Featured Plant – Oregon Grape
Oregon Grape (Berberis [Mahonia] nervosa) is a common forest understory plant in the San Juan Islands, forming extensive colonies through a network of rhizomes (what appear to be separate plants are often connected by the same rhizome), frequently growing in second-growth, closed-canopy Douglas-fir forests. Oregon grape plants have prickly leaflets, similar looking to holly but not shiny. Berberis (Mahonia) nervosa is distinguished by 9-12 alternate leaflets on a stalk and the appearance of a vein-like pattern on the leaves, thus the name “nervosa.” Clusters of yellow flowers bloom in the spring and summer, and have a delicate, sweet-tart flavor for a delightful bite while on the trail. The blue berries that form in the summer are edible but are quite bitter and mouth-puckeringly sour. Often the Salish would combine them with other sweeter berries, such as salal, preserving them in cakes. The berries can also be used to make jellies and wines, as well as as a dye, and were a purported Saanich antidote to shellfish poisoning when eaten in large amounts (Pojar and Mackinnon, Plants of Coastal British Columbia).
The rhizome of Oregon grape is the main part of the plant traditionally used as an herbal medicine and can be harvested any time of year. Though considered by some herbalists to be in danger of overharvesting, there are abundant populations in many areas. The crown can be replanted after harvesting the rhizome to grow a new plant, and new plants will emerge from remaining rhizomes after harvest. The root is bitter, earthy, and astringent, making it well-suited as a digestive aid, stimulating digestive secretions when taken before meals. A traditional herb for supporting healthy liver function, Oregon grape can stimulate bile flow and help to break down foods (especially fats), assimilate protein and nutrients, and improve appetite and elimination. Some of its components protect the liver and help to clear the effects of coffee and alcohol. As Ryan Drum notes, ‘“I frequently recommend Oregon Grape tea as a long-term liver tonic drink…to those who have abused or treated…themselves with ample alcoholic beverages.” (http://www.ryandrum.com/devilsclub.htm) It can also act as a mild laxative, stimulating intestinal contractions in cases of constipation, and may be helpful in supporting healthy intestinal mucosa and integrity of the gut lining (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5290458/pdf/fphar-08-00042.pdf).
One of Oregon grape’s most well-known medicinal components is berberine, an antibacterial alkaloid found in a few other medicinal plants (barberry, goldenseal). With its activity against gram-positive (Staph) and gram-negative (E. coli) bacteria as well as its ability to stimulate immune function, berberine in the form of an Oregon grape preparation is traditionally taken internally for severe intestinal bacterial infections. Berberine alters intestinal mucosa and makes the terrain less hospitable for these and other infectious organisms, including viruses and giardia (Scott Kloos, Pacific Northwest Medicinal Plants). Its anti-infective abilities are not limited to the digestive tract; Oregon grape tea can be used topically as a rinse for gum disease and throat infections as well as skin and wound infections (see http://www.ryandrum.com/devilsclub.htm) and fungal infections such as athlete’s foot, ring worm, and jock itch.
Known as a strengthening and cleansing tonic herb, or “alterative” which supports healthy functioning of multiple body systems, Oregon grape can not only help clear a congested liver, but it also supports healthy blood and lymph flow. It is traditionally used for clearing a range of skin conditions, many of which are affected by the liver’s ability to clear toxins and other elimination functions which Oregon grape supports. Chronic, itchy skin conditions, like psoriasis, acne, and eczema, can often benefit from Oregon grape use internally.
Oregon grape has a drying and cooling effect on damp and hot conditions, such as bronchial infections with profuse mucus secretions. In this way, herbalists also use it for respiratory ailments such as pneumonia and bronchitis, and other conditions where it’s beneficial to dry excess mucus. It was also used by indigenous people of California to treat chronic degenerative diseases such as cancer, arthritis, and rheumatism (https://planetherbs.com/blogs/lesleys-blog/oregon-grape-root-a-versatile-herb).
The fresh or dried root can be tinctured for medicinal use, but one of the best ways to work with Oregon grape is as a strong tea or decoction (a long-simmered tea), as the berberine is better extracted by water than alcohol. Whether tincture (50% alcohol) or decoction, extracts of Oregon grape have “demonstrated strong, broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity against viruses (herpes, hepatitis), bacteria…fungi (Candida), and protozoa (amoeba, giardia, malaria)” (http://www.ryandrum.com/devilsclub.htm).
There are several species of Oregon grape which inhabit the plant’s vast terrain from Alaska to New Mexico. All have been used similarly medicinally to Berberis nervosa among people as diverse as Hispanic and native peoples of the Southwest (Hopi), the Coast Salish, and herbalists in various parts of the country.
By Kristy Bredin, Herbalist
Find out more about Kristy’s multitude of herb offerings at www.kristybredin.com. Now accepting students for the 2022 Herbal Medicine Apprenticeship Program.
When new to identifying plants in the wild, it’s important to get a couple of good field guides, such as Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast by Pojar and Mackinnon and the Peterson’s field guides. Be aware of toxic and poisonous plants in our area. Always be 100% sure of the identification of wild plants you intend to use for food and medicine and that you know how to safely prepare them. It’s also important to honor land permissions and consider your impact when harvesting herbs in the wild. Please explore and observe these plants during your time in Moran State Park but refrain from harvesting them there. If harvesting in another location, be sure you have permission to harvest. Never harvest more than 10% of a plant population in an area to encourage sustainable re-growth.
Featured Plant – Old Man’s Beard
Usnea spp., or “Old Man’s Beard,” refers to various species of grey-green lichen that grow in hair-like tufts or long, beard-like shapes from the bark of trees. Lichens like Usnea are traditionally thought to be comprised of a fungus and an alga that live in symbiosis: the alga is photosynthetic and manufactures sugars for the fungi, while the fungi provides protection and gathers moisture and nutrients from the environment. Recent studies have found that a basidiomycete yeast seems to be a third symbiotic partner in the relationship. The outer fungal layer, or cortex, encompasses an inner layer, or thallus, which consists of additional fungi and the symbiotic alga. A white/purplish elastic-like cord runs through the middle of the thallus of Usnea spp. This cord consists of fungal hyphae and is one of the key identifying characteristics of Usnea. Lichens like Usnea need a substrate, water, light, air and nutrients to grow, which is why Usnea species are often found growing on sick or dying trees that have lost their leaves, offering good opportunity for light exposure and photosynthesis. Various Usnea species grow throughout northern areas of the U.S. and in many parts of the world. Usnea is particularly sensitive to air pollution, indicating clean air where it grows abundantly.
An effective antibiotic and antifungal herb, Usnea has been traditionally used as a wound healer in many parts of the world for various internal and external infections. In clinical herbalism it has been used topically to heal bacterial and fungal infections (such as athlete’s foot and ringworm), burns, and various types of wounds, and internally to treat parasitic and yeast overgrowth conditions, such as candida. Usnea can be especially effective in treating both topical and systemic gram-positive bacterial infections such as staph and strep, and so far no bacteria has developed resistance to usnic acid, the active and most-studied component (but toxic in isolation) in the lichen. Usnic acid has exhibited strong antitussive and antiasthmatic properties and has been used to treat tuberculosis, bronchitis and other bacterial lung and upper respiratory infections. It has also shown anti-cancer properties, particularly in lung and breast cancer cell lines.
The whole lichen is used in medicinal preparations, commonly as a tea or tincture. For stronger medicinal Usnea extracts, it’s important to break down the lichen first since the inner and outer portions contain different medicinal components: the grey-green outer cortex contains antibacterial components, while the thallus and inner cord contain immune-stimulating components. Herbalist Stephen Harrod Buhner recommends a compound Usnea tincture, combining water and alcohol-based extractions of the whole, powdered lichen for best medicinal results. The whole or powdered plant can be used to treat skin infections as well, including resistant bacterial infections, and combined with other herbs to prevent infection and promote healing of deep wounds. I’ve successfully used a wound powder containing dried Usnea, plantain (Plantago lanceolata), and yarrow (Achillea millefolium) on deep lacerations that might have otherwise required stitches. These wounds healed quickly, without infection, and with little scarring and residual nerve damage. Similarly, traditional preparations with garlic juice may potentiate Usnea’s wound-healing and disinfectant abilities: “The lichen (U. longissimia in this case), sometimes soaked in garlic juice or a strong garlic decoction (sometimes not), is an older medical method of treating large gaping wounds in the body (Spanish moss was also used this way). The moss absorbs blood and provides, along with the garlic, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, astringent, analgesic, and wound-healing actions directly inside the wound.”
A unique and powerful remedy in the herbal repertoire, Usnea not only provides healing medicine for us, but it is also a vital part of our ecosystems, providing food for animals and nesting material for birds, as well as fixing nitrogen from the atmosphere and converting carbon dioxide into oxygen. As Stephen Buhner figuratively notes, Usnea “maintains the lung system of the planet.”
By Kristy Bredin, Herbalist
When new to identifying plants in the wild, it’s important to get a couple of good field guides, such as Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast by Pojar and Mackinnon and the Peterson’s field guides. Be aware of toxic and poisonous plants in our area. Always be 100% sure of the identification of wild plants you intend to use for food and medicine and that you know how to safely prepare them. It’s also important to honor land permissions and consider your impact when harvesting herbs in the wild. Please explore and observe these plants during your time in Moran State Park but refrain from harvesting them there. If harvesting in another location, be sure you have permission to harvest. Never harvest more than 10% of a plant population in an area to encourage sustainable re-growth.
Resources on Usnea:
https://science.sciencemag.org/content/353/6298/488
https://njaes.rutgers.edu/fs1205/
https://extension.psu.edu/do-lichens-cause-harm-to-trees
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/usnea
Featured Plant – Western Red Cedar
Western Red Cedar (Thuja plicata). Cedar has been an important plant ally to many Native American groups, but to the Coast Salish it was a source of life: “Cedar is lovingly referred to as ‘Mother’ or ‘tree of Life’ because it provides for people in seemingly unlimited ways from their birth to death. Cedar is used for anything from medicine to shelter to clothing.”[1] as well as for baskets, canoes, totem poles, tools, dishes, fishing equipment, and ceremonial items, spirit whistles and paddles, to start fires, and much more.[2] Cedar defined the Salish as it dominated their landscape; it “has been called ‘the cornerstone of northwest coast Indian culture’ and the large-scale use of its wood and bark delineates the cultural boundary of the northwest coast peoples within its range.”[3]
Cedar offers many gifts as a physical and energetic medicine. The use of local resinous and aromatic plants as incense or smudge in sacred practice is a tradition found in many parts of the world. The smoke from cedar, when burned in spiritual or religious context, stimulates energetic movement, clearing out old, stale energy, and promotes a shift in consciousness, a way of connecting with the divine: “Smoke…is used both to create sacred space and to communicate with Spirit. It is a way of sending out prayers and giving thanks. Think of the smoke as making your thoughts and intentions visible as they’re being sent out to Spirit.”[4] What’s more, there is some new evidence suggesting that burning certain types of plant material in an enclosed room can kill a significant amount of airborne bacteria, indicating the ability to physically cleanse a space. Plant smoke can also promote physical healing. The Chinese Medicine practice of moxibustion uses smoke from herbs near acupuncture points to stimulate healing, or in one fascinating example, to turn breech babies. A similar Coast Salish practice uses cedar bark “as moxibustion over arthritic or painful areas of the body to promote healing and reduce pain.”[5]
A powerful anti-fungal and anti-viral as a topical preparation, cedar contains some toxic chemicals and should mainly be reserved as an herbal remedy for external use. When used properly under the direction of an herbalist or naturopath, it acts as a stimulus in the body, stimulating the immune system, smooth muscles, and the vascular capillary beds.
In the islands, I often see the red cedars growing entwined with Douglas-fir trees—the Doug-fir was usually there first, but the cedar moves its roots under and slowly works to dominate the space, eventually killing the fir. Cedar teaches us that destruction is often a part of transformation as it shapes the landscape of our forests in this way. Cedar has traditionally been looked to as a plant for protection. The Salish worked with it as physical protection: “The tips were mashed and held in the mouth when working with a corpse to prepare it for burial as protection against the fumes. Fresh limbs were picked and scorched to sweep a house after removing a corpse.”[6] Their use of cedar during the death process reveals one of cedar’s other roles, as “guardian for safe travels from the spiritual world to the physical world at birth, or from the physical to the spiritual world at death.”[7] Red cedar’s presence is powerful medicine, said to impart vivid dreams to those who sleep under it[8] and known “to be so strong a person could receive strength by standing with his or her back to the tree.”[9]
Walking among old growth cedars, many of which have lived through fires, we can continue to connect to and experience the power of these majestic trees and see in them these qualities of strength, perseverance, and transformation.
By Kristy Bredin, Herbalist
[1] Elise Krohn, Wild Rose and Western Red Cedar: The Gifts of the Northwest Plants
[2] Jim Pojar and Andy MacKinnon, Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast
[3] Jim Pojar and Andy MacKinnon, Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast
[4] Robin Rose Bennet, Healing Magic
[5] Steven Foster and Christopher Hobbs, Peterson Field Guides: Western Medicinal Plants and Herbs
[6] Elise Krohn, Wild Rose and Western Red Cedar: The Gifts of the Northwest Plants
[7] Robin Rose Bennet, Healing Magic
[8] Steven Foster and Christopher Hobbs, Peterson Field Guides: Western Medicinal Plants and Herbs
[9] Jim Pojar and Andy MacKinnon, Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast
Featured Plant – Yerba Buena
Yerba Buena(Satureja or Clinopodium douglasii) is our native perennial, evergreen mint. You will find Yerba Buena, with its square stalk and rough-textured, alternate leaves (characteristic of mint-family plants), trailing along the forest floor and its edges throughout the year. This earthy, aromatic mint was used by the Coast Salish as a strewing herb–it was laid across the earthen floors of their homes to freshen the air as it was stepped on. Yerba Buena got its common name in the early days of Spanish exploration on the Pacific coast. The Spanish missionary priests in California learned about its wide range of medicinal uses and gave it the name “yerba buena,” meaning “good plant” in Spanish.[1] Before colonization, the Salish had numerous uses for the plant: “The Halq’emeylem of Kuper Island mixed the leaves of this plant with Lomatium nudicaule to make a tea for colds. The Saanich made a tea from the leaves which was thought to be good for the blood. When hunting for deer, yerba buena leaves were crushed and rubbed on the body to disguise human odor.”[2] Highly valued as a panacea and tonic herb among native people throughout the plant’s Pacific-coase range, Yerba Buena was also used like many other mint-family herbs for upset stomach and to treat colds and flus by helping to reduce fever and encourage sweating. With antimicrobial, antiinflammatory, and pain-relieving properties, it is not surprising that Chumash medicine woman Cecilia Garcia recommends a variety of additional uses, such as for diarrhea, “parasitic worm infections, mostly tape worm…stomach ache, gas, colic in babies, for cold, fevers, toothache, insomnia, urinary tract problems, to promote menstruation and for menstrual cramps.”[3]
A mild and pleasant herb, Yerba Buena has long been enjoyed simply for its flavor, including by the Hudson Bay trappers[4] who were early settlers in the Northwest. My favorite way to prepare Yerba Buena tea is by decocting it: add a handful of fresh or dried leaves to a quart of cold water and bring it to a low simmer or keep it on heat for 20 minutes to an hour. I do this using my cast-iron tea pot and leaving it to steep on a low-heat wood-fire stove; a low and slow crock pot steep is another great option. This makes for a rich, nourishing and flavorful preparation. Herbalist Michael Moore recommends steeping it with hibiscus for a summer sun tea.
Yerba buena has been so much appreciated in places where it grows, by newcomers and natives, that one Pacific coast city was known by the plant’s name until 1847.[5] It’s now called San Francisco.
When new to identifying plants in the wild, it’s important to get a couple of good field guides, such as Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast by Pojar and Mackinnon and the Peterson’s field guides. Be aware of toxic and poisonous plants in our area. Always be 100% sure of the identification of wild plants you intend to use for food and medicine and that you know how to safely prepare them. It’s also important to honor land permissions and consider your impact when harvesting herbs in the wild. Please explore and observe these plants during your time in Moran State Park but refrain from harvesting them there. If harvesting in another location, be sure you have permission to harvest. Never harvest more than 10% of a plant population in an area to encourage sustainable re-growth.“
[1] Jim Pojar and Andy MacKinnon, Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast
[2] Jim Pojar and Andy MacKinnon, Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast
[3] Cecilia Garcia and James D. Adams, Jr., Healing with Medicinal Plants of the West
[4] Jim Pojar and Andy MacKinnon, Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast
[5] Jim Pojar and Andy MacKinnon, Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast
Contributed by Kristy Bredin, Herbalist
Featured Plant – Douglas Fir
Every year in May and June one of the continent’s tallest trees and an emblem of this region, our beloved Douglas-Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), starts to grow its new tips for the year. These young and tender tips are one of the main ways herbalists and Pacific Northwesterners like to use this plant as food and medicine. You’ll notice them as bright green extensions at the ends of the branches, easily distinguishable from the darker older growth needles. Some of the keys to telling Douglas-Fir apart from other conifers is the rounded needle display, with two white stripes running down the length of the underside of the needles, and downward-hanging cones with bracts that look like mouse tails, not to mention the deeply furrowed bark on the larger trees.
The young and tender tips can be eaten in small quantities. You will get a burst of sour flavor, indicating this plant’s high vitamin-C content. The later season tips can also be used as a flavoring agent or in medicine, but they are more bitter in flavor. With its highly aromatic, antimicrobial volatile oils (terpenes), Douglas-fir tip medicine has an affinity for working in the lung and urinary tract and has been traditionally used as a general tonic. Helpful in clearing the airways as well as phlegm and excessive mucus, Douglas-Fir tip preparations can be used with coughs, seasonal colds, and flu. The tips can be taken in tea, tincture, syrup, or I like to make a delicious elixir with them, steeping them in alcohol and honey. You could also use Fir tips in a steam or in salve as a chest rub to breathe the volatile oils directly into the lungs.
More than just the tips, many parts of this tree can be used for healing. The pitch is a profound sealant, a technology used by the Salish, and is highly antimicrobial and antifungal, making a great salve to seal and heal injuries. I have used Fir-pitch or Fir-pitch salves for split-open wounds with amazing results–the skin knit back together within a day or two and healed quickly. Whether cracked hands and feet, burns, or dry skin from sun exposure, it’s a handy salve to have around. (Be mindful and test it out on a small patch of skin before using a bunch–it can be somewhat irritating.) When harvesting pitch from a Doug-fir tree, leave some around the tree’s injury so that it can continue to provide healing support for the tree itself. Traditionally used as a topical in cases of rheumatism, Fir washes and salves can also be warming and stimulating and help increase circulation to stiff joints and muscles.
Douglas-Fir is a beautiful plant to use in a ritualistic way. Many cultures throughout the world have a tradition of using boughs or branches for clearing energy or as part of a transitional experience. The Salish used fir boughs similarly in cleansing, bereavement and womanhood ceremonies.
There are many ways that we can bring Douglas-fir medicine into our lives as we explore and learn new ways of engaging with our landscape. When new to identifying plants in the wild, it’s important to get a couple of good field guides, such as Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast by Pojar and Mackinnon and the Peterson’s field guides. Be aware of toxic and poisonous plants in our area. Always be 100% sure of the identification of wild plants you intend to use for food and medicine and that you know how to safely prepare them. It’s also important to honor land permissions and consider your impact when harvesting herbs in the wild. Please explore and observe these plants during your time in Moran State Park but refrain from harvesting them there. If harvesting in another location, be sure you have permission to harvest. Never harvest more than 10% of a plant population in an area to encourage sustainable re-growth.
Contributed by Kristy Bredin, Herbalist
Featured Plants – Pinesap and Ghostpipe
Plants get their energy from the sun, and that’s why they’re green, right? Not so fast! Some plants get their energy by digesting fungi in soil, completely lack chlorophyll, and are definitely not green. These peculiar mushroom eating plants include two species in the Genus Monotropa (which means one-way or one direction) that are found under deep forest canopy in Moran State Park. The more common of the two is Monotropa uniflora (one-way, one flower), which is a single-flowered white plant that grows in clusters also known as ghost pipe. Ghost pipe has a slender waxy white stem and a single downward facing flower. When bruised or when it goes to seed the entire plant turns black. Because of their waxy pallor they are often mistaken for fungi, but are in fact relatives of salal and blueberries. While ghost pipe is found in deep forests throughout the islands, its cousin Monotropa hypopitys (fringed pinesap) is most common in Moran State Park and rarely found on other islands. Unlike ghost pipe, pinesap has many flowers and starts off pink as it comes up and blooms a pale yellow. Like its cousin it is completely lacking in chlorophyll and gets all of its energy by eating soil fungi. You can contribute to our understanding of the ecology of these unusual plants by reporting where you see them using the Moran State Park Epicollect App! Download the Epicollect5 App from Google Play or the App Store, select Add Project and type in Moran State Park. With this app you can share photos and locations of interesting species in the Park including our mysterious fungi-munching Monotropas.
Contributed by Madrona Murphy, Photos by Russel Barsh