Transcript Plants of the Pacific Northwestx

Ethnobotany of the
Pacific Northwest
The Plants of “Our
Big Backyard”
What is Ethnobotany?
Ethnobotany
How different cultures
use plants
Ethos
The culture or values of
a specific group of
people
Botany
The study of plants
Sources
Most of the information
about our native plants
comes from the book
“Plants of the Pacific
Northwest Coast” by Pojar.
It is a great book and I
would strongly recommend
purchasing a copy if you
like native plants.
Every good PNW Botanist
has a “Pojar in their pocket”.
A special thanks to Susan
Adams for sharing her
knowledge and photos.
Douglas Fir (Page 20)
Most dominant/common
tree of our region
Deeply grooved bark
(some animals live in the
bark)
Fire resistant
Good firewood
Used for tool making
Pitch used as a
glue/waterproof goo
Used for lumber today
Western Red Cedar (Page 21)
Called the “Tree of Life”
by native peoples
Used for just about
everything, boats, totem
poles, houses, storage
boxes, decorations,
clothes, baskets, etc.
Rot and pest resistant
Used for siding and
fences today
Good firewood
Western Red
Cedar
Big Leaf Maple (Page 22)
A host (home) to dozens
of other organisms
including mosses, ferns
and lichens
Used for medicine
Used to make paddles
Leaves can be larger
than a dinner plate
You can use the leaves to
make a “basket” of sorts
Red Alder (Page 23)
Deciduous tree that has
cones and toothed
leaves.
“Worm-like” flowers called
catkins
Bark used as a red dye
Grows very quickly in wet
places
Used for carving (bowls,
rattles, masks, etc.)
Wood was used to smoke
fish
Salal (Page 24)
Used by Native Peoples
as a food source (made a
of fruit leather of sorts out
of the dried berries)
Used to line cooking pits
Used as greens in floral
(flower) arrangements
Most common shrub on
the forest floor
Oregon Grape (Page 25)
Edible berries (but don’t
eat too many)
Berries used to make jelly
and wine
Inner bark was used for a
yellow dye
Bark and berries used as
medicines
Red Huckleberry (Page 26)
Berries are edible and
choice (Used to make
pies and jam)
Can be dried like raisins
Berries were used as bait
for fishing
Deciduous smooth
“fragile looking” leaves
(Plant looses its leaves in
the fall)
Trailing Blackberry (Page 27)
Edible berries (choice
among blackberries)
Our only native
blackberry
Leaves used for tea
Roots and leaves used as
medicine
Plants can be male or
female
Sword Fern (Page 28)
Most common fern on the
forest floor
Evergreen fern (green
year around)
Used to line cooking pits
and food preparation
Used for bedding and
flooring (mats)
Roots were cooked and
eaten
Bracken Fern (Page 29)
Can reach up to 15 feet
tall (in one growing
season)
Deciduous fern (die back
every year)
Used to line cooking pits
The new growth (fiddle
heads) can be cooked
and eaten
Roots were cooked and
eaten, but have poisoned
cows so not eaten today