names (Actaea racemosa)  Buttercup family. 

The foliage and overall posture of the plant make it quite distinctive this time of year.  It will send up long , showy spikes of white flowers soon, which makes the designation "Fairy Candle" appropriate.  In my experience around here, this is more abundant than the Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides) and the two are not closely related.  

Research confirms that the plant has estrogenic, hypoglycemic, sedative and anti-inflammatory effects.  Tinctures have been used for bronchitis, fevers, lumbago, rheumatism, snakebite and menstrual difficulties.  There is a long history of using extracts from the rhizomes and roots for medicinal purposes.  Various saponins, cimifugic acids and other phenol carboxylic acids, are among the phytochemicals that make the plant extracts powerful and versatile remedies for many ailments.  At one time, the wild-harvested plants were important in the Southern Appalachian herbal industry, and some people are now growing the plants to supply demand for the roots.

Common Cinquefoil (Potentilla simplex) Rose family. 

I don't believe I have encountered this species as often as I have some of its close relatives, like Dwarf Cinquefoil (Potentilla canadensis), Sulphur Cinquefoil (Potentilla recta), Indian Strawberry (Duchesna indica), and Wild Strawberry (Fragaria virginiana).  

An astringent tea made from the roots has been used as a remedy for diarrhea.

Sweet Shrub, or, Carolina Allspice (Calycanthus floridus)  Calycanthus family.  

When I was growing up in the Piedmont, we had one small specimen of this plant and my father liked it a great deal.  I wonder if it reminded him of his trips to the mountains, where it grows quite well. Everytime I see the plant, I think of my dad, and share his fondness for the unusual blossoms and their spicy fragrance.  

Cherokees used a tea from the bark and roots as an emetic and diuretic, and as drops to restore failing eyesight.  However, the plant might be toxic to grazing cattle.

Pipevine, or, Dutchman's Pipe (Aristolochia macrophylla)  Birthwort family.

I took the picture just because I enjoyed the heart shaped leaves and didn't intend to include it on the list.  But on further review, it should be here, although I'm not 100% certain about the ID.  Pipevine is a common plant in natural communities like this one, but I've only seen the flowers once before, at Jones Gap (above the Cullasaja River) on May 1 several years ago.  It is worth making a special trip to see the odd flowers, which bear a slight resemblance to the reddish-brown flowers of Wild Ginger (a relative).  Scent attracts small flies and other insects to the flower, and once inside the "pipe" closes around them, the flower stops giving off a scent, pollen is released onto the insects, and a day or so later the pipe opens to free the trapped bugs.  

The plant has a connection to the Pipevine Swallowtail butterfly (Battus philenor) which, from my view, is the most common butterfly in these parts.  Many members of the genus Aristolochia are host plants for the larvae of Pipevine Swallowtails.  

Traditionally, the plant's compounds (aristolochic acids, among others) were deemed useful in child birth, hence the name "Birthwort" has been used for this and closely related plants.  The genus name is derived from Greek roots "aristos" meaning "best" and "lochia" meaning "child birth."  Other applications include the treatment of snake bite, gastrointestinal problems, respiratory problems, tumors, wounds, infectious diseases, and fever.  

Another species in the genus is a more potent source of medicinal compounds: Virginia Snakeroot (Aristolochia serpentaria).  And now we are getting close to the origins of the derisive term "snakeoil salesman."  An extract of the Southwestern Pipevine (Aristolochia watsonii) was the main ingredient in the oil sold by traveling “snakeroot doctors” at medicine shows in the Old West during the 19th century.  And we've all seen those cagey codgers in our favorite Westerns.  

Umbrella Leaf (Podophyllum cymosum, formerly Diphylleia cymosum) Burberry family. 

This plant, with leaves up to about one foot across, is not very common.  These were growing in a low space, down a bank, next to a trickle of water.  And that describes the habitat where I last saw this species, a few years ago, on the Blue Ridge Parkway, near Waterrock Knob. The white blooms on these plants were almost spent, and soon we'll see the fruits (shiny blue berries on stems that will turn red).  Another member of the genus is the Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum), and there are some vigorous patches of that plant nearby.  The natural range of Umbrella Leaf is limited to the Southern Appalachians - it prefers elevations of 3000-5000', but I see that the state extension service recommends the species for home landscapes, if conditions are suitable.  

The Cherokees used a root tea to induce sweating.  It is also considered diuretic and antiseptic.  However, toxicity is a concern with this plant.  Extracts from closely related Chinese plants and from the Mayapple have been used as cancer treatments.  But, to repeat, toxicity is a concern with these plants. 

 

Mountain Bugbane (Cimicifuga americana) Buttercup family.  

Here is another "maybe.'  A couple of minutes earlier, I had seen (what I assume to be) Black Cohosh, and I thought this was another one.  But on looking at the photos, I'm inclined to think this is a different plant, due to subtle differences in the leaves.  Black Cohosh and Mountain Bugbane are quite similar, and when they bloom it will be much easier to confirm my initial IDs.  The flower parts of the two species are distinctly different, if you know what to look for.  The quick trick is to smell the flowers.  Black Cohosh has a very strong odor to attract Carrion Beetles for pollination.  Mountain Bugbane lacks that powerful aroma.

Allegheny Mountain Buttercup (Ranunculus allegheniensis)  Buttercup family.  

It is wishful thinking on my part to list this rare Allegheny Mountain Buttercup, but you can't fault a guy for hoping. The fact is, I'm not sure about the species on this one.  I need to revisit the plant for a closer look and do some more research. It may very well be a Tall Buttercup (R. acris) but I need to see the basal leaves again.  

Medicinally, the fresh leaves and poulticed roots have been used to treat neuralgia, boils and absesses.  But the plant is extremely acrid and will damage tender mucosa. Wild animals that nibble the plant promptly learn their lesson and avoid it.

Rue Anemone (Thalictrum thalictroids)...or is it Early Meadowrue (Thalictrum dioicum)...no,no, it is Brook Meadowrue (Thalictrum clavatum) Buttercup family.  

I reflexively thought, "rue anemone" as soon as I saw the leaves of this plants.  But the more I examined it, the less convinced I was.  The plants and leaves are larger than I recall and the growth habit is different, this is more of a spreading clump with flowers above the leafy mass.  

[I'm revisiting these notes after further study.  Looking at the photo, I began to think that I had two different flowers here, the foliage of some type of rue, and then seperate white flowers growing up  through the rue foliage.  But, no, it is all one plant after all and quite clearly Brook Meadowrue, aka Cliff Meadowrue, aka Lady Rue.  The flowers lack petals - the showy white parts are sepals and the seeds are shaped like crescent moons.  This plant has a very limited range, from Virginia to north Georgia, and is usually found near seepage slopes, wet cliffs and the banks of brooks.]  

The genus name, Thalictrum, comes from the Greek word describing a plant with divided leaves.  "Dioicum" means "two houses" and refers to the fact that male and female flowers grow on separate plants.  The story goes that Native Americans would stealthily sprinkle Thalictrum seeds into the food of quarreling couples to facilitate their reconciliation.  

Medically, the sap of the plant has been used to burn corns off the feet.  And native people prepared root tea to treat diarrhea.  But the plant is considered toxic.

Sharp-lobed Hepatica, Liverwort (Hepatica acutiloba) Buttercup family.  

Hepatica is one of the early spring bloomers, in flower perhaps six weeks ago, alongside Spring Beauty, Toothwort, Star Chickweed, Bloodroot and other spring ephemerals.  The foliage remains and is one of my favorites to see at any time in its life cycle.  

Hepatica is often cited in discussions of the ancient "Doctrine of Signatures" which hypothesized that a plant's resemblance to a body part was a sign that it could be used to treat diseases of that organ.  Hepatica, with lobed, liver-colored leaves, resembled a liver and was used to treat liver problems.  A century ago, vast amounts of hepatica leaves were harvested for the commercial production of liver tonics.

Speckled Wood Lily, or, White Clintonia (Clintonia umbellulata)  Lily family.  

Henry David Thoreau complained that this plant genus had been named for a New York politician who lost a bid for the Presidency.  No, not HER, but DeWitt Clinton (1769-1828), an early governor of the state.  The delicate white flowers give way to shiny black berries.  

The leaves, with a cucumber-like flavor, are edible: raw when young and cooked when older.

Halberdleaf Yellow Violet (Viola hastata) Violet family.  

This is a violet with a yellow flower, but even when the flowers fade, the foliage is pleasing to the eye.  The distinctive shape of the leaf is thought to resemble the halberd, a battle-ax from the 15th and 16th centuries.  In folklore, the violet symbolizes simplicity and modesty.  

Compounds from some of the violets have been used to treat skin cancers.

Smooth Solomon's Seal (Polygonatum biflorum) Lily family.  

The flowers of this plant are arranged  all along the stem, underneath the leaves.  The white, bell-shaped flowers give way to round fruit that hang from the plant through the summer.  Almost invariably, if I encounter one of these Solomon's Seals, I will find a False Solomon's Seal nearby.  That happened again on this walk. It is easy to distinguish False Solomon's Seal, as its flowers or berries are NOT suspended along the length of the plant, but in a cluster at the tip of the stem. 

Polygonatum biflorum root tea is used to treat arthritis, indigestion, and lung ailments, and as a laxative.

False Solomon's Seal (Smilacina racemosa, aka, Maianthemum racemosum) Lily family. 

At first glance, this plant looks do different from Smooth Solomon's Seal.  They are easy to distinguish, though.  Clusters of tiny flowers are found at the tip of the False Solomon's Seal plant, and the berries develop there.  

Native Americans used the plant for some of the same purposes as P. biflorum.

Maidenhair Fern (Adiantum pedatum)  

Of course, it isn't a flowering plant, but it is not to be ignored.  The black stipes and curved form are elegant.  The name "maidenhair" actually designates the genus, and there are about 250 species of Maidenhair Ferns worldwide within the genus. The genus name is derived from a Greek word meaning "unwetted," as the fronds can shed water without becoming wet.  

This fern is said to be useful for bronchitis, coughs, menstrual difficulties.

Golden Alexander (Zizia spp.)...or is it Meadow-Parsnip (Thaspium spp.) Parsley family.  

I still have work to do on this one.  I had no clue about this when I saw it.  In my haste to avoid an impending shower (I wound up getting soaked anyhow, but it was well worth it) I did not take more pictures and gather enough information.  For one thing, the basal leaves are important for identification of species of these plants.  (It is good practice to note that in any case, as the basal leaves might be quite different from leaves higher on the stem.  The form of the umbel is noteworthy.  For the classic umbel form, think Queen-Anne's Lace, which has a cluster of flowers with a flat top.  By contrast, the flowers in this specimen radiate out in all directions.  The experts do offer one tip for distinguishing Zizia from Thaspium: "In Zizia, the central floret of each umbel is sessile (IS NOT stalked) and in Thaspium the central floret IS stalked."  From my photo, it is hard to tell what I have, and so a return visit will be necessary.  [After checking again, it seems the central floret IS stalked, which would mean this is a Meadow-Parsnip, but I'm still uncertain about the species.]

In folk traditions, these plants had many uses, such as treatment of fever, wound care and inducing sleep.  Again, there's high risk of toxicity, when used improperly.

Woodland Bluet (Houstonia purpurea) Madder family.  

I found this solitary bluet on the path.  Most people, I'm guessing, are more familiar with the shorter Common Bluet (Houstonia caerulea) which can create little carpets of blue near the overlooks on the Blue Ridge Parkway and other sites that are mowed.  Those bluets are short enough to avoid the cutting blade.  Woodland Bluets are twice as tall and have clusters of flowers, instead of just one bloom at the top of each stem.  With either plant, the individual blooms are tiny.  If one examines the Woodland Bluet more closely, he might notice that the individual flowers in the cluster are not all the same.  Some have short stamens and long pistils, others are just the opposite, an arrangement that enhances pollination.  

Cherokees used a leaf tea to prevent bed-wetting.

Common Alumroot, aka, American Sanicle (Heuchera americana) Saxifrage family.  

For whatever reason, I know it as "Coral Bells" but that name is better applied to some related cultivars that are showy landscape plants in the home garden.  

The root of Alumroot is a strong astringent, and a tea of the leaves has been used for diarrhea, dysentery, piles, and as a gargle for sore throat.  

Wood Sorrel (Oxalis montana) Wood-sorrel family.  

I'm certain about the genus, but not rock-solid convinced about the species, the reason being that the plants are so much larger than the Wood Sorrels I've seen in the past.  The sour taste of the shamrock-like leaves is the same, though.  If it is Wood Sorrel, then it should be blooming soon with flowers reminiscent of the delicately candy-striped Spring Beauty (Claytonia caroliniana) and what a lovely site that will be!  

"Sorrel" is German for "sour."  The plant is a nice addition to salads and has been a treatment for scurvy, thanks to its high Vitamin C content.  Consuming too much oxalic acid, from this or other plants, can inhibit the absorption of calcium in the body.

Vasey's Trillium (Trillium vaseyi) Lily family.  

My flower walk was an out-and-back.  I wandered for a little more than a half-mile before it was time to turn around.  And at that point I wondered what I would discover on the return trip that I had missed on first pass.  It happens.  And this flower was an easy one to miss.  Some trilliums display their blooms above the trio of leaves. Others, like the Vasey's, conceal the flower underneath the leaves.  The deep maroon color of the blossom blends into the shadows, too.  I'm so glad I saw it, because it is the largest of trilliums, and the latest to bloom.  Unlike some foul-smelling trilliums, Vasey's is pleasantly fragrant.  And while most plants in the lily family possess leaves with parallel veins, trilliums have net-veined leaves.  I had some recollection of trillium reproduction involving ants and a seven-year wait and found the story once again.  Heather McCargo details this on the Wild Seed Project website:

Six to eight weeks after the plant blooms, the seedpod ripens by suddenly softening and falling off the plant. Ants immediately carry the seeds back to their nest, eat the nutritious, fleshy white protrusion attached to the shiny, dark-brown seeds, and discard the seeds. If conditions are good (trillium likes a humus-y woodland soil with adequate moisture and shade), the seed will lie dormant and germinate after the second spring (yes, nearly two years later). At age 7, it may have its first bloom. A mature trillium plant with multiple blooming stems can be decades old. So if you see a trillium plant for sale in a nursery with pricing similar to other perennials, you can be pretty sure it was not nursery-propagated. Ask the nursery – if they cannot tell you how it was propagated, assume it was dug up in the wild. Let them know that this is unacceptable. 

https://wildseedproject.net/2015/06/where-the-wild-things-are-pink-lady-slipper-orchids-and-poachers/

Indian Cucumber Root (Medeola virginiana) Lily family.  

The genus name is a nod to Medea, a sorceress in Greek mythology.  This is always a fun plant to see, thanks to the whorls of leaves radiating out from the stem.  The ends of leaves nearest the stem, on the upper whorl, will take on a red color very soon.  

Happily, I don't need to attach a toxicity warning to this one.  The rhizome of the plant is crisp and juicy.  You can eat it raw or pickled.  I say this although I've never foraged one, preferring to leave them undisturbed.  Besides its use as a salad ingredient, Native Americans would chew the root and the spit the paste onto a hook to attract fish, and a tea from the root has been used as an anticonvulsant and as a diuretic for dropsy, which is quaint word once used for what we call "edema" or fluid build-up in the body.  

Nice to learn the real meaning of "dropsy."  When I was a kid, and an item would slip from someone's hand and hit the floor, they were liable to quip, "Oops, I've got dropsy."

That's it for notes from a Sunday afternoon wildflower stroll.  Grateful I am to reside in the midst of one of the paramount "botany schools" on the planet.  That, in part, is what makes the Cowees the Cowees.

The Locusts Are Blooming

 

Black locust - Robinia pseudoacacia

The black locust trees are blooming, a pretty sight.

That fact is noted by connoisseurs of the light and delicate locust honey. Meanwhile, hopeful gardeners might cast an anxious glance at the trees if they put any stock in the old mountain saying – “a good locust bloom means a poor crop year.”

The vigorous legume is nothing if not contradictory. Friend, foe, or both? A source of tough, durable wood, the tree can be a stubborn, aggressive and thorny pest.

The genus, Robinia, is named for Jean Robin (1550-1629), herbalist to Henry IV of France and his son, Vespasian Robin (1579-1662), who first cultivated the locust tree in Europe. The black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) was known as False Acacia and was naturalized in many countries for its ornamental qualities.

After struggling against locust for decades (and enduring the scratches to prove it) I have to chuckle at the mental picture of Vespasian Robin eagerly planting the locust trees brought back from the New World.

Of course, a jar of locust honey, a pile of locust stakes, and the beauty of their blooms are all worthy of admiration.

This story of our current locust bloom was going to be short and sweet until I opened Stalking the Wild Asparagus by Euell Gibbons. On page 93, he shares a recipe for locust blossom fritters, and that set me to thinking about the word “fritter.”

A little etymology lesson reveals that the verb “fritter” in the sense of “whittling away” one’s time comes from the Latin word fractura. The noun form associated with “fried batter” comes from the Latin frictura.

Got that? Fractura. Frictura.

Here are the entries from one of my favorite sites, the Online Etymology Dictionary

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=fritter

fritter (v.)
"whittle away," 1728, from fritters "fragment or shred," possibly alteration of 16c. fitters "fragments or pieces," perhaps ultimately from O.Fr. fraiture "a breaking," from L. fractura.

fritter (n.)
"fried batter," 1381, from O.Fr. friture "something fried," from L.L. frictura "a frying."

Euell Gibbons (1911-1975) Remember when a wild plant forager could become a national celebrity?

Today's language lesson complete, let's return to Euell Gibbons' instructions for cooking up the flowers of Black Locust, or Wisteria or Elderberry Blow.

“All make delicious fritters,” asserts Mr. Gibbons.

Remove the coarse stems and dip the clusters in a batter made of 1 cup of flour, 1 tablespoon of sugar, I teaspoon of baking powder, 2 eggs and ½ cup of milk. Fry the dipped clusters in deep fat, heated to about 375 degrees for approximately 4 minutes, or until they are a golden brown. Place them on a paper towel, squeeze a little orange juice over them, then roll in granulated sugar, serve while they are piping hot and watch them disappear.