In Chippewa, ogini’minaga’wunj means rose hips or rose berries. Roses are both edible and medicinal. They have a global epicurean history that surpasses other herbs we’ve covered. A rosy pink Turkish delight may come to mind. Or your grandmothers beauty products. We have a handful of wild roses around Haliburton. All of our rose species are …
We’ll cover the edible and medicinal wild mint, peppermint and spearmint in this post. There are other mints I will cover separately: heal-all, catnip, wild bergamot, etc.! Wild mint (mentha arvensis) and peppermint (mentha x piperita) are listed in Haliburton Flora, with the native wild aka corn mint being more common. Spearmint, called the mother …
In Chippewa, thornapple is called mine’saga’wunj, meaning “having fruit and also spikes.” No other shrub in Canada has these awl like thorns. Hawthorn, despite its thorny appearance, is both an edible and strongly medicinal plant. Be very careful with the thorns – don’t poke your eye out! They are scary sharp! Northern shrikes have been …
In Chippewa, wiisagibag meaning bitter leaf, also wiisagijiibik meaning bitter taproot and gi’ masan meaning big stickers. Common burdock is an edible and medicinal wild plant that will stick with you. It’s a favorite of mine! Burdock’s folk names are predominately along the lines of burr-this or that-burr, like burrseed for instance. Which is questionable …
In Ojibwe, nisoobag+oon ezhi-wadong+in, red clover is honeylicious and this edible and medicinal plant is not just for honey bees! My favorite folk name for red clover is honey/honey-stalks, but it isn’t just honey bees that like this honey. Mammals like the opossum, snowshoe hare, eastern chipmunk, raccoon, striped skunk, and white-tailed deer are buzzing …
In Anishinaabemowin, mullein is sometimes called Waabooyaanibag (blanket leaf). Its uses are blanketly more medicinal than edible. But you can eat the delicate yellow flowers too! Mullein’s folk names include but are not limited to flannel leaf (leaves stuffed in shoes for warmth), tinder plant/torches/torch-wort, candlewick (dried stems used to be dipped in wax to …