A PLANT LOVER

INTRODUCTION

Why am I, a plant-loving botanist, writing about the ethics and collection of wild plants? I know that I want to see the earth flourish as a beautiful garden. I believe there are powerful benign forces in the universe that have made the earth a lovely place. Why do I feel so strongly about plants? In searching for the answer, a jumble of happy and sad memories about plants tumble out of my mind.

When I was a child, times traveling with my family to farms and the woods were full of fun and adventure. We traveled extensively in North America, Europe, Nepal, Korea and northern India. A favorite family pastime was, and is, to notice the beauty and diversity of the plants. My parents had my sisters and me nibbling on sour dock, lamb's quarters and rose hips. In the spring we ate a traditional German dish of wilted lettuce, dandelion or other greens with a hot vinegar sauce. Near Darjeeling, India, I remember verdant mountain tea plantations where women picked the leaves by hand. Mounds of rich spices added to the color and fragrance of open air markets. These happy times with plants bring rich and beautiful memories.

As with all loving relationships, there is the poignant side. We visited places where all the wildness was gone because of human activities. Afghanistan was once covered by huge forests but now has vast tracts of bare red soil. I saw places where grazing, firewood collection and clearcutting are so heavy that the soil no longer retains water, nor grows cooling plants, nor supports diverse flora and fauna. I remember families sweeping the forest floors for fuel to cook meals, yet children did not have enough to eat. Writing about the earth's devastated places is hard for me.

Much later, my husband and I honeymooned in the alpine meadows and virgin forests of the mountains in Washington State. In the summer, we baked on hot asphalt streets and in clearcuts, until we could slip into cool forests to hike and explore.

A few years later, we hand-built our house, which is perched one thousand feet above the White Salmon River valley. We excavated the house foundation by hand, partly because we were young and crazy, partly because we could not stand to see more plants and animals ripped from their homes leaving more piles of raw red dirt. Later we were rewarded for our efforts when the Shelton's violet, uncommon this far north, moved back around the house foundation.

The practical reason I am writing this guide is that there is no one publication that puts the practice and ethics of wildcrafting medicinals in one place. To wildcraft, or collect plants in the wild, I usually use two or three herb books, and ask one or more other practicing herb harvesters until I can find the information I need to successfully pick any particular plant.

One time I discovered a booklet on wildcrafting. But I was disappointed that it only had information on how to collect fern fronds, evergreen boughs, cones and other items for the floristry trade and had nothing on medicinals. Recently another book about wildcrafting was published. It concentrates on medicinals, but ignores ethics. This book is then an attempt to gather in one place more of the facts about wild and garden herbs that a beginning wildcrafter needs to know to successfully harvest and market them. It is also designed to provide a handy reference for more experienced wildcrafters.

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

While many of the plants described here are found in other parts of the world, some are found only in the Pacific Northwest. You will need a good field guide or teacher to identify and learn the herbs. For interest, I have included at least one past medicinal use of every plant. These past uses do not carry my recommendations for their use today. Any herb you eat, you do so at your own risk. If you plan to make medicinal preparations, you will need an herbal or physician to guide you. The bibliography has notes to help you select a field guide or herb book. After learning the herbs and identifying them in the field, this book then tells how to harvest and process them. If you plan to wildcraft and sell medicinal plants, take the time to learn the scientific names. Lungwort as a common name refers to a lichen, Lobaria pulmonaria, or to a Borage family flower, Pulmonaria officinalis. This is confusing. It is imperative to know exactly which medicinal you have, since the chemical makeup of each is different. While at first scientific names look intimidating, their Greek and Latin roots are defined in many technical floras. After you've learned a few, you see patterns develop. Do not fret over pronunciation, as everyone says the names differently.

The first chapter is a discussion of the ethics of collecting wild plants. Use it in deciding how to collect and how much to harvest of any plant population. Unusual herb or botanical words are in bold print and defined the first time mentioned.

The second chapter describes processing an herb from a wild or garden plant to kitchen use. The third chapter outlines procedures in picking and handling different types of plant parts. The fourth chapter contains the description of individual plants, how sensitive each is to harvesting and the best time of day and year to work with that plant.

The Herb Collection Chart outlines approximate harvesting times of different plants and which parts to pick. There is an indication of individual plant vulnerability to harvesting. An herbal birth certificate is a suggested outline for record keeping at collecting sites and as a certification to show potential buyers.

The annotated bibliography and footnote references are combined. The resource list includes addresses of a few potential buyers and sellers of herbs, and other useful items to herb businesses. Please send your listing to Longevity Herb Press for the next edition of this book.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Thank you Daryl Hoyt, Avery Thie Hoyt, Bonnie Thie, Deborah Paetzhold, Cascade Anderson Geller, Lorna Smith, Becky Stinson, Mary Lou Thie, Inez Hoyt, Sue Hall, Marion Phillips, Dana Illow, Peggy Ohlson, Carol Batdorf, Keith McCoy, Anne Patton, Ryan Drum, the Columbia Gorge Writer's Group and many others for information, assistance and encouragement. The typesetting was done by Carolyn Simon.

Any errors in the text are mine alone.

Krista Thie

March 1994

A PLANT LOVER'S

HARVESTING ETHIC

Why do collectors of wild plants need an ethic? In spite of our collective love for the plants and interest in the healing of the earth and ourselves, there are still harvesting practices that add to the destruction of the ecosystem.

Some herb companies still deal in rare plants and harvest in ways that destroy plant populations. Products of wild harvested plants are promoted before any attempt to cultivate them are made. No one knows if these plants will withstand intense marketing pressures. We need to encourage dealers to promote common herbs that have similar properties to the rare or slow growing ones. It is not worth the destruction of a beautiful glade so that a few can use an esoteric medicine.

Massive disruption of natural ecosystems is occurring. Herb harvesting contributes to that desecration. In the U.S.A., 680 plants could become extinct in the next ten years. That is ``three times the number lost in the previous two centuries. The U.S. has 25,000 plant types. So why worry about a loss of less than three percent''? (U.S. News and World Report) Not only are aesthetics diminished, but also possibilities for genetic engineering, new medicines and industrial products.

Continued interruption of the ecosystem creates disease for the earth and subsequently for all humans. The complex relationships between plants and animals are not yet fully understood. Though enough evidence shows that one disruption sets off a chain of events that has far‑reaching effects. A well-known example is the use of DDT that has shown up worldwide in mothers' milk.

1 Shepherd's Purse

If one plant type is removed from a habitat or home, the creatures that feed on that die, then the flora and fauna that depend on that creature die, and so on around the food chain. From a human egocentric point of view, the by‑products of these creatures are of direct and indirect benefit to humans. As herbalists interested in healing all aspects of our world, we must learn the still hidden ecological secrets and understand the broad implications of harvesting.

At herbalist conferences there are often ethics discussions. Let us continue the discussion on paper. Please share your thoughts about the following ideas and projects for healing the planet so they can be included in the next edition.

1) Wildcraft to supplement your income. A few people make a living wage from wildcrafting and are able to do so nondestructively. Think about the plant community and how many plants it could manage without, not about how many you need to make so many dollars. Use wildcrafting as a time to recreate and learn in the woods.

2) Work when spiritually in attunement with the plants. Listen to the lessons of the plants. Even after years of study their complexity and diversity continues to amaze, astound and delight me. Delving deep into any study leads to questions of philosophy and the contemplation of the goodness of the universe. If you wildcraft with thoughts of beauty (not an aching back or lagging bank account), it is harder to abuse ecosystems.

3) First cultivate the plants you want to harvest. Use ground that is already dug up and otherwise disturbed. The earth is rapidly being developed. It is difficult to find groups of plants that have lived together for a long time, i.e., native plants. Gardening in land already worked does not add to the disturbance of native complexes. Growing medicinals in these areas can be part of the healing of bulldozed or overgrazed lands.

4) Support the efforts of organic herb farmers. Many medicinal plants are available through their work. More native plant populations are left intact. Discover how to grow medicinal herbs that are not yet cultivated. Share your knowledge and seeds with farmers in search of new crops.

5) If you harvest in the wild, treat the native plant complexes like the fine perennial gardens they are. Propagate while you collect. Replant root crowns, scatter seed or prune trees to enhance growth. Monitor harvest areas every year to check your replanting success. Other people will also find beauty there.

6) Make a sample harvest first. Does the plant thrive when pruned? What happens if the whole stem is removed? Do more or fewer individuals grow in your study plot? Try taking different parts of the plant and watch the results over time.

7) Try to harvest from areas you know and love. This will ensure that you return time after time to monitor the balance of the plant populations to see that they are not harmed by your activities and are still as you first found them.

8) Take only as many plants as you can reasonably use. If you have more than you can process, the plants mold and decay. Dry herbs lose their potency from sitting on the shelf too long. It is a disservice to all to take too many.

9) Collect herbs in areas as pollution-free as possible. Daily the news media reports that yet another manufactured chemical is more toxic than previously thought. Until we know more about the new (from the last one hundred years) chemicals in our lives and their effects on our ecosystem, it is best to keep them out of our foods and medicines.

Before you collect, watch for possible toxic chemical contamination. Note if prevailing winds blow smog from cities and roads to your harvest area. Watch for recently planted timber lots, farms, road or railroad right‑of‑ways that might have received pesticide spraying. Watch for yellowed and malformed plants. These are often caused by growth hormone herbicides which cause plants to create grotesque shapes while growing themselves to death. Ask landowners for information.

Work in areas that support healthy lichen populations. Few lichens grow near cities. Trace pollutants will kill them. Salt air from the ocean reduces their numbers.

10) If possible, harvest part of a plant, leaving it alive to reproduce. Pinch off individual leaves, flower heads, or rhizome segments, leaving the plant intact to flourish.

11) If you harvest fragile native plants, take them from areas about to be developed by bulldozing, paving, or clearcutting. While some plants can survive major development, most cannot. Take only as much as you will use, then transplant others to places where they can live.

12) Pick only twenty‑five percent of weedy plants in a harvest area (Anderson Geller, 1986‑89). There are slight variations in adaptability from one micro‑ecosystem to the next even for a hardy weed. One plant may adapt better to a dry spot while another is more suited to a wet site. When you harvest leave a healthy group in each habitat to reproduce.

Plants that move into an area recently disturbed by grazing or heavy equipment are called pioneer plants or less nobly, weeds. These are hardy herbs living throughout the world or are cosmopolitan in their habit. With amazing regenerative abilities, their deep tap roots survive wide temperature and moisture extremes. They are also prolific seed producers, like the dandelion. If these are not disturbed and are left to rebuild the necessary organic matter in the soil, slowly the more delicate native plants return as the surface of the earth is moderated in temperature and in moisture. Many are useful medicinals and foods. Concentrate your harvests on the weeds.

13) Pick no more than five percent of the native plants in any harvest area (Anderson Geller, 1986‑89). Native ecosystems are unusual since humans have changed most landscapes with their busy activities. The complexities of these plant and animal associations are just beginning to reveal their secrets to us. We need places where we can study these interactions of flora and fauna in their homes. The information we have yet to learn is vital to human survival on this planet.

14) Do not harvest endangered, threatened or sensitive plants. They are threatened worldwide with extinction from massive habitat destruction by human activities, i.e., road building, logging, paving, farming and collecting. Herbal remedies are often interchangeable so that it is unnecessary to ever use a rare herb. Become familiar with the threatened and endangered lists for your area.

Blackberry (Rubus sp.)

II.

FROM WILD PLANT

TO THE TEAPOT

Since I live near the Trout Lake Farm, the largest producer of organic herbs in the world, it took me a while to figure out that my minute harvests (measured in ounces, sometimes pounds, not tons) have a place in the world market. It is possible to supply my friends and family with quality medicinals and to share ideas about ecosystem stewardship.

With many people becoming stewards of the local plants, monitoring changes in population numbers, and collecting medicinal plants over a large area, we can meet the herb market's and the planet's needs.

1) Identify the plant. For help in learning the plants use a field guide book (see Bibliography), learn from a local wildflower expert, join the Native Plant Society (see Resource List), or take a botany class.

2) Observe the plants. Do this with your whole being in the way you approach your spirituality. Some call it talking with the plant devas and some call it scientific objectivity. Whichever you say, do include time to learn about the plant with all your senses. Listen, watch, feel, taste and smell.

3) Ask the landowner for permission to forage. Ask about the pesticide history of the land. The United States Forest Service (U.S.F.S.) and many timber companies allow foraging on their lands as long as you learn and follow their policies. The U.S.F.S. usually requires an inexpensive permit.

4) Wait and watch until the plant reaches optimum harvest time. As a rule of thumb the best time to collect plants is after the dew has dried in the morning yet before the day is hot. However, many plants and plant parts have individual requirements. For example, calendula flowers, collected for their resins, are picked midday. See each listing for details.

5) Collect the tools needed. A paper grocery bag tucked into your belt leaves both hands free to pick. Some collectors like to use pillowcases, but I find a paper bag stays open at the top so it is easier to drop in the herbs. It might work well to collect some herbs in fruit picking bags like those used by apple orchardists. A wire holds the cloth bag open at the top and the apples roll out the bottom when the top is unfolded. For rose hips and hawthorn berries in winter, I use a plastic bag or one‑gallon bucket belted to my waist. Do not leave the herbs in the plastic in a warm place or they blacken and mold.

Clippers

Find and use clippers that fit your hand well. Keep them sharp, well oiled, and adjusted. A 21" bowsaw, draw knife, and pocket knife are the basics for collecting barks. For roots, a shovel, garden hose, knife, and bucket suffice. Native American root collectors use metal digging sticks made at the Granger Foundry in Washington.

6) Prepare a drying space before collecting the plants. Spread out clean cloths or arrange screens (mine are screen door panels, eight by two feet, covered with old clean sheets) in a dark, well ventilated space. In winter extra heat is required.

A handy‑dandy method for small quantities of herbs is using the paper grocery bag for collecting, note taking, drying and processing. After foraging put a handful of the fresh herb into each of several bags. Scatter the bags around a warm dry attic. The bags create a dark dust‑free drying place. After the herbs are dry, strip the leaves directly into the bag, before storing.

7) Collect the plants. Follow the Plant Lover's Harvesting Ethic in Chapter I. Or a traditional approach is to ask permission from the grandparent or the healthiest plant, to gather some of its relatives for medicine. Leave it then to repopulate the area. Give thanks and leave a gift of tobacco or corn in exchange for what is taken.

8) Dry the herbs. Spread the fresh herbs gently on already prepared cloths and screens. Turn the plants to ensure even drying. Check for mold.

9) Garble the herbs, i.e., remove unwanted plant parts, such as hulls and sometimes stems, and insect and rodent damaged herbs. Leave the dried herb as whole as possible. Exposing fewer cut surfaces to the air slows the breakdown of desired chemicals. Strip the herbs onto sheets, into paper bags, or into large bowls. One‑eighth, one‑quarter and one‑half inch hardware cloth is used to sift and separate different‑sized, desired and undesired plant parts, one from the other.

10) Pack the dry herbs in double plastic bags or sealed glass jars. Store in a cool, dark place after labeling with the date and plant name.

11) Check supplies twice yearly. High quality herbs, wildcrafted or organically grown, hand collected and properly dried are vibrantly colored. They have bright, alive colors and fresh fragrances to match. Compost insect-damaged herbs. Use faded herbs for herbal baths, potpourri, and give‑aways.

12) Market the herbs. Do this before the herb is picked or after. If done before, it is extra incentive to work and fill an order. A drawback is that some orders are too large for the individual wildcrafter to fill and buyers have been disappointed by wildcrafters' promises. So if the herbs are stockpiled first, the buyer knows right away if the herb is forthcoming. Also the wildcrafter works on her own schedule and times collections for the peak chemical content in the herbs. Since I sell small quantities of herbs, I like to do a little of both approaches.

Check the Resources list for a starting place for some others involved with buying and selling herbs. Buy their catalogs to learn prices. Figure your prices according to how much you want to make per hour and how long it actually takes for you to gather, process and package the herb. After noting other herb prices, set your prices.

Buy other producers' herbs and study what is available in herb stores to learn herb quality. Double check the identification of the plant you sell, making sure it is what you say it is.

Direct marketing herbs to the end‑user produces the highest unit prices. The more your herbs are ethically collected, organically grown or carefully wildcrafted away from pollutants, looking, tasting and smelling of quality, the higher the price you can ask. As the herbs fade with age, reduce your price. This is usually after a year, but for some it is after six months. However, others, like cascara and orris, are not usable until after two years' wait, so again, know the plant.

Check with individuals, herbal educators, local health food stores, herb stores, herb brokerages, herbalists, naturopathic doctors and other natural healers for potential customers. Advertise in herb newsletters (See the Resource List).

III.

WHAT TO DO WITH

BARKS OR BERRIES

As a child, I lived in Nepal and Korea from 1955 to 1960. I remember watching and feeling an integrated rhythm of women cutting, drying, winnowing and grinding by hand. The feel of ripe seeds, the scents of fragrant herbs, are an intimate connection with the herbs I use, reminding me of the cycles and bringing me close to the plant. In this section I describe hand methods of producing quality herbs. While some herb users object to using machines in collecting medicinals, I do not. Not using machines is an inexpensive way to start in the herb business. It is also easier to watch the effects you have on the plants when you work by hand. And the herbs you produce this way will have an almost pristine quality.

BARK.

Bark is collected when the nutrients of a tree are moving through the cambium or inner bark. This is in the fall after the leaves color or in the spring before the leaf buds open.

Cut whole occasional branches neatly to the main tree trunk. This allows the tree to heal without leaving a rotting stump. Any time a plant is cut, growth hormones surge to the area to repair the damage from the clumsy cow or wildcrafter. Pruning stimulates growth hormones. If you cut carefully, the new growth gives you more to collect next year and not just brush‑like stubble.

Cut a whole tree only when it is possible to thin a stand and leave the area looking unchanged. Some trees die when cut, while others coppice and send up new shoots. If the bark is collected all the way around the trunk, the tree dies. However, some trees, such as cascara, willow and oak, will coppice and live if they are cut to the ground.

BERRIES.

Each berry has different requirements. See the plant listings for details. There are a few generalizations. Generally the berries dry quicker and with less likelihood of molding if the stem is removed. If the tree or bush were in the back yard, each just‑ripe berry could be hand-carried to the drier. Usually some compromise is necessary. Try to pick when the most berries are plump and full colored. It is easier to pick whole clumps of unripe and ripe berries and sort them later. Since berries are ready in the fall to early winter, it takes external heat to dry them.

FLOWERS.

Pick and spread to dry only small quantities of fresh flowers to prevent bruises to the delicate blossoms. Handle the flowers as little as possible until dry.

Compositae or Aster family flowers are harvested when in full color and the petal tips are still pointed up in the air (Anderson Geller, 1986‑1989). The flowers of this family, such as the thistle or the dandelion, are the most successful at reproduction of any flowers. The flowers continue to form seeds even after being picked. I take a jar with about one inch of alcohol in it into the field, to store arnica flowers for tincture. Chamomile, if picked early, dries well. However, if picked late it only makes seed for the next crop.

Roses, for dried petals, are picked as the bud is fully formed and opening. Yarrow and elderflowers are picked when the whole flower head is open. The middle flowers are open and creamy white, and the closed side buds are white. If elder is picked when green, the buds stay hard and dark.

LEAF BUDS.

Pick scattered buds along a branch, leaving the terminal bud. Otherwise the branch will fork and look as if a blight hit it for the rest of the summer. The main bud collected in this area is from the cottonwood which contains honey‑scented resin made into propolis by bees. These are collected when the bud is sticky and plump with no green leaves showing. Rubbing alcohol on a cloth helps remove gum from sticky fingers for quick picking.

LEAVES.

Picking a leaf here and there on a whole plant will not harm the life of the plant. However, with most weedy plants, picking the whole plant to a node near the base will allow the plant to regrow from the node or the roots. Pick the whole plant, dry on racks in a shady, well‑ventilated space, turning gently to prevent molding. Strip the leaves from the stems and store in air‑tight containers in a dark, cool place.

LICHENS.

Picking up lichens that have fallen in the wind is the most ecologically safe harvesting method. If found before rotting, they can be taken as a gift from the forest. The lichens left to rot add valuable nutrients to the forest floor.

The second best way to collect lichens is to copy winter deer browsing patterns and harvest lichens from lower tree

The Plant Loving Wildcrafter

branches. The upper branches repopulate the lower limbs by dropping new clumps in the wind. Lichens dried, even for long periods of time, will grow if watered. If you buy or collect lichens, you might also experiment with growing them. There are a few in my garden I am watching as I want to learn how long usnea takes to grow and when the chemical constituents peak. PLANTS.

The whole plant is collected as the flower is forming and before bud color develops. Many plants will not send up new shoots after you cut, such as pearly everlasting. Then follow the Ethic Guideline 12.

MINTS.

Mints are picked well before flowering in early summer when highest in volatile oils. When cutting the whole plant, leave enough of the stem to include at least one node, as two new shoots will grow from the node, making a second crop. Being hardy, mints can tolerate two to three cuttings per season if they have enough water.

Pick lemon balm prior to the flowering stage. It needs extra care to retain its fresh lemony scent. The dry leaves must be stored in glass jars or the lemon scent will volatilize. Dry all mints in an airy shady place. This makes for crisp, evenly green, richly scented, dry leaves.

ROOTS.

Since harvesting kills the plant, be hesitant to take roots. Collect only one of twenty weedy roots (Anderson Geller, 1986‑89).

If there is a population large and weedy enough to gather, roots, in general, are collected when the energy of the plant is in them. When the top of the plant browns and dies, root digging time is from late summer until early spring. Some roots are dug any time of year, such as Oregon grape, dandelion and perhaps devil's club.

Identify populations during the growing season, though sometimes plants can be identified from the dead plant. Work in warm, rainy periods in the winter to avoid cold, stiff fingers and frozen ground.

With a shovel or pick mattock, dig the whole root from the ground. A light bucket with a capacity of one to five gallons, belted through the handle and around your waist, is handy for carrying roots or to pick up piles of roots after your work session is complete.

Refill any holes made as you replant the top two inches, or crown, of the root. (Check with your friendly landowner to make sure they want you to replant dandelions and burdock. Not everyone will.)

With all but the crown cut away, the root is weakened. Watch the harvest area to make sure the replanting worked. If it did not, stop harvesting that plant in the wild. Learn to grow it in your garden or use another herb.

Dig only the amount of roots that can be processed within a day. Cover the roots with wet cloths and store in a cool place until all roots are prepared. It is easy to overestimate the quantity you can process and to waste the herbs.

To clean, spread the collected roots on grass or a hard surface and spray with a hose to remove the heavy dirt. Wash quickly to prevent leaching of minerals and nutrients. Break apart clumps and brush between the roots before slicing for drying.

With high capacity drying equipment, you can dry larger chunks of root before they mold. Experiment with small quantities first before tackling many roots. Roots are dry when they are no longer pliable and they snap when broken. Store in a cool, dry, dark place in covered glass jars or in double plastic bags.

SEEDS.

Harvest seeds for planting when the seeds turn brown and begin to fall. Collect seeds for eating just before ripening. Then the fragrant volatile oils in seeds like fennel and dill are highest in concentration and taste best.

A seed head ripens at different rates. Sometimes the inner seeds ripen first and sometimes the outer ones do, ensuring a steady supply of seed to match prime growing conditions for the plant. When collecting seed also replant some.

I use clippers for some seed heads, while with others I strip the seeds directly into a bag. After drying the seed heads, clean the seed from the chaff by breaking the heads apart in a big bowl. Then screen everything through different sized mesh to remove the fines and bulky chaff. Viable seed is heavy and settles to the bottom of the bowl. Winnow or blow the remaining chaff away by pouring it from one bowl to another in a slight breeze.

IV.

THE PLANTS: WILDCRAFTING

AND GARDENING NOTES

Preparing a product that is ready to sell has its ups and downs. Sometimes the herbs dry fragrant and colorful; sometimes they may be limp and moldy. There is the possibility of the unexpected and unpredictable occurrence.

In 1980, I harvested my neighbor's three thousand square foot comfrey patch. I waited until the proper time and carefully mowed it with a scythe. Leaving it to dry in the field like hay, I left for the weekend. Mt. St. Helens blew up on Saturday and covered everything with a fine gritty volcanic ash. Ruined, my crop stayed in the field.

While the following notes will not help with unpredictable events like volcanic explosions, I hope they will help you avoid some pitfalls.

ALFALFA (Medicago sativa)

ANISE HYSSOP (Agastache foeniculum)

ARNICA (Arnica montanum, A. latifolia, A. cordifolia)

BLACKBERRY (Rubus sp.)

BLACK WALNUT (Juglans nigra)

BROOM or SCOTCH BROOM (Cytisus scoparius)

BLUEBERRY (Vaccinium sp.)

BURDOCK (Arctuim lappa)

CALENDULA (Calendula officinalis)

CATNIP (Nepeta cataria)

CAYENNE (Capsicum frutescens)

CASCARA (Rhamnus purshiana)

CHAMOMILE (Roman C. is Anthemis nobilis, used also for lawns, and German C. is Matricaria chamomilla)

CHERRY (Prunus sp.)

CHICKWEED (Stellaria media and other tender Stellaria and Cerastium species are also good to use.)

CHICORY (Cichorium intybus)

CLEAVERS (Galium sp.)

COMFREY (Symphytom officinale)

CORNSILK (Zea Mays)

COTTONWOOD or Balm of Gilead (Populus trichocarpa)

DANDELION (Taraxacum officinale)

DESERT PARSLEY (Lomatium dissectum var. dissectum or var. multifidum)

DEVIL'S CLUB (Oplopanax horridum)

ECHINACEA or Purple Cone Flower (Echinaceae sp.)

ELDER FLOWERS (Sambucus sp.)

ELECAMPANE (Inula Helenium)

FENNEL (Foeniculum vulgare)

FEVERFEW (Chrysanthemum Parthenium)

HAWTHORN (Crataegus sp.)

HOPS (Humulus lupulus)

HORSETAILS or SHAVEGRASS (Equisetum sp.)

JUNIPER (Juniperus occidentalis, Juniperus sp.)

LADYSLIPPER (Cypripedium sp.)

Ladyslippers are rare. Never collect them in the wild. Do not buy or sell the roots. Attempts to propagate the northwestern species are not successful and need further research (Kruckeberg, p. l42‑l43). After two major 1988 herb conferences passed resolutions saying as much (Herbalgram 17), harvesters have not been able to sell the root (Herbalgram 18). This positive trend needs to continue. Use other nervines instead of ladyslipper, such as valerian.

LEMON BALM (Melissa officinalis)

LUNGWORT or STICTA (Lobaria pulmonaria)

MOTHERWORT (Leonurus cardiaca)

MULLEIN (Verbascum thapsus)

NETTLES (Urtica dioica)

OAT (Avena sativa)

OREGON GRAPE (Berberis sp.)

PEARLY EVERLASTING (Anaphalis margaritace

PEPPERMINT (Mentha piperita)

PENNYROYAL (Hedeoma pulegioides)

PERIWINKLE (Vinca major, Vinca minor)

PIPSISSEWA or PRINCE'S PINE (Chimaphila umbellata)

PLANTAIN (Plantago lanceolata)

CALIFORNIA POPPY (Eschscholtzia californica)

RASPBERRY (Rubus strigosus, the cultivated raspberry, Rubus sp. includes blackberry, blackcap, thimbleberry, salmonberry, and others and may be interchanged)

RED CLOVER (Trifolium pratense

ROSE (Rosa sp.)

SHEPHERD'S PURSE (Capsella bursa‑pastoris)

SKULLCAP (Scutellaria lateriflora)

SPEARMINT (Mentha spicata)

ST. JOHN'S WORT (Hypericum perforatum)

STRAWBERRY (Frageria sp.)

Strawberries and leaves refrigerant

TANSY (Tanacetum vulgare)

Write about tansy flowers as emmenagugue.

USNEA (Usnea sp.)

UVA‑URSI or KINNIKINNIK (Arctostaphylos uva‑ursi)

VALERIAN (Valariana officinalis, V. sitchensis) V. officinalis

WESTERN WHITE OAK (Quercus garryana, Q. sp.)

WILLOW (Salix sp.)

YARROW (Achillea millifolium)

YELLOW DOCK (Rumex crispus)

Alder

ashwagandha

astragalus americanus

blackcap

black cohosh

carrot, wild

celery seed

clary sage

coltsfoot

elder berries

fir, Douglas

fir, pacific silver

gentian

gingko

gotu kola

grand fir

horehound

horse chestnut

horseradish

hyssop

lavender

licorice

Lomatium, nudicaule

parsley root

pearly everlasting

pine, ponderosa western white, white bark, lodgepole

rue

siberian ginseng

spikenard

tansy flowers

thimbleberry

trillium

valerian, sitka

vitex

APPENDIX: PLANT COLLECTION CHART

Here in graphic form are the plants, the parts to harvest and the approximate months in which to pick them. Following the names are abbreviations for the relative sensitivity of each plant; S for sensitive, N for native, C for cultivated and W for widespread weeds. From S to N to C to W is progressively less sensitive and allows for larger harvests. Combinations of the keys also occur.

ABBREVIATIONS:

flw‑‑‑‑flower rt‑‑root

fl‑ing‑flowering sd‑‑seed

g‑‑‑‑‑‑green C‑‑‑cultivated

h‑‑‑‑‑‑hulls N‑‑‑native

lf‑‑‑‑‑leaf S‑‑‑sensitive

lv‑‑‑‑‑leaves W‑‑‑widespread Weed

n‑‑‑‑‑‑nut sp.‑species

MONTHS J F M A M J J A S O N D ALFALFA C fl‑ing tops

ANISE HYSSOP CN lvs‑

ARNICA N root‑‑‑‑ flw,lf root‑‑‑‑‑

BLACKBERRY W root‑‑‑‑ root‑-‑‑‑

BLACK WALNUT CN g h/n

BLUEBERRY CN leaves

BURDOCK W root‑‑‑‑ lvs seed root‑‑‑‑

CALENDULA C flower‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑

CATNIP CW leaf CAYENNE C fruit

CASCARA N bark bark

CHAMOMILE C flowers‑‑‑‑‑‑‑

CHERRY CN bark bark

CHICORY W root‑‑‑‑ root‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑

CHICKWEED W plant‑‑‑‑ plant

COMFREY CW root‑‑‑‑ leaf‑‑‑ root‑‑‑--

CORNSILK C silk‑‑‑

MONTHS J F M A M J J A S O N D MONTHS J F M A M J J A S O N D COTTONWOOD N lfbuds

DANDELION W root‑‑‑‑‑‑‑leaf‑‑‑‑‑‑‑root‑‑‑‑--‑‑

DEVIL'S CLUB N inner root and stem bark‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑

ECHINACEA CN root‑‑‑‑‑ leaves‑‑‑‑ seed rt‑‑-

ELDER N flowers berries

ELECAMPANE C root‑‑‑‑‑ root

FENNEL CW root leaves seed

FEVERFEW CW leaves‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑

HAWTHORN CN flw,lvs berries

HOPS CW strobiles

HORSETAILS WN plant

JUNIPER WN lf tips berries

LADYSLIPPER S Do not collect or buy.

LEMON BALM CW leaf

LUNGWORT N lichen‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑------

MOTHERWORT CW leaves

MULLEIN W rosette leaf buds fls

NETTLES W root leaf‑‑ root‑‑--‑

OATS C milk sd

OREGON GRAPE WN root‑-‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑

PRLY EVRLASTG WN leaf

PEPPERMINT CW lf‑‑‑

PENNYROYAL CW lf‑‑‑

PERIWINKLE CW lf‑‑‑‑

PIPSISSEWA S leaf only‑‑

PLANTAIN W leaf‑‑‑‑‑

CALIF POPPY W leaf‑‑‑

RASPBERRY CW leaf & stem

RED CLOVER CW flower‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑

ROSE CWN petals hips

SCOTCH BROOM CW bud tops

SHEPHRD'S PURS W plant

SKULLCAP CN leaf

SPEARMINT CW leaf

ST JOHN'S WORT W flower,lf

STRAWBERRY CWN leaf‑‑‑

TANSY W leaf‑‑‑‑

MONTHS J F M A M J J A S O N D MONTHS J F M A M J J A S O N D USNEA N lichen‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑-‑‑‑

UVA‑URSI CN leaf‑‑

VALERIAN C root‑‑‑ root‑

W WHITE OAK W bark bark

WILLOW CWN bark bark

YARROW W leaf flower

YELLOW DOCK W root‑‑‑‑ leaf‑‑‑‑‑ root-

MONTHS J F M A M J J A S O N D

Red Clover (Trifolium pratense)

This is one suggested format for keeping notes on your herb harvesting and selling. It is useful for your records and also for potential buyers.

HERBAL BIRTH CERTIFICATE

This herb was respectfully collected, dried and stored at the best time for healing properties. The plant population was replanted and monitored for successful growth.

PLANT NAME: Common Scientific

DIRECTIONS TO SITE: MAP NAME:

T. R. Section WEATHER WHEN COLLECTED

ASPECT (N,S,E,W) FACING: PESTICIDE USE:?

TIME OF DAY POPULATION SIZE:

PERCENT OF POPULATION GATHERED:

ASSOCIATED PLANTS: PROPAGATION:

PROPAGATION SUCCESS:

POPULATION SIZE: 19__ 19__ 19__ 19__

WEIGHT: Fresh________ Dry_________

DATE: BUYER: ADDRESS: QUANTITY:

PRICE:

RESOURCE LIST

Here is a list of some herb related businesses to help you start with a wildcrafting business. If you already have a business and want to be listed in the next edition of this book, please send the information to the publisher.

Ryan Drum, Ph.D., educator/wildcrafter

Waldron Island, WA 98297. SASE catalog.

Abundant Life Seed Foundation, herb, native plants.

Box 772, Port Townsend, WA 98368 (206) 385-5660

Inside Passage, Forest Shomer, native seeds.

P.O. Box 639, Port Townsend, WA 98368

Nichols Garden Nursery, herb seed

1190 N. Pacific Hwy., Albany OR 97321

Medicinal Herb Garden

University of Washington KB-15, Seattle WA 98105

American Herb Association, newsletter

PO Box 1673, Nevada City, CA 95959

The Business of Herbs, newsletter

Rt. 2, Box 246, Shevlin, MN 56676

Publishes Herb Resource Directory every two years.

The Herbal Connection, newsletter

Rt. 2, Box 245, Silver Spring, PA 17575-0245

Publishes Annual Herbal Green Pages

Herbalgram, newsletter & consultant

PO Box 12006, Austin TX 78711

Medical Herbalism, newsletter

PO Box 33080, Portland OR 97233

California School of Herbal Studies, classes

Box 39, Forestville, CA 95436

Breitenbush Hot Springs, OR, Herbal Conference

Oregon School of Herbal Studies, classes

25031 Lavell Rd., Junction City OR 97448

Rocky Mountain Center for Botanical Medicine

1705 14th St. #287, Boulder Co 80302

National College of Naturopathic Medicine

Portland, OR

John Bastyr College of Naturopathic Medicine

Seattle WA

Cascade Anderson Geller, educator

1934 SE 56th, Portland OR 97215

Susun Weed, educator

PO Box Woodstock NY 12498

The Herbalist, herb store

6500 20th NE, Seattle WA 98115

Radiance Herbs, herb store, newsletter

113 E. 5th, Olympia WA 98501

Wildflowers on Hawthorne, herb store

3202 Hawthorne Blvd., Portland OR 97214

Perpetual Forest Resources, newsletter

PO Box 296, Blue River OR 97413

California Native Plant Society

909 12th St. #116, Sacramento CA 95814

Native Plant Society of Oregon

2584 NW Savier St., Portland OR 97210-2412

Klickitat Herbalist Guild, educational network

Longevity Herb Co., herb processing equipment

1549 W. Jewett Blvd., White Salmon, WA 98672

Washington Native Plant Society

5231 NE 184th St., Seattle WA 98155

Washington Natural Heritage Program, rare plants

DNR Forest Regulation and Conservation division

Mall Stop: EX-13, Olympia WA 98504

Mountain Rose Herbs, PO Box 2000, Redway, CA 95560

Blessed Herbs, seller, buyer

Rt 5, Box 191A, Ava, MO 65608

Frontier Cooperative Herbs, 3021 78th St., Norway IA 52318

Herb Pharm, formulations

Box 116, williams, OR 97544

Alaska Herbworks

Deborah Paetzhold McCorkle, CH

418 Baranof Av, Fairbanks Alaska 99701

Montana Botanicals, organic, apprenticeships

PO Box 1365, Hamilton, MT 59840

Pacific Botanicals, organic & wildcrafted herbs

4350 Fish Hatchery Rd, Grants Pass OR 97527

Trout Lake Farm, organic hebs, 10# minimum

149 Little Mountain Rd., Trout Lake WA 98650

Trinity Herb, wholesaler

Box 199, Bodega, CA 94923

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES

Anderson Geller, Cascade. "Nutcracker Sweet: Good News about Walnuts." Herbalists of the Pacific States. Portland: l987.

(Newsletter)

_____. Personal communications. 1986‑1989.

_____. Herb Harvesters Guide. n.d.

Barlow, M. From the Shepherd's Purse. Pocatello: Barlow, 1979. (excellent herbal)

Brinker, F. The Toxicology of Common Botanical Medicinal Substances. Portland: National College of Naturopathic Medicine, 1983.

Foster, Steven. Herbal Bounty! The Gentle Art of Herb Culture. Salt Lake City: Gibbs M. Smith, Inc., 1984. (cultivation, harvesting, use)

Gilkey, H. M. and L. J. Dennis. Handbook of Northwestern Plants. Corvallis: O.S.U. Bookstores Inc., 1967. (intermediate field guide)

Gleason, H. A. and A. Cronquist. Manual of Vascular Plants of

Northeastern United States and Adjacent Canada. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, l963. (technical field guide)

Grieve, Mrs. M. A Modern Herbal. Vols. I and II. New York: Dover, 1971. (classic reference)

Hartmann, H. and D. Kester. Plant Propagation. New Jersey: Prentice‑Hall, 1959. (excellent)

Haskin, L. Wild Flowers of the Pacific Coast. Portland: Binfords & Mort, 1934. (beginning wildflower guide & some uses)

"Herb Industry Adopts Lady's Slipper Resolution." 17, p. 24.

"Market Report." Herbalgram 18, p. 15.

Hitchcock, C. L., and A. Cronquist. Flora of the Pacific Northwest. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1973. (technical field guide)

Hoffman, D. The Wholistic Herbal. Scotland: The Findhorn Press, 1983. (herb use reference)

Jolley, R., Wildflowers of the Columbia Gorge. Portland: Oregon Historical Society, 1988. (lovely field guide with relative abundance notes)

Kruckeberg, A. Gardening with Native Plants of the Pacific Northwest. Vancouver/Toronto: Douglas and McIntyre, 1982. (comprehensive)

Larrison, E. et al. Washington_Wildflowers. Portland: Durham & Downey, Inc., 1974. (intermediate field guide)

Lust, J. B. The Herb Book. Toronto: Bantam Books, 1974. (classic herb reference)

Lyons, C. Trees, Shrubs and Flowers to know in Washington. Toronto: Dent & Sons, 1956. (Nontechnical field guide)

Marshall, M. Index to the Scientific Names in A Modern Herbal by Mrs. M. Grieve. Coltsfoot Magazine, Route 1, Box 313A, Shipman, VA., 22971, 1984. (useful)

Moerman, D. Medicinal Plants of Native America. Ann Arbor: U. of Michigan Museum of Anthropology Technical Reports, Number 19, 1986. (technical compendium uses listed by genus)

Moore, M. Medicinal Plants of the Mountain West. Santa Fe: Museum of New Mexico Press, 1979. (excellent wildcrafting herbal)

Nagel, G. Personal communication. 1989.

Niehaus, T. A Field Guide to Pacific States Wildflowers. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1976. (nontechnical field guide)

D. Paetzhold. Personal communication. 1989.

Stuhr, E. Manual of Pacific Coast Drug Plants. Reprinted Botanica Press, P.O. Box 742, Capitola, CA 95010, 1985.

Turner, N. "Traditional use of Devil's‑Club (Oplopanax horridus; Araliaceae) by native peoples in western North America." J. Ethnobiol. 2(1): 17‑38.May l982. (comprehensive)

U.S. News & World Report. Dec 19, 1988, p. 13.

Youngken, H. Textbook of Pharmacognosy. 4th ed. Philadelphia: The Blakiston's Son & Co., 1936. (valuable for growers and wildcrafters)

A Plant Lover's Guide to Wildcrafting: How to Preserve Wild Places and Harvest Medicinal Plants. Krista Thie. ISBN 0‑9624868‑0‑9.

(Credit Card, Check or money order payable to Longevity Herb Press.) Return the book within fifteen days if not satisfied with it and receive your money back.

``Here are detailed instructions on harvesting about 60 different herbs from someone who knows her wildcrafting. . . Sources and references included.''¾Kathy Keville, American Herb Association.

``Those who wish to harvest medicinal plants from the wild to make a buck, will want to read this little volume for a reality check before commencing their digging.'' ¾Steven Foster, Botanical & Herb Reviews

``If you want to know more about harvesting herbs from garden, field, or forest, drying them for your own use, or for resale, this book will be valuable.'' ¾Paul Bergner, Medical Herbalism

``I appreciate (your wildcrafting guide) more each time I look at it.'' ¾Feather Jones, Rocky Mountain Herbalist Coalition

``In concise fashion . . . harvesting ethics, hand methods of harvesting: bark, berries, flowers, leaf buds, leaves, lichens, whole plants, mints, roots, and seeds (are discussed)'' ¾Forest Shomer, Abundant Life Catalog