Wild Flowers: Green Medicine

Tina Samuels' Green Medicine

The Prairie Where Wildflowers Grow

There is a wild flower called Solomon's Seal (Polygonatum bifiorum) that historically has been used as a remedy for gout! During the 17^th Century this same wildflower was included in a beauty treatment by Italian women. Also for centuries, Solomon's Seal was a favorite treatment for diarrhea and hemorrhoids. Tina
Samuels, in her recent article, "Historically Medicinal Native Plants," has compiled a tidy list of medicinal native and non-native plants that can be grown throughout North America. Yes, even in your own back yards or on neighborhood streets!

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/175129/historically_medicinal_native_plants.htmlNote

Samuels lists about a dozen beneficial wildflowers in her article. Each flower's description recognizes both a folk and a Latin name and highlights each plant's historic medical lore. Some of these species are native to the Americas while other noted wildflowers referred to in her article were brought over by Europeans. American researchers are cataloging many edible wild plants. Often these plants are found to be both nutritional and beneficial when integrated with other medicinal collections.

In Southeastern Europe, using a process known as an ethnobotanical interview, over 250 persons were researched on edible wild flora. About 308 plants were identified as being used in traditional nutritional diets by the indigenous population of Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), wild edible plants may satisfy daily human need for basic nutritional material like vitamins A and C. (http://taylorandfrancis.metapress.com/content/g32580p454k71058/). If you feed your family on foods harvested from the wild you could may save money on your grocery bill!