View Full Version : Common AT Medicinal Plants
barefoothiker11
02-09-2012, 01:24
Hey folks! I was wondering a couple of things:
1) What are some plants found along the AT with hiker-friendly medicinal uses and
2) Does anyone know of good online resources to search topics like this and others related to the AT (besides http://www.appalachiantrail.org/ )?
Hope everyone is well :jump
mkmangold
02-09-2012, 01:52
Interesting post and I hope we can learn a lot. Are you interested in ANY plant that can be used medicinally or in plants that are used for specific complaints and diagnoses? For example, the tannin in acorns is an astringent and a tannin gargle helps with sore throats. On the other hand, we know garlic strengthens our cardiovascular systems so why not daily doses of wild garlic?
This is a fantastic thread. While I know several edible plants and fungi along the trail (as a side project I'm hoping to photograph and geotag every fungus I see) I really don't know much about medicinal plants. I hope some knowledgeable folk will chime in with enthusiasm!
barefoothiker11
02-09-2012, 02:08
mkmangold: I was thinking more along the lines of a plant to relieve mosquito bites or a plant that would help with a foot fungus. I'm looking for plants (or flowers, fungi, etc.) that would provide relief for some common long-distance hiker ailments and the fundamental way(s) to verifying their species.
maren: Have fun with that side project. You will surely have a wild collection to marvel at later! And yes! What better way to find answers than by tapping into your own community. Isn't that what this is all about anyways?
Im glad to already see such interest. This has been on my mind for a while and it is so difficult to flip through pages and pages about plants in each state. I know there are some great minds on WB and i look forward to what everyone has to say.
Gnight from Miami, fl
Shadowalker
02-09-2012, 02:14
Too Far from The Desserts of The West , No Native American Blood that I know of , I Know my choice of Button ( Plant ) Id Love to spend some time on the Trail On , OHH Yeah !!
Shadowalker
02-09-2012, 02:20
???? / The Bare Foot Sisters would be an awesome book for you , SoBo n NoBo !!
Think about this: if even a small percent of AT hikers were to start harvesting medicinal plants, there would very soon be none left. Already some medicinal plants like ginseng are endangered with extinction because people take too many of them. Leave the wild plants where they are. Get your medicine in a store.
(P.S. - It's illegal to pick wild plants along the AT in any property owned by the National Park Service. That's 950 miles of trail by my recollection)
Think about this: if even a small percent of AT hikers were to start harvesting medicinal plants, there would very soon be none left. Already some medicinal plants like ginseng are endangered with extinction because people take too many of them. Leave the wild plants where they are. Get your medicine in a store.
(P.S. - It's illegal to pick wild plants along the AT in any property owned by the National Park Service. That's 950 miles of trail by my recollection)
Excellent point, but being able to identify plants and their uses is still fun.
fiddlehead
02-09-2012, 10:15
Nettles for sure.
White birch (both the leaves and the bark are medicinal)
Witch Hazel
Chestnut
Ginseng
Jimson weed (quite poisonous, better know what you're doing with this one)
St Johnswort
If you have time to pick these, make ointments, teas, salves etc. out of them, then I doubt you are thru-hiking as you won't have time to do both.
I did a bit picking some of these already but sent them home to process later as hiking takes up 12-16 hours of my days.
If you want to take a luxury item on the trail, a book on botany or wild plants and identification, will teach you a lot.
I hiked with some friends who taught me much.
Excellent point, but being able to identify plants and their uses is still fun.
Absolutely. I carried "Newcomb's Wildflower Guide" (the best flower guide you'll ever find) for the first few hundred miles of my AT section hikes. It's great to appreciate and know what plants are out there--just make sure to leave them for others to enjoy, too!
http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3 Fei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Djewelweed%2Bplant&w=160&h=106&imgurl=www.bing.com%2Fimages%2Fsearch%3Fq%3Djewelw eed%2Bplant%23focal%3D645d722d86b24a100dfe14099f40 e483%26furl%3Dhttp%3a%2f%2fjewelweedsoap.com%2fimg 4.jpg&size=&name=search&rcurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bing.com%2Fimages%2Fsearch% 3Fq%3Djewelweed%2Bplant%23focal%3D645d722d86b24a10 0dfe14099f40e483%26furl%3Dhttp%3a%2f%2fjewelweedso ap.com%2fimg4.jpg&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bing.com%2Fimages%2Fsearch%3 Fq%3Djewelweed%2Bplant%23focal%3D645d722d86b24a100 dfe14099f40e483%26furl%3Dhttp%3a%2f%2fjewelweedsoa p.com%2fimg4.jpg&p=jewelweed+plant&type=&no=4&tt=115&oid=http%3A%2F%2Fts1.mm.bing.net%2Fimages%2Fthumbn ail.aspx%3Fq%3D1549208788336%26id%3D9e84044859f3bb 586e1eb9b3b4278a69&tit=Jewelweed+and+Jewelweed+Soap&sigr=14984lm5v&sigi=1425u51jm&sigb=11p98pdkf&fr=fp-yma2-s
Jewelweed - Impatiens Capensis : Used for treating rashes, bites, and stings. Often grows right next to poison ivy - convenient. Seed pods "pop" when ripe if touched, dispersing seeds. One of my favorite plants to show to kids when we do a parent/child hike.
Crush stems, leaves, and flowers and apply topically.
Serial 07
02-09-2012, 11:01
Think about this: if even a small percent of AT hikers were to start harvesting medicinal plants, there would very soon be none left. Already some medicinal plants like ginseng are endangered with extinction because people take too many of them. Leave the wild plants where they are. Get your medicine in a store.
way off...people have been eating medicinal plants for thousands of years and they some how still come back...by your logic, there should be no berries anywhere, but every time i hike, i seem to find all that i can handle...
way off...people have been eating medicinal plants for thousands of years and they some how still come back...by your logic, there should be no berries anywhere, but every time i hike, i seem to find all that i can handle...Seriously? If you're going to compare Blackberries to Ginseng, then you have absolutely NO idea what you're talking about!
Serial 07
02-09-2012, 11:13
i ate ramps to cure a cold a few years back on the trail...worked as good as any OTC remedy for me...
Serial 07
02-09-2012, 11:17
you never mentioned ginseng by name, so no, i wasn't DIRECTLY comparing the two...you picked one of the hardest plants to find...there are plenty of OTHER medicinal herbs that grow freely and wildly out there that can be consumed...relax...next time, don't make such a broad statement...
Serial 07
02-09-2012, 11:18
sorry...i retract all things and am now moving on...i skimmed what you said...sorry...
Firefighter503
02-09-2012, 11:33
Black Cohosh is prevalent in some areas in the South on the trail. Was used to treat everything from PMS symptoms to soar throats to depression. Easy to spot and all over the place once you know what it looks like.
MissMagnolia
02-09-2012, 12:39
Nettles for sure.
White birch (both the leaves and the bark are medicinal)
Witch Hazel
Chestnut
Ginseng
Jimson weed (quite poisonous, better know what you're doing with this one)
St Johnswort
If you have time to pick these, make ointments, teas, salves etc. out of them, then I doubt you are thru-hiking as you won't have time to do both.
I did a bit picking some of these already but sent them home to process later as hiking takes up 12-16 hours of my days.
If you want to take a luxury item on the trail, a book on botany or wild plants and identification, will teach you a lot.
I hiked with some friends who taught me much.
I would love to load a kindle book (or few) of botany and wild plants onto my phone. Do you have any specific book recommendations for regions of the Appalachians?
Great subject. I think if I'm not mistaken in the southern AT they often use the term woodcrafting for this sort of thing, so that might be a good search term. Getting back to sustainability is a work in progress. Good hunting.
Old Grouse
02-09-2012, 14:06
Seed pods "pop" when ripe if touched, dispersing seeds.
Hence the occasional name "Touch-Me-Not!"
Pedaling Fool
02-09-2012, 17:42
I've been reading up on edible plants/weeds and one thing I've learned is that whoever writes these books on plant identification cannot take pictures, it's really frustrating and very difficult to find a good book on plant identification, even the pics on the internet can be less than adequate. And then you got them stupid books with drawings:rolleyes::mad::mad::mad:
i ate ramps to cure a cold a few years back on the trail...worked as good as any OTC remedy for me...
I wouldn't be surprised if it worked like garlic. Garlic is great for health (not so much for breath). :)
fiddlehead
02-09-2012, 18:55
Great subject. I think if I'm not mistaken in the southern AT they often use the term woodcrafting for this sort of thing,
It's "Wildcrafting"
Some book ideas: Identifying and Harvesting Edible and Medicinal Plants in Wild
A PLANT LOVER'S GUIDE to WILDCRAFTING
Folk Medicine in Southern Appalachia
Wild Roots: A Foragers Guide to the Edible and Medicinal Roots, Tubers, Corms, and Rhizomes of North America
Also Google a guy named "Steve Brill"
Half Note
02-09-2012, 18:55
Pine needle tea!
a Cherokee book on medicinal plants covers a good deal of the plants you will find on the AT
Wise Old Owl
02-09-2012, 22:46
yea and what is the name so we can look it up?
yea and what is the name so we can look it up?
I'll have to call my mom to find out, it is on her bookshelf...I think it is called "Cherokee medicinal plants"
Great subject. I think if I'm not mistaken in the southern AT they often use the term woodcrafting for this sort of thing, so that might be a good search term. Getting back to sustainability is a work in progress. Good hunting.
It's "Wildcrafting"
Some book ideas: Identifying and Harvesting Edible and Medicinal Plants in Wild
A PLANT LOVER'S GUIDE to WILDCRAFTING
Folk Medicine in Southern Appalachia
Wild Roots: A Foragers Guide to the Edible and Medicinal Roots, Tubers, Corms, and Rhizomes of North America
Also Google a guy named "Steve Brill"Woopsa! Thanks for that.
Saw it in a movie once about a girl that did it to make a living for her family after her folks died.
Great stuff.
canoehead
02-10-2012, 09:29
These 2 Jewelweed and plantain, are common on the AT.
Have fun and don't eat anything you can't identify. yea I know tell a hiker not to eat is "waqy" but it could ruin your day if you don't know exactly what you're picking, especially mushrooms that really don't have much nutritional value.
http://www.altnature.com/jewelweed.htm
http://botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/p/placom43.html
http://www.wildernesscollege.com/plants-used-for-medicine.html
Wood sorrel is a good one up here, most places. There is other stuff but the wood sorrel is easily recognized. I learned most of my wildcrafting in the backwoods of New Brunswick when I was 3 or 4 years old, perhaps 100 yards or more from my back screen door. Learned it all from a hardened old grade schooler, of 7 or 8. Kids would eat just about anything back then, as long as it wasn't served on a plate. Probably where it all the woods lore comes from. Sure you lose a few now and then, but at that age there hasn't been too much investment. ;-)
Not soft the soil where we took root together;
It grew not giants but the stunted strong,
Toughened by suns and bleak wintry weather
To grow up slow and to endure for long;
We have not gained to any breadth or length,
And all our beauty is our stubborn strength.
Fred Cogswell
WingedMonkey
02-10-2012, 11:27
I've been reading up on edible plants/weeds and one thing I've learned is that whoever writes these books on plant identification cannot take pictures, it's really frustrating and very difficult to find a good book on plant identification, even the pics on the internet can be less than adequate. And then you got them stupid books with drawings:rolleyes::mad::mad::mad:
Might not cover much on the AT but the best pictures of Florida plants available is from The Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants. The online version once you learn to navigate it will give your a load of information for father research.
I rarely find a plant growing in Florida I can't identify from it.
http://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/
:p
It's not quite along the lines of medicinal properties, so it's a bit off-thread but Nature's Garden- A guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing Edible Wild Plants by Samuel Thayer. Great book. Extremely thorough, well written, with great pictures. It even shows the relevancy of the book by states, with high percentages for the midwest and the states along the AT.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Nature%27s+garden&x=0&y=0
barefoothiker11
02-13-2012, 21:00
Thanks for your input everyone! I don nhot plan on picking or taking anything from the trail...unless i absolutely needed to of course. I've been learning/practicing more and more wilderness survival skills and having a basic awareness of whats growing around you, Im finding, can be the difference maker between life or death siuations. With that being said, I don't plan on finsding myself in a situation where I'm eating roots and berries to survive, but if it came down to it I'd like to have the knowledge of what to avoid and what to eat. Thanks fort all your recommendations everyone.
fiddlehead
02-13-2012, 22:01
Thanks for your input everyone! I don nhot plan on picking or taking anything from the trail...unless i absolutely needed to of course. I've been learning/practicing more and more wilderness survival skills and having a basic awareness of whats growing around you, Im finding, can be the difference maker between life or death siuations. With that being said, I don't plan on finsding myself in a situation where I'm eating roots and berries to survive, but if it came down to it I'd like to have the knowledge of what to avoid and what to eat. Thanks fort all your recommendations everyone.
Fine, but if you feel a cold coming on while out there hiking, don't be afraid to make some pine needle tea or nettle tea.
It's not going to harm the environment and will be a lot cheaper than any pharmacy.
As for morels, ramps, ginseng, etc. Maybe best to leave them be for others to look at and learn about.
And of course mushrooms should be avoided unless you REALLY know what you are doing. (especially white ones, and LBM's)
I've never seen any psychedelic ones on the AT although have found some on the PCT.
Adding a mortar and pestel to your gear list? I actually love the drawings in some of those old plant id books. There is one book on mushrooms that was my favorite, its about 50 years old, big and hardcover, and has large color drawings of about 1000 mushroom species. Cant remember the title, it was in the plant pathology library at school. So pretty.
http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=HEDEO
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=15209&d=1329223288
I know pennyroyal is good against deer flies at least. Smell isn't bad either.
Pedaling Fool
11-24-2012, 20:37
Probably see this plant on the trail, it's a biden with over 200 varieties, many of which are edible and have some medicinal qualities. I've seen this plant on the side of the road and always thought it looked ugly, but then I had some grow in my garden and I let it grow since I noticed that the bees and butterflies absolutely loved it, so I decided to find out more about it http://www.floridata.com/ref/b/bide_alb.cfm
And here Green Deane talks about the edibility and medicinal qualities. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6AaozZpBok
http://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Weed%20Identification/002-2.jpg
Hairbear
11-24-2012, 20:52
chick weed is all over it is very nutritious,can be eaten fresh,and also can be crushed and put on places of inflamation.you can feel it working.if you get into nettles peel the skin on the stem,rub the juice on the sting it will go away.jewel weed is the cure for poison ivy,hemeroids and athletes foot.
Hairbear
11-24-2012, 20:55
also a tea made from the flower petals of the purple cone flower cures inflamation ,and anxiety