Creeping Bellflower – Campanula Rapunculoides: Edible & Medicinal Uses of a Long Lost Garden Vegetable

Creeping Bellflower – Campanula Rapunculoides

Creeping bellflower (Campanula rapunculoides) is an invasive nonnative. It’s the most common of a handful of nonnative bellflowers around Ontario. You’ll mostly spot it on banks and grassy roadsides. It was uncommon when Haliburton Flora was compiled, but is probably fairly common now. It was called ramps in English kitchen gardens, back in its heyday. …

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Serviceberry – Amelanchier SPP.: Edible & Medicinal Uses of the Early Bloomer of Wild Plants

Serviceberry – Amelanchier Spp.

The English name serviceberry (Amelanchier spp.) has origins related to when one can finally have funeral services/burial for winters dead. They’re also called juneberries even though you’ll be waiting until the end of June or later for ripe berries. Here around Haliburton, Ontario you’ll find, to the least: downy (Amelanchier arborea), mountain (Amelanchier bartramania), smooth …

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Balsam Poplar – Populus Balsamifera: Edible & Medicinal Uses of the Pop’lar Balm of Wild Plants

Balsam Poplar - Populus Balsamifera

Balsam poplar (Populus balsamifera) is often used to make the ever-popular Balm of Gilead. Poplar is a common wild edible, medicinal and useful tree in our area. (And some people think it’s trash! Cottonwoods to the south fill the spring air with fluff, which tends to get on peoples nerves for some reason.) Next month …

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