Eastern Skunk Cabbage – Known officially as Symplocarpus Foetidus, it is also called Clumpfoot Cabbage, Foetid Pothos, Meadow Cabbage, Polecat Weed, or Swamp Cabbage; but, is most commonly known as simply Skunk Cabbage. It is a low growing, foul smelling plant that prefers wetlands & can be found naturally in the eastern U.S. from Minnesota east & south to North Carolina & Tennessee. It was used extensively as a medicinal plant by the Winnebago & Dakota tribes to stimulate the removal of phlegm in asthma. It was also used as a seasoning & magical talisman by various tribes.
Echinacea – A flowering plant in the daisy family, it is also referred to as purple coneflower, passion flower, & simply, coneflower. Growing in eastern & central North America in moist to dry prairies & open wooded areas, it was widely used by the Plains Indians to treat infection & wounds & for its general medicinal qualities. The plant was used by chewing on the root or in tea for internal problems or pulverizing it for external wounds. In addition to its use as a medical remedy, it was often used in rituals by the Omaha & Winnebago tribes; & the Cheyenne were known to have used the herb during their traditional Sun Dance ceremonies. Echinacea is one of the most widely known herbal medicines in American folk herbalism. Used extensively by early herbalists & American Indians in North America for generations. A variety of tribes, including the Pawnee, Dakota & Omaha-Winnebago relied heavily upon this plant, which was used for ailments ranging from supporting the immune system to distemper in horses. Nine species are native to the United States & Canada, with heavy concentration in Kansas, Arkansas, Oklahoma & Missouri. These species are perennial members of the sunflower, or Asteraceae, family & mostly prefer rocky, disturbed soils in open fields, prairies & along railroad tracks.
Elder & Elderberries– Known officially as Sambucus, this species of tall shrubs & small trees are in the Honeysuckle family. Several species are native to North America & Europe, but the most commonly used among North American tribes is Sambucus Canadensis, or the Black Elderberry. The Cherokee & Delaware made a tea from the dried flowers to sweat out toxins. The Seminole & Creek pounded the root to utilize as a topical treatment for swelling. The Houma Indians used the berries to make a tonic wine & other tribes, such as the Iroquois, Dakota, Omaha, & Ponca to make a refreshing summer fruit drink.
Evening Primrose – Officially known as Oenothera & Onagraceae, this is a genus of about 125 species of flowering plants that are native to North & South America. Also commonly known as Suncups or Sundrops, it has long been used as both a food & in medicinal remedies. For food, the Apache were known to have used it in soups & sauces; while the Cherokee were known to have cooked the leave for greens & boiled the roots like potatoes. The Hopi & Navajo used it in Ceremonial Medicine & the Jemez carried the root as a good luck charm. Specific use by tribes for medicine included treating muscle strain, swelling, & throat trouble by the Navajo & Ramah; for sores & swelling by the Blackfoot, as an eye medicine by the Hopi; & the Cherokee used it for a number of purposes, including as a hemorrhoid remedy, for boils, for strength, & to reduce “overfatness.”
Disclaimer: These statements have not been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration. Plants listed here must not be used to diagnose, treat, or heal medical conditions.
Echinacea, Echinacea angustifolia was widely used by the North American Plains Indians for its general medicinal qualities. Some Plains tribes did use echinacea to treat some of the symptoms that could be caused by the common cold: The Kiowa used it for coughs & sore throats, the Cheyenne for sore throats, the Pawnee for headaches, & many tribes including the Lakotah used it as an analgesic. Native Americans learned of E. angustifolia by observing elk seeking out the plants & consuming them when sick or wounded, & identified those plants as elk root. The following table examines why various tribes use echinacea.
Tribe Uses
Cheyenne Sore mouth/gums
Choctaws Coughs, dyspepsia
Comanche Toothache, sore throat
Crow Colds, toothache, colic
Dakota (Oglala) Cool inflammation
Delaware (Lenape) Gonorrhea
Kiowa Coughs, sore throat
Meskwaki Cramps
Omaha Septic diseases
Omaha-Ponca Eye wash
Sioux (Dakota) Bowels, tonsillitis
The entire echinacea plant is used medicinally, both dried & fresh. Common preparations include making a decoction or infusion of the roots & leaves, making a poultice of parts of the plant, juicing the root or simply using the leaves as they were.
Encelia farinosa (brittlebush), used by the Seri to treat toothache. For toothache the bark is removed, the branch heated in ashes, & then placed in the mouth to "harden" a loose tooth. The Cahuilla of California also used this as a toothache reliever, & to treat chest pain as well by heating the plant gum & applying it to the chest.
Equisetum hyemale, used by some Plateau tribes. They boiled the stalks to produce a drink used as a diuretic & to treat venereal disease.
Erigenia bulbosa, the Cherokee were known to chew this plant as medicine for toothaches, it is unknown what parts of plant they chewed.
Eriodictyon crassifolium, used by the Chumash people to keep airways open for proper breathing.
Eriodictyon trichocalyx (Yerba Santa), used by the Cahuilla to pure blood & to treat coughs, colds, sore throats, asthma, tuberculosis, & catarrh. It was also used as a liniment, a poultice, & a tea bath to treating rheumatism, fatigued limbs, sores, & fevers. The Chumash also used this as a liniment for the feet & chest.
Eriodictyon californicum (Yerba Santa), Native Americans used it to treat asthma, upper respiratory infections, & allergic rhinitis. The Chumash used it to poultice broken bones, wounds, insect bites, & sores. A steam bath was used to treat hemorrhoids.
Eryngium aquaticum, used by the Cherokee for nausea, by the Choctaw people used it as a remedy for snakebite & gonorrhea, & by the Delaware people for intestinal worms.
Erythrina herbacea, Creek women used an infusion of the root for bowel pain; the Choctaw used a decoction of the leaves as a general tonic; the Seminole used an extract of the roots for digestive problems, & extracts of the seeds, or of the inner bark, as an external rub for rheumatic disorders.
