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Found in riverbanks

Nannyberry – Viburnum Lentago: Edible & Medicinal Uses of a Black Haw Cousin

May 16, 2025 by Rachel of the Woods Leave a Comment
Nannyberry - Viburnum Lentago

Around Haliburton, nannyberry (Viburnum lentago) is one of our uncommon bush cranberries. It may be found on wet banks, river edges, or in wet meadows. It’s on the taller side as bush cranberries go. In appearance and usage, it’s much like black haw, which grows just to our south in the States. It’s also similar …

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Posted in: Edible & Medicinal Wild Plants Tagged: Adoxaceae (incl. Caprifoliaceae, p.pt.)/Moschatel family, American robins, Antispasmodic, Attracts birds, Attracts pollinators, Beavers, Bees, Cedar waxwings, Chipmunks, Cotton-tailed rabbits, Digestive, Diuretic, Eastern bluebirds, Eastern chipmunks, Edible parts, Found in damp shore banks, Found in riverbanks, Full sun, Gray catbirds, Gray squirrel, Hermit thrushes, Indigo buntings, Medicinal parts, Moist soil, Native to Ontario, Northern flickers, Purple finches, Red foxes, Reproductive, Ruffed grouse, Well drained soil, White flowers, White-footed mice, White-tailed deer

Honey Locust – Gleditsia Triacanthos: Edible & Medicinal Uses of The Thorn Tree

April 18, 2025 by Rachel of the Woods Leave a Comment
Honey Locust - Gleditsia Triacanthos

Honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos) is not listed in Haliburton Flora, as it’s another southern Ontario native. And even there it is rare. The tree has rather nefarious looking clusters of large thorns. And memorable large, brown boomerang shaped seed pods. Where I grew up, quite a ways south of Ontario, honey locust had filled a …

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Posted in: Edible & Medicinal Wild Plants Tagged: American crows, Antiseptic, Astringent, Attracts pollinators, Clay soil, Digestive, Edible parts, Fabaceae (Leguminosae)/Bean family, Found in riverbanks, Full sun, Integumentary, Loamy soil, Medicinal parts, Moist soil, Native to Ontario, Rabbits, Red foxes, Respiratory, Well drained soil

The Wood Folk Diaries: Volume 4 (Poisonous Plants), Chapter 3: Buttercup

October 17, 2023 by Rachel of the Woods Leave a Comment
The Wood Folk Diaries: Volume 4 (Poisonous Plants), Chapter 3: Buttercup

Dear Wood Folk, Buttercups are one of the first flowering plants I noticed when I moved to Haliburton County, Ontario. They have a reflective shininess to them that makes them pop. Buttercups are common in my yard, and common along the nearest trail. These mostly perennial plants show up in varied terrain. Some species are …

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Posted in: The Wood Folk Diaries Tagged: Attracts pollinators, Dye, Eastern chipmunks, Found in damp or wet places, Found in fens, Found in riverbanks, Found in stream banks, Found in trailsides, Found in wet swampy sites, Gray squirrel, Moist soil, Native to Ontario, Partial shade, Perennial, Ranunculaceae/Buttercup family, Rock voles, Ruffed grouse, Shade, Snow buntings, Wild turkey, Yellow flowers

Canadian Yew – Taxus Canadensis: Heartstopper of Not So Edible & Medicinal Wild Plants

December 30, 2022 by Rachel of the Woods Leave a Comment
Canadian Yew – Taxus Canadensis

Yew is an important shrub to know if you’re going to forage conifers. It’s trendy to make teas out of evergreens like spruce or cedar, but just a cupful of fresh yew leaves can actually kill you. While parts of yew have been used both for edible and medicinal purposes, most of the plant is …

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Posted in: Coloring Pages, Craft Ideas, and Wild Plant Recipes, Edible & Medicinal Wild Plants Tagged: American robins, Chipping sparrows, Deer mice, Dye, Found in clearings or old fields, Found in lakeshores or edges, Found in riverbanks, Found in rocky outcrops or slopes, Found in swampy mixed woods, Full sun, Mockingbirds and mimics, Moose, Native to Ontario, Partial shade, Ruffed grouse, Sandy soil, Shade, Song sparrows, Taxaceae/Yew family, Veery, Well drained soil, White-footed mice, White-throated sparrows, Wood thrushes

Willow – Salix SPP.: Edible & Medicinal Uses of the Original Aspirin of Wild Plants

September 18, 2020 by Rachel of the Woods 2 Comments
Willow – Salix Spp.

Willow (Salix spp.) is an edible, mostly medicinal and heavily utilized plant. Its powerful component salicin was synthesized to make the well known OTC medicine Aspirin. “Sal lis” means “near water”. And our many Haliburton waters are surrounded by salix species! The marshes I visit for birding and herping are filled with a wide variety …

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Posted in: Edible & Medicinal Wild Plants Tagged: Alder flycatchers, Analgesic, Anti-Inflammatory, Antiseptic, Astringent, Attracts pollinators, Beavers, Bees, Cardiovascular, Diaphoretic, Dye, Edible parts, Febrifuge, Found in damp ditches or roadsides, Found in damp meadows, Found in damp or wet places, Found in lakeshores or edges, Found in marshes, Found in riverbanks, Found in wet ditches, Found in wet swampy sites, Full sun, Grosbeaks, Integumentary, Mallards, Medicinal parts, Moist soil, Mourning cloak butterflies, Native to Ontario, Nervous, Partial shade, Porcupines, Rabbits, Redpolls, Ruffed grouse, Salicaceae/Willow family, Wet soil, White-tailed deer, Wood ducks

Ostrich Fern (Fiddlehead) – Matteuccia Struthiopteris: Edible & Medicinal Uses of the Top Fern of Wild Plants

May 29, 2020 by Rachel of the Woods Leave a Comment
Ostrich Fern (Fiddlehead) - Matteuccia Struthiopteris

Ostrich fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris) is the usual fern called fiddlehead. It’s a traditional dish in Quebec and New Brunswick and the sprouts are a delicacy called kogomi in Japan. It was the first fern in our edible and medicinal plants series! And presently one of many ferns we’ve covered. As per edibility, this one is …

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Posted in: Edible & Medicinal Wild Plants Tagged: Clay soil, Edible parts, Found in riverbanks, Found in woods, Loamy soil, Medicinal parts, Native to Ontario, Onocleaceae/Sensitive fern family, Partial shade, Perennial, Reproductive, Shade, Wet soil

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