Slinging.org Forum - plants and thier uses

bigkahuna

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #30 - Jun 8^th, 2012, 11:58pm

The seed heads of Scottish Thistle can be used to make the fletching for blowgun darts. The young stems of cat-tail can be eaten as can the young roots. The older stems made emergency arrows. The down from the cat tail heads can be used as insulation in clothing. The young leaves of the Burdock can be boiled into a tea to relieve sore throat, and the seeds can be used as emergency velcro.

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Eoraptor

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #31 - Jun 9^th, 2012, 3:21pm

Alright, I'm not sure anyone still wants plants and their uses, but here are some locals I've used because I want to know how many I can list off. Not including random eatables.
Cordage plants- flax, dogbane, basswood, nettle, yucca, willow, cattail, all the milkweeds (swamp is my favorite)
Walnuts make brown dye (and temporary tattoos)
Acorns have tannin for dye
Bloodroot makes a nice red paint
Wild ginger and evergreen needles make tea
Elm and birch and sometimes willow have usable bark
Jewelweed is good for bug bites, poison ivy, nettle stings, etc
Goldenrod pollen, bullrush root, and acorns can make flour
Most any hardwood can make a bow
Inside of milkweed pods and tinder fungus can catch a spark

I'm sure I'll think of more when I can't write them down...

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Mauro Fiorentini Slinging.org Moderator Forge your future with the hammer of your mind! Posts: 3072 Gender:	Re: plants and thier uses Reply #32 - Jun 10^th, 2012, 5:52am Thanks Eoraptor, I know Ulrica also knows a lot of uses for multiple plants, you may ask her if you wish to trade knowledge on this Greetings, Mauro.
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Rat Man

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #33 - Jun 21^st, 2012, 10:37am

I can go out front right now and look at my unruly lawn. Almost all of the plants out there have some possible use. A surprising number are edible. Some I don't remember the name of, like the one that looks like clover but has a nice, tart, lemon flavor. The tiny yellow flowers are the best part. The dandelion and it's many close cousins are all edible and due to their high iron content, quite good for you. It's a shame that they don't taste better. There are several kinds of wild lettuce, wild carrots, the seed tops of almost all of the wild grasses are edible or at least have edible parts, there's a kind of plant with a peppery taste that I don't know the name of, there's tons of wild garlic; both the bulbs and greens are edible. Just don't kiss anyone for a good long while.
In order through the season various wild berries and fruits become available. In this area first are the mulberries. Next, all at the same time come the blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, and huckleberries. After that come the wild cherries or choke cherries as we call them and finally the wild grapes, or chicken grapes. Also sometimes you can find wild apple or pear trees. There's also sorrel fruit and persimmons.
Also there are cattails, water lilies, and the sassafras tree, which are all almost completely edible. The inner bark of may kinds of spruce and pines is edible, the pine nuts are good, and their needles make tea as does sassafras roots. The inner bark of the willow tree can be used as aspirin. Aloe is good for burns.
This is just scratching the surface, and I'm not an expert. Many people have written volumes on the subject.

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slingbadger Interfector Viris Spurii Don't Badger a Badger Posts: 2573 Gender:	Re: plants and thier uses Reply #34 - Jun 22^nd, 2012, 6:39am The clover like plant is called sorrel, or sometimes sourgrass. It's great put in a salad, cooked with chicken or pork. It can also be mixed in with a mint tea. Basically, anything you use lemon for. You can distinguish it from clover by it's heart shaped leaves. Clover leaves are round.
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Dan

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #35 - Jun 23^rd, 2012, 8:23am

Quote from slingbadger on Jun 22^nd, 2012, 6:39am:

The clover like plant is called sorrel, or sometimes sourgrass. It's great put in a salad, cooked with chicken or pork. It can also be mixed in with a mint tea. Basically, anything you use lemon for.
You can distinguish it from clover by it's heart shaped leaves. Clover leaves are round.

Clover is probably my favorite 'leafy' wild edible. Very good taste when compared to dandelion, plantian, and even regular spiniach.

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Mad Scientist

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #36 - Jun 23^rd, 2012, 11:41am

Quote from Rat Man on Jun 21^st, 2012, 10:37am:

I can go out front right now and look at my unruly lawn. The dandelion and it's many close cousins are all edible and due to their high iron content, quite good for you. It's a shame that they don't taste better.

perhaps not plain, but try deep-frying the blossoms. dip in beaten egg, dip in flour, cook until golden brown, and serve with cinnamon sugar or salt. delicious.

the leaves also make a decent salad, just pick them young, the older ones are bitter.

i believe this may have been mentioned awhile back in another thread, but poke-berries can make a very pretty purple ink, if slightly smelly.

the young shoots and, i think, the leaves can be eaten, just do your research, because they can be poisonous if not prepared properly.

edit: where did this below come from? moderator accident? i did not put this in.

Yes, this is Rat Man and it was my error. I meant to quote your post and instead I accidentally modified it. Sorry, MS.

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« Last Edit: Jul 22^nd, 2012, 4:56pm by Rat Man »

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Rat Man

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #37 - Jun 23^rd, 2012, 11:52am

I failed to mention acorns and wild nuts. Acorns were a staple for native Americans. The flour made from them is very nutritious. In my state, New Jersey, there are acorns everywhere. I tried processing them once, but I didn't read enough and did it wrong. I probably try it again, armed this time with better and more information. As I said, the list is almost endless.
There's also another edible plant besides the clover look alike called sorrel. It is much larger and produces fruit.

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Sorrel_001.jpg

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Rat Man

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #38 - Jun 23^rd, 2012, 12:01pm

The thing is that if you're stranded in a desert or in the arctic then finding food would be a big problem. If you're lost in a forest you should be able to find something to eat. You might loose weight but you really shouldn't starve, at least not quickly. As long as you have water you should be fine for a very long time. Of course finding food in winter is much tougher but there's still stuff to eat.
And thanks, Mad Scientist. I'll have to give fried dandelions a try.

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Rat Man

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #39 - Jun 25^th, 2012, 12:44pm

Quote from Dan on Jun 23^rd, 2012, 8:23am:

Quote from slingbadger on Jun 22^nd, 2012, 6:39am:

The clover like plant is called sorrel, or sometimes sourgrass. It's great put in a salad, cooked with chicken or pork. It can also be mixed in with a mint tea. Basically, anything you use lemon for.
You can distinguish it from clover by it's heart shaped leaves. Clover leaves are round.

Clover is probably my favorite 'leafy' wild edible. Very good taste when compared to dandelion, plantian, and even regular spiniach.

I told you I wasn't an expert. I didn't even know that clover was edible for humans. I thought it was just fodder. I'll try some today. Live and learn. We have mostly white clover around here. In fact it's extremely abundant. It's hard to find a lawn without white clover. There's also some red but it's not as plentiful. From what I just read both are edible.

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Rat Man

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #40 - Jun 25^th, 2012, 1:46pm

Quote from slingbadger on Jun 22^nd, 2012, 6:39am:

The clover like plant is called sorrel, or sometimes sourgrass. It's great put in a salad, cooked with chicken or pork. It can also be mixed in with a mint tea. Basically, anything you use lemon for.
You can distinguish it from clover by it's heart shaped leaves. Clover leaves are round.

Also sorrel leaves are much smaller than clover leaves and it has tiny yellow flowers. Clover has larger white or red spiky flowers.

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Dan

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #41 - Jun 25^th, 2012, 6:06pm

Quote from Rat Man on Jun 25^th, 2012, 12:44pm:

Quote from Dan on Jun 23^rd, 2012, 8:23am:

Quote from slingbadger on Jun 22^nd, 2012, 6:39am:

The clover like plant is called sorrel, or sometimes sourgrass. It's great put in a salad, cooked with chicken or pork. It can also be mixed in with a mint tea. Basically, anything you use lemon for.
You can distinguish it from clover by it's heart shaped leaves. Clover leaves are round.

Clover is probably my favorite 'leafy' wild edible. Very good taste when compared to dandelion, plantian, and even regular spiniach.

I told you I wasn't an expert. I didn't even know that clover was edible for humans. I thought it was just fodder. I'll try some today. Live and learn. We have mostly white clover around here. In fact it's extremely abundant. It's hard to find a lawn without white clover. There's also some red but it's not as plentiful. From what I just read both are edible.

Yep! Supposedly the flowers can also be dried and ground up for making flower (they are edible raw too), I usually just stick to the leaves though. Very tasty.

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1 Samuel 14:7

"Like tying a stone to a sling is the giving of honor to a fool" Proverbs 26:8

SALVATION: By Grace alone, through Faith alone, in Christ alone.

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Rat Man

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #42 - Jun 27^th, 2012, 5:06pm

I don't know how I missed clover. Thanks for enlightening me, Dan. You literally can't spit around here, New Jersey, without hitting white clover. It's EVERYWHERE. I tried some for the first time today. It's not bad... the taste reminds me of raw peas, but a little stronger. I like it. I'll have to search for red clover. It's no where near as plentiful around here.

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canteskuyaOMD

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #43 - Jun 27^th, 2012, 9:20pm

Quote from slingbadger on Jun 6^th, 2012, 6:29am:

In Western New York we have a plant called indian Hemp. When prepared right, it can be spun just like any other fiber. Very strong too.

I've heard of this type of plant, it was used by Natives from California to make slings, this stuff must have been a great multi use plant

http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/130324/Sling_for_Ducks_or_f or_Killing_Marsh_Hens

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Rat Man

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Re: plants and thier uses
Reply #44 - Jul 3^rd, 2012, 10:35pm

OK, I found some red clover and gave it a try. It tasted very much like white clover.. almost identical. Red clover was slightly milder I thought. Both are very good. Right now the foraging is pretty good around here. Besides all of the wild greens, a lot of wild fruits are becoming ripe now. The mulberries have come and gone. The blackberries are almost ripe. The raspberries have just started to ripen as have the huckleberries and blueberries. After them will come the choke cherries and chicken grapes. If you're lucky you can find wild apples or pears. They aren't ripe yet though.

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