Patrick pointed out that as a taproot, Queen Anne's Lace is a "healing plant." A healing plant not only holds the soil in place to prevent erosion but it puts nitrogen in the soil, the essential element for growing plants.
"Plants add nutrients to the soil to make way for their progeny," said Julie.
Some common nitrogen producing plants used to revitalize soil are alfalfa, clover and timothy.
Patrick and Julie identified and discussed a few more plants the participants had collected in the same way and later they provided a three-page handout of the plants found in the area. For example, evening primrose is good for inflammation of the joints as well as women's hot flashes.
Chicory is good for honeybees and serves as a caffeine substitute. It's bitter, but highly nutritious, especially when it's wild.
Burdock may attach themselves to your pets in the fall but the taproot is tasty when it's pickled. The Japanese use it for sushi.
Lambs quarters are great for salads, especially in the spring and can be substituted for spinach. They're super nutritious and a great source of beta-carotene, calcium, potassium and iron.
The milky sap from wild lettuce can treat skin irritations and St. John's Wort can treat mild depression.
Chickweed adds much flavor to salads and has a ton of vitamins that can substitute all the supplemental pills people take. It's also good for skin conditions and is used in Earthworks' hand balm.
Pokeweed is poisonous and needs to be cooked in at least two change of water. Its young shoots are best in the spring.
"We used to eat pokeweed as kids down South," said one of the participants astounded by her memory of the plant.
Purslane is a common weed that used to be cultivated. It is a good source of vitamins and it's extremely high in Omega-3 fatty acids, the kind associated with healthy hearts and good brain function.
"Oh my goodness," said another. "We've been throwing away tons of purslane in our garden."
It was soon becoming clear that these weeds were once part of the regular diet for people who recognized their edible qualities. Likewise, medicines came from plants before they came from pharmaceutical companies that put them in little sanitized bottles and sold on the market.
I was beginning to acquire a new appreciation for our ancestral hunter-gatherers who first discovered these plants and their qualities. What a change we have made to this long practice when we turned to cultivating monoculture crops and the huge industrial agriculture scene!
"Don't try to learn everything all at once," advised Patrick. "Pick a few plants at a time. Get a reference book to help you identify and learn about them."
