Family: Water-lily/ Nymphaeaceae Ecology/ Botany: This unmistakable aquatic perennial is common in shallow lakes, ponds, and slow-moving water. The leaves are large floating lily pads. Medicinal/ Other Uses: The roots are used medicinally for external or internal ulcerative, inflamed conditions. It is especially helpful for irritation in the pelvic region in urinary or reproductive organs. […]
Family: Rose/ Rosaceae Ecology/ Botany:This hardy, adaptable, wide-ranging shrub has many species. They grow in openings of a variety of forest types in the dry to moist climatic regions. Medicinal/ Other Uses:Roses are all about love and protection, allowing an open heart. The flowers in spring and summer turn to rose hips in fall and […]
Family: Liliaceae/ Lily Ecology/ Botany: These dark, mottled, perennial lilies are infrequent in forest openings and meadows of dry forest types like Interior Douglas Fir, at low to sub-alpine elevations. They take 4-6 years to produce flowers that smell of rotting meat to attract the flies and carrion insects that pollinate them. Medicinal/ Other Uses: […]
Family: Orchid/ Orchidaceae Ecology/ Botany: This fragile, perennial orchid is hidden away in the mossy, shaded forest floor of zones like Interior Cedar Hemlock or Interior Douglas Fir. It only grows with specific fungi, so it is almost impossible to transplant. It has delicate roots that are easily harmed so it is usually exterminated in […]
Family: Geranium/ Geraniaceae Ecology/ Botany: This perennial grows in dry grasslands or open forest zones like Interior Douglas Fir. It’s thought to be a protocarnivorous plant, meaning it traps and kills insects, but lacks the ability to fully digest them. Medicinal/ Other Uses: Okanagan people used the leaves to treat skin sores or sore lips, […]
Family: Liliaceae/ Lily Ecology/ Botany: This tall, tap-rooted perennial grows in dry, open grassland or shrubland at low to mid elevation. It prefers Bunchgrass or Ponderosa Pine forest zones. Medicinal/ Other Uses: Indigenous North Americans ate the large fleshy bulbs raw or cooked. Okanagan people used a poultice of the bulb for poison ivy blisters. […]
Family: Aster/ Asteraceae Ecology/ Botany: This cheery perennial likes to grow at mid elevation with Trembling Aspen, Douglas Fir, Pine, and Spruce, in moist, forest openings. It grows in dry to moist climatic regions in the Montane zone and prefers Interior Douglas Fir forest types. Medicinal/ Other Uses: Navajo people used a decoction to treat […]
Family: Buttercup/ Ranunculaceae Ecology/ Botany:This is an extremely poisonous perennial. It prefers moist montane to subalpine forest openings and streambanks of Engelmann Spruce-Subalpine Fir forest zones. Medicinal/ Traditional/ Other Uses:In folklore, a chemical component of the tuber is an ingredient in a flying ointment witches used to take flight. It caused heart fibrillation and delirium […]
Family: Bunchflower/ Melanthiaceae Ecology/ Botany:Trillium prefers shaded, moist, mature, coniferous forests such as Coastal Douglas Fir or Coastal Western Hemlock zones. It also grows in the Interior Temperate Rainforest. From seed, it takes up to ten years to mature and flower. As the flower matures and is pollinated, it changes from white to a pink […]
