Native American ethnobotany

A

• Abronia fragrans Used as both food and medicine. See article for complete list of uses.
• Acer glabrum var. douglasii, used by Plateau tribes as a treatment for diarrhea.
• Acer glabrum var. glabrum The Blackfoot take an infusion of the bark in the morning as a cathartic. The Okanagan-Colville, when hunting, use a branch tied in a knot and placed over the bear's tracks while hunting to stop the wounded bear. The Thompson people use a decoction of wood and bark taken for nausea caused by smelling a corpse.
• Acer negundo, used as food, lumber, and medicine. Please see article for full information.
• Acer saccharinum, an infusion of bark removed from the south side of the tree is used by the Mohegan for cough medicine. It is also used by other tribes for various purposes.
• Acer saccharum, used by the Mohegan as a cough remedy, and the sap as a sweetening agent and to make maple syrup. It is also used by other tribes for various purposes.
• Actaea racemosa, used to treat gynecological and other disorders, including sore throats, kidney problems, and depression.
• Actaea rubra, used by the Algonquin for stomach pains, in some seasons for males, other seasons for females.
• Agrimonia gryposepala, used by the Iroquois to treat diarrhea. Also used by the Cherokee to treat fever, by the Ojibwa for urinary problems, and by the Meskwaki and Prairie Potawatomi used it as a styptic for nosebleeds.
• Allium tricoccum, used as both food and medicine. Please see the article for full information.
• Alnus rhombifolia, used by some Plateau tribes for female health treatment.
• Alnus rubra, used to treat poison oak, insect bites, and skin irritations. The Blackfoot Confederacy used an infusion made from the bark of red alder to treat lymphatic disorders and tuberculosis. Recent clinical studies have verified that red alder contains betulin and lupeol, compounds shown to be effective against a variety of tumors.
• Artemisia californica, used by the Cahuilla and Tongva to alleviate menstrual cramps and menopause by taking it as a decoction, and consuming it regularly before the menstruation period. They also used it as an aid for child labor since the plant stimulates the uterine mucosa, quickening the process. The Cahuilla people chewed on the leaves, dried or fresh, to fight colds and coughs. The Ohlone used it to remove pain by applying it to wounds and teeth, to treat colds, coughs, and rheumatism by making it into a tea bath, and as a poultice for asthma.
• Artemisia douglasiana, used to treat colds, fevers, and headaches.
• Artemisia ludoviciana, used by several tribes for a variety of medicinal purposes.
• Arundinaria, used for medicinal as well as many other purposes.
• Asarum canadense, used to treat a number of ailments including dysentery, digestive problems, swollen breasts, coughs and colds, typhus, scarlet fever, nerves, sore throats, cramps, heaves, earaches, headaches, convulsions, asthma, tuberculosis, urinary disorders and venereal disease. They also used it as a stimulant, an appetite enhancer and a charm. It was also used as an admixture to strengthen other herbal preparations.
• Asclepias verticillata, used medicinally.

  B

• Baccharis sarothroides, used by the Seri people to make a decoction by cooking the twigs. This tea is used to treat colds, sinus headache, and general sore achy ailments. The same tea is also used as a rub for sore muscles. Studies done on plant extracts show that desert broom is rich in leutolin, a flavonoid that has demonstrated anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and cholesterol lowering capabilities. Desert broom also has quercetin, a proven antioxidant, and apigenin a chemical which binds to the same brain receptor sites that Valium does.
• Balsamorhiza sagittata, used as food and medicine by many Native American groups, such as the Nez Perce, Kootenai, Cheyenne, and Salish.
• Baptisia australis – the Cherokee would use the roots in teas as a purgative or to treat tooth aches and nausea, while the Osage made an eyewash with the plant.
• Betula occidentalis, used by some Plateau tribes to treat pimples and sores.
• Blephilia ciliata, traditionally used by the Cherokee to make a poultice to treat headaches.
• Bloodroot, used as an emetic, respiratory aid, and other treatments.

  C

• Calypso, used by the Nlaka'pamux of British Columbia used it as a treatment for mild epilepsy.
• Cardamine diphylla, used for food and medicine. See article for full information.
• Caulophyllum
• Ceanothus integerrimus, the branches of which were used among the Indigenous peoples of California in treating women after childbirth.
• Ceanothus velutinus, used by certain Plateau tribes to create herbal tea to induce sweating as a treatment for colds, fevers, and influenza. Leaves were also used when rinsing to help prevent dandruff. C. velutinus was known as "red root" by many Native American tribes due to the color of the inner root bark, and was used as a medicine for treating lymphatic disorders, ovarian cysts, fibroid tumors, and tonsillitis. Clinical studies of the alkaloid compounds in C. velutinus has verified its effectiveness in treating high blood pressure and lymphatic blockages.
• Chimaphila umbellata, used by some Plateau tribes in an herbal tea to treat tuberculosis.
• Claytonia virginica, used medicinally by the Iroquois, who would give a cold infusion or decoction of the powdered roots to children suffering from convulsions. They would also eat the raw roots, believing that they permanently prevented conception. They would also eat the roots, as would the Algonquin people, who cooked them like potatoes.
• Cleome serrulata, used by tribes in the southwest to make an infusion to treat stomach illnesses and fevers. Poultices can be used on the eyes.
• Commelina dianthifolia, infusion of plant used by Keres as a strengthener for weakened tuberculosis patients.
• Cornus sericea, used by Plateau tribes to treat colds by eating the berries. Also used to slow bleeding.

  D

• Datura wrightii, the plant, often the root but any part of the plant could be used, was made into a tea which was then consumed as a rite of passage in Chumash ceremonies due to being a deliriant hallucinogen.
• Delphinium nudicaule, the root of which was used as a narcotic by the Mendocino.
• Devil's club, traditionally used by Native Americans to treat adult-onset diabetes and a variety of tumors. In vitro studies showed that extracts of devil's club inhibit tuberculosis microbes. The plant is used medicinally and ceremonially by the Tlingit people of Southeast Alaska, who refer to it as "Tlingit aspirin". A piece of devil's club hung over a doorway is said to ward off evil. The plant is harvested and used in a variety of ways, including lip balms, ointments, and herbal teas. Some Tlingit disapprove of the commercialization of the plant as they see it as a violation of its sacred status.

  E

• Echinacea, Echinacea angustifolia was widely used by the North American Plains Indians for its general medicinal qualities. Echinacea was one of the basic antimicrobial herbs of eclectic medicine from the mid 19th century through the early 20th century, and its use was documented for snakebite, anthrax, and for relief of pain. In the 1930s echinacea became popular in both Europe and America as an herbal medicine. According to Wallace Sampson, MD, its modern-day use as a treatment for the common cold began when a Swiss herbal supplement maker was "erroneously told" that echinacea was used for cold prevention by Native American tribes who lived in the area of South Dakota. Although Native American tribes didn't use echinacea to prevent the common cold, 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 and sore throats, the Cheyenne for sore throats, the Pawnee for headaches, and many tribes including the Lakotah used it as an analgesic. Native Americans learned of E. angustifolia by observing elk seeking out the plants and consuming them when sick or wounded, and identified those plants as elk root. The following table examines why various tribes use echinacea.

• Encelia farinosa, used by the Seri to treat toothache. For toothache the bark is removed, the branch heated in ashes, and then placed in the mouth to "harden" a loose tooth. The Cahuilla of California also used this as a toothache reliever, and to treat chest pain as well by heating the plant gum and applying it to the chest.
• Ephedra californica, used by the indigenous peoples of California.
• Epigaea repens, see article for full information.
• Equisetum hyemale, used by some Plateau tribes. They boiled the stalks to produce a drink used as a diuretic and 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, used by the Cahuilla to pure blood and to treat coughs, colds, sore throats, asthma, tuberculosis, and catarrh. It was also used as a liniment, a poultice, and a tea bath to treating rheumatism, fatigued limbs, sores, and fevers. The Chumash also used this as a liniment for the feet and chest.
• Eriodictyon californicum, Native Americans used it to treat asthma, upper respiratory infections, and allergic rhinitis. The Chumash used it to poultice broken bones, wounds, insect bites, and 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 and gonorrhea, and 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, and extracts of the seeds, or of the inner bark, as an external rub for rheumatic disorders.
• Eurybia macrophylla, used as both food and medicine. Please see article for more information.