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Ansel Adams

This work is not intended as a field guide or formulary. The information is to be read in the context of traditional wisdom and practices and is not a recommendation for using herbs in the changed conditions of today's health care. Herbs can be toxic or interfere with other medications. The author takes no responsibility for actions taken by readers in using this information.


This paper is a short compilation of the medicinal,
culinary, and other uses of the plants growing in Texas.
Since this is a work in progress, questions, comments,
and corrections are gladly accepted.
 Please e-mail them to trickcoyote@gmx.net .
I will try to mail a response in a timely manner.





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Rev. 06.04.03


Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines | Cacti | Grasses | Plants and Wild Flowers

Appendix

Formula Preparation | Volume Measurement and Conversion | Bibliography




TREES, SHRUBS, AND WOODY VINES
Acacia, Catclaw
Acacia greggii

Common Names:
Devil Claws, Texas Mimosa, Paradise Flower, Gregg Acacia, Long-Flowered Acacia, Huajilla, Chaparral, Gatuña, and Uña de Gato.
Identification:
Thorny, usually found in thickets but individual trees can be up to 30 ft and are very dense.
Location:
found on hillsides at altitudes of 1,000-5,000 ft in Trans-Pecos and a concentration in Big Bend.
Fruit:
persistent from July through the winter
Culinary use:
Legumes were pounded into a coarse meal known as “pinole” and either eaten raw or baked into cakes. Flowers are an important source for honey.

Acacia, Mescat
Acacia constricta

Common Names:
White-thorn Acacia, All-thorn Acacia, Huisache, Gigantillo, Vara Prieta, Chaparro Prieto, and Largancillo.
Identification:
Spiny shrub up to 18 ft with slender spines in pairs at the nodes
Location:
dry, sandy soil at altitudes of 1,500-6,500 ft in High Plains and along the Rio Grande in far south Texas.
Fruit:
July-September
Culinary use:
Legumes were pounded into a coarse meal known as “pinole” and either eaten raw or baked into cakes. Flowers are an important source for honey.

Acacia, Sweet
Acacia farnesiana

Identification:
 Found either as a shrub with many stems at the base or as a tree up to 30 ft. Tends to have a flat top in when found near the coast, but typically has a round top with hanging branches.
Common Names:
Huisache, Honey-ball, Opopanax, Popinach, Hinsach, Binorama, Vinorama, Guisache, Aroma, Zubin, Espinillo.
Location:
found in south, east, and west Texas south of Travis Co. and possibly north to Mc Lennan Co., also cultivated as a honey bee nectar source.
Flowers: February-March
Fruit: May-July
Medical use:
Bark is good for diarrhea. Leaves are dried and pulverized then used in dressing wounds. An ointment made from the flowers is used for headache, an infusion for dyspepsia. Green fruit is very astringent, a decoction is for dysentery, inflammation of the skin, and mucous membranes. In San Luis Potos' a decoction of the roots is a remedy for tuberculosis.
Culinary use:
Good winter forage plant, ripe seeds pressed for cooking oil
Other:
Bark and fruit are used for tanning, dying, ink. Flowers are insecticidal. Glue from young pods mends pottery.



Alder, Hazel
Alnus serrulata

Identification:
Small tree up to 90 ft tall with smooth or a bit scaly bark, related to the birch family. Elliptic or egg shaped leaves being widest at the tip.
Location:
wet soil and wetlands along streams in East Texas
Medical use:
Bark yields tannic acid and is astringent for intermittent fever


Anacahuita
Cordia boissieri

Location:
dry soil of the lower Rio Grande valley in Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr, Zapata, and Willacy counties.
Medical use:
The fruit in the form of jelly is a remedy for coughs and colds. Leaves are a remedy for rheumatism and bronchial disturbances.


Anisacanth, Wright
Anisacanthus wrightii

Location:
rich soil in thickets in southern and western Texas, Bexar, Uvalde, and Kinney Co.
Medical use:
used by the Mexican Indians as a remedy for colic


Apache Plume
Fallugia paradoxa

Identification:
Dense bush up to about 8 ft tall with bladed leaves 1/4 - 1 inch long in 3-7 fingerlike lobes
Location: 
along dry arroyos of deserts, or on rocky or gravely slopes in Central, west, and northwest Texas. Usually at elevations of 3,000-8,000 feet. Abundant in the foot hills of Chisos Mountains in Brewster County.
Medical use:
The Hopi of Arizona used an infusion of the leaves to stimulate hair growth


Ape's Earring, Ebony
Pithecellobium flexicaule

Identification:
A shrub or tree up to 40 ft tall with paired spines often with zigzagging branches. Flowers resemble a bottle brush and are a pale yellow to creamy white in color.
Location:
found from the shores of Matagorda Bay to the lower Rio Grande Area. Esp. Cameron Co. Planted in Brownsville and elsewhere as a landscaping plant..
Fruit:
Seeds are in large pods from 4-8 inches long.
Culinary use:
Seeds can be eaten boiled when green, and roasted when ripe. Pod shells are used as coffee substitute.


Arizona Cockroach Plant
Haplophyton crooksii

Location:
Found in Hudspeth and Brewster Counties
Medical use:
Applied in the form of a lotion to kill parasites
Other use:
A decoction is mixed with molasses or cornmeal for a cockroach poison Applied in the form of a lotion to repel mosquitoes and fleas


Arrow Weed Pluchea
Pluchea sericea

Location:
usually below an altitude of 3,000 feet in sandy or saline soil of Trans Pecos Texas
Medical use:
An infusion of the leaves were used as an eyewash for sore eyes by the Pima Indians


Ash, Berlandier
Fraxinus berlandieriana

Identification:
A small round topped tree rarely over 30 ft tall with slender leafelets paired oppisately in groups of 3-5. Serrated and somewhat thick 3-4 inches long.
Common Names:
Plumero, Fresno, and Mexican Ash. Often mistakenly called Arizona Ash
Location:
moist canyons and stream banks in Central and Trans-Pecos Texas and southward, rarely found east of the Colorado River
Medical use:
Bark is used as a tonic and febrifuge. Leaves in a decoction treats yellow fever, malaria, gout, and rheumatism.


Aspen, Quaking
Populus tremuloides

Location:
from sea level to 10000 in the Trans-Pecos
Medical use:
bark is used for fevers, antiscorbutic. Populin and salicin is extracted from the buds is used externally for muscular rheumatism and internally as an expectorant in subacute or chronic bronchitis, usually combined with other drugs.


Azalea, Piedmont
Rhododendron canescens

Identification:
A small shrub 3-9 feet tall with simple leaves 1.5 - 4.25 inches long either alternate or clustered at the end of branch tips
Location: 
in sandy, acid soil along bogs, seeps and streams in the pinelands of east Texas
Culinary use:
A large, gall like, green, translucent structure on the twigs is edible and was used by early settlers for pickling



Baccharis, Seepwillow
Baccharis glutinosa

Location:
along streams in west Texas from almost sea level to almost 5,000 feet
Medical use:
An eyewash was prepared from the leaves



Baccharis, Yerba de Pasmo
Baccharis pteronioides

Location:
in dry soil of hills in open sun at altitudes of 3,000-5,000 feet in the Chisos Mountains, Brewster County; in Limpana Canyon, Jeff Davis County; in upper McKittrick Canyon, Guadalupe Mountains, Culberson County.
Medical use:
dried powdered leaves are used for treating sores. infusion of the leaves are used as a chill tonic. Yerba de Pasmo means "chill weed"



Bay, Red
Persea borbonia

Identification:
An aromatic shrub or small tree 10-52 feet in height. Evergreen with elliptic or lanceolate shiny leaves 2-8 inches in length.
Location:
rich sandy soil of river-bottoms or swamps. usually near coasts. though isolated colonies have been found in Travis County.
Culinary use:
dried leaves are used to flavor soups and meats



Bayberry
Morella cerifera

Common Names:
Wax Myrtle
Identification:
A fragrant tree or shrub up to 22 ft tall with evergreen simple leaves 1-5 inches in length with a bayberry aroma.
Location:
east Texas and along the Gulf Coast near streams, lakes and wetlands
Fruit:
in fall and are hard round fruits about 1/8 inch in diameter coated with white wax.
Medical use:
Treats mucous accumulation of the alimentary canal, bronchpulmonnic diseases, scarlet fever, dysentery, catarrhal diarrhea, cholera, goiter, scrofula, gastritis, and typhoid.
Bark should be gathered in fall, cleaned thoroughly and separated from the outer bark. Dry completely and keep in a dry place in dark glass or sealed pottery container.
Uterine hemorrhage and heavy mensturation can be limited by packing with cotton soaked with tea. Also good for hemmorages of the bowels and stomach.
Infusion of berries remedies itch and is a good vermifuge.
(Dose is 1 tsp. bark to 1 c boiling water,or tincture of bark  1/2 - 1 fluid dram.)
In cases of chills and the flu a compound will encourage circulation and perspiration:
(Bayberry bark 1 oz. + Wild Ginger 1/4 oz +Cayenne 1/2 oz) One teaspoon of the compound to 1 pint of water taken in mouthfulls throughout the day. Stay indoors and away from drafts.
For a blocked nose or inflammation, sniffing the berries will help.
Culinary use:
Leaves can substitute for hops when making beer. Fruits may be used with strongly flavored dishes like wild game, a good substitute for bay.
Other use:
Wax from around seeds can be used to sent candles (melting point 116-120 F



Beech
Fagus grandifolia

Identification:
A large tree up to 132 feet in height with smooth grey bar. Leaves are simple alternate blades usually eggshaped and 3-6 inches in length with toothed edges.
Location:
found in east Texas Pineywoods in forests usually near streams.
Fruits:
September-October Triangular thinshelled nuts 1/2 inches long inside of a prickly hull.
Medical use:
Leaves are astringent, soothing to the stomach, and improve appetite. Bark and Leaves are used to treat stomach ulcers, liver, kidney, bladder, and inflammation associated with dysentery.
Tea of the leaves is good for cleansing cooling, and healing sores, bathe often with fresh tea or can be made into an ointment by boiling leaves in oil .
Titration of nuts treat epilepsy, headache, hydrophobia, and vertigo. Creosote from wood is used for chronic bronchitis and upper respiratory infections.
A creosote is distilled from beech tar and used as a antiseptic and disinfectant.
(Dose: 1 tsp. of leaves or 1/4 tsp. of granulated bark to 1 c of water. 3-4 c daily)
Culinary use:
Fruit may be roasted for coffee substitute, seeds can be pressed for a great oil or substituted for butter. The seeds can also be ground into a flour.



Birch
Betula nigra

Identification:
A small to large tree up to 90 feet in height with grey bark that tends to peel off in strips. Triangular or diamond shaped leaves 1-4 inches long with white bottoms and toothed margins.
Location:
found in East Texas Pineywoods along streams and riverbottoms, uncommon
Medical use:
Treats diarrhea, dysentery, cholera, alimentary tract aliments, cleansing the blood, rheumatism, dropsy, gout, kidney and bladder stones, and expelling wounds. Leaf tea treats boils and skin ailments. Tea is good for boils or skin eruptions, and oral sores. Oil of wintergreen distilled from the inner bark and twigs is used to treat eczema and skin irritations.  Birch buds, gathered in early spring and preserved in vodka treats colds, pain, rheumatic conditions, stomach ulcers, vitality, avitaminosis. Birch charcoal is used as an absorbent for poisoning, gas bloating, and indigestion. Sap is prepared as tea and is a good source of vitamins, for anemia, gout, scurvy, rheumatism
Dose:
1 tsp. of leaves or bark in 1 c of water for 15 min., 3-5 c daily, mixes well with other herbs.
Culinary use:
The inner bark can be pounded into a flour and used for baking in emergency situations. Sap can be used for syrup or as a beverage, the most sap can be gathered from late March-April. Young twigs can be steeped in water to make tea.



Bitter-sweet, American
Celastrus scandens

Location:
many types of soil, thickets, woods, fence rows and along streams in central Texas
Medical use:
Root bark is used in the treatment of chronic affections of the liver and in secondary syphilis, also said to have emetic, diaphoretic, and alterative properties.



Bouvardia, Scarlet
Bouvardia ternifolia

Location:
southwestern and western Texas. Abundant in some of the canyons of the Chisos Mountains in Big Bend National Park.
Medical use:
roots are used as a remedy for dysentery, hydrophobia, heat exaustion, and as a preventative for excessive bleeding.



Buckeye, Ohio
Aesculus glabra


Identification:
Usually a shrub but can grow to a height of 35 feet. Leaves are found in palmates of 7-9 leaflets are a very narrow ellipse or even lanceolate 2 1/2 - 5 inches in length.
Location:
in moist, rich soil of woodlands or riverbanks in northeastern Texas
Fruit:
May -June, covered in prickles or more uncommonly smooth.
Medical use:
Bark contains a glycoside, aesculin, which when used in a 4% solution in an ointment can protect the skin from UV rays
Other use:
Crushed fruit was used for fish poison and the roots can be used for washing clothes.
WARNING: ALL PLANT PARTS AND SEEDS ARE POISONOUS



Buckeye, Red
Aesculus pavia

Common Names:
Scarlet Buckeye, Woolly Buckeye, Firecracker plant, Fish-Poison Bush
Identification:
A shrub that rarely attains a height over 28 feet. Leaves are palmate with 5 leafelets but rarely 3-7, oval in shape with serrated edges and 3-6 inches in length.
Location:
found along streams on the coastal plains of East and Central Texas
Fruits: May - June
Medical use:
powdered bark is used for toothaches and skin ulcers
Other use:
Crushed fruit was used for fish poison and the roots can be used for washing clothes.
WARNING: ALL PLANT PARTS AND SEEDS ARE POISONOUS



Bumelia, Saffron Plum
Bumelia angustifolia

Location: in southern and western Texas often on shell mounds near the Gulf of Mexico with other chaparral growth from Matagorda County to Cameron County
Fruit: April-June
Culinary use: Fruit is edible



Bumelia, Woolybucket
Bumelia lanuginosa

Location:
found in east Texas and as another variety in Central and West Texas
Fruits: September - October
Culinary use:
fruit is edible but in large doses causes stomach disturbances and dizziness.



Bush Pepper
Capsicum frutescens

Location: statewide
Medical use:
Capsicum is a good stimulant for atony of the stomach or intestines. Also used in the treatment of relaxed uvula and similar conditions. Also used in the treatment of chilblains. Used to treat colds by steeping in water and adding sugar
Culinary use:
Berries are rubbed on sun drying meat to keep away flies, made into a seasoning by soaking in vinegar.



Bush Rock-spirea
Holodiscus dumosus

Location:
Dry, well drained, sunny sites of canyons and mountainsides at altitudes of 3,000-10,500 feet. In the Trans-Pecos region in the Chisos and Guadalupe Mountains.
Culinary use:
The fruit is eaten by the Tewa Indians of New Mexico



Butterfly Bush, Escobilla
Buddleia scordioides

Location:
on dry sunny open sites in southwestern Texas
Medical use:
Tea from the leaves is a remedy for indigestion



Butterfly, Woolly
Buddleia marrubiifolia

Location:
well drained sunny sites in western and southern Texas along the Rio Grande
Medical use:
An infusion of the flowers are used as a bath for rheumatic disorders and as a aperitive and diuretic.
Culinary use:
An infusion of the flowers is used to give butter a yellow color



Camphor tree Cinnamomum camphoria

Location: often cultivated in Houston, but sometimes escapes.
Medical use: good for lineaments. Preparation for camphor is to steam and distill wood chips 30 lb = 1 lb camphor
WARNING: CAMPHOR IS CARCINOGENIC IF TAKEN INTERNALLY, ALSO EXCESS CONSUMPTION CAUSES VOMITING, PALPITATIONS AND DEATH.



Cane, Giant Arundinaria gigantea

Location: low grounds or in water of ponds, rivers, and swamps, primarily east Texas
Culinary use: young shoots are cooked like bamboo shoots, large seeds can be gathered and ground into a flour.
WARNING: BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR ERGOT Claviceps spp., A HIGHLY POISIONOUS FUNGUS, USUALLY PINK OR PURPLISH IN COLOR AND ABOUT THE SAME SIZE AS THE SEEDS IF NOT A BIT LARGER. IF IT IS PRESENT, COLLECT IN ANOTHER AREA.



Castela, Allthorn Castela texana

Location: Central, southwestern and western Texas on rocky banks of the Rio Grande near Alamo, Hildago County; shores of the Gulf near Riviera, Kleberg County; also in the vicinity of Austin and San Antonio.
Medical use: Extracts of the bark are used as a remedy for intestinal disturbances, skin diseases, fever, yellow jaundice, and dysentery, also as a tonic. In the treatment of amebic dysentery it has been found that a fluidacetextract in the proportion of on part in a million is sufficient to render Entamoeba histolytica immobile.



Ceanothus, Desert Ceanothus greggii

Location: on gravely slopes or in rocky canyons at altitudes of 2,000-5,600 feet in the Trans-Pecos region
Medical use: treats syphilis and is said to possess purgative properties
Other use: Flowers are used in Mexico to give a cleansing lather for clothes washing Roots are used for red dye



Ceanothus, Jersey Tea Ceanothus americanus

Location: Praries, woodlands, and barrens
Medical use: The root is astringent and contains ceanothic acid and has the property of increasing blood coagulation, especially in the prevention of hemorrhage during surgery.
Dose: of tincture 4 fluidrachm 16 cc. at intervals of 30 minutes more or less, as may be required
Culinary use: tea can be made from the dried leaves, brew like an oriental tea



Cedar, Eastern Red Juniperus virginiana

Location: found in East Texas, reaching westward toward Wichita Falls
Medical use: Leaves are used for a diuretic, makes a good epispastic in the form of a cerate Young twigs gathered in May are used to make a tincture The berries in decoction are a diaphoretic and emmenagogue. Oil is used as an application for arthritis, rheumatic, rheumatoid, traumatic affections. 1 bushel of chips = 1/2 pint of oil
Culinary use: Berries are edible and are dried for winter use, dried and ground into flour, mixed with water, and kneaded into a hard mass then dried in the sun. Also pounded into a meal, ground into a paste, dried, then eaten.
Other use: wood is an insect repellent.
WARNING: OIL IS POISONOUS AND CAUSES VENOUS CONGESTION.



Chaste-tree, Lilac Vitex agnus-castus

Location: usually cultivated, found in dry sunny locations
Fruits:
Medical use: seeds are used as a sedative
Culinary use: Leaves are used to spice food and as an aromatic



Chaste-tree, Negundo Vitex negundo

Location: Found cultivated on the coast, but does escape
Medical use: A pillow of leaves treats headaches, and a decoction treats headache and catarrh Roots and leaves are used as a tonic and febrifuge



Cherry, Black Prunus serotina

Location: East Texas, Edwards Plateau and Trans-Pecos areas
Fruits: June- October
Medical use: Bark is used as a cough remedy young bark is the best, also used for children's diarrhea, indigestion, and bronchitis, will also dissolve bladder and kidney stones when administered over time and in combination with other drugs
Dose: 15 drops of tincture in water
Culinary use: throughly dried stones can be pounded into flour, fruit makes exelent jams and jellies, though pectin must be added. Sweeter fruits after pitting can be used in pancakes, muffins and other baked goods.
WARNING: FOLIAGE AND FRESH PITS ARE POISONOUS



Cherry, Common Choke Prunus virginiana

Location: found in East Texas, Panhandle, and Trans-Pecos areas.
Fruits: July-September
Medical use: Bark is used as a cough remedy young bark is the best, also used for children's diarrhea, indigestion, and bronchitis, scrofula, heart palpitation should not be used in dry cough, dyspepsia, hectic fever, debility of protracted and enfeebled cases of congestion in the chest and throat. Solution of concentrated resinous extract is good for anorexia, dyspepsia, heart weakness of, hypertrophy of, irritable, pyrosis.
Dose: 15 drops of tincture in water will also dissolve bladder and kidney stones when administered over time, if taken too fast the stones will be expelled without being softened.
Culinary use: Dried berries can be used to flavor soups, also a part of pemmican throughly dried stones can be pounded into flour, be sure to roast first Fruit. makes good jellies and jams
WARNING: FOLIAGE IS POISONOUS



China Berry Melia azedarach

Found: Cultivated but commonly escapes cultivation in east and central Texas
Fruits: September-October Medical use: Good insect repellent and vermifuge, anti-parasitic, and has anti-fungal properties.
WARNING: INTERNAL USE BY PROFESSIONAL PRACTITIONERS ONLY



Chinese Tallow Tree Sapium sebiferum

Found: cultivated, but escapes cultivation. Especially plentiful in Houston and Beaumont
Fruits: Fall
Other use: Wax covered seeds are used for candle wax



Chinquapin, Allegheny Castanea pumila

Found: East Texas as far south as Houston, all but eliminated by the chestnut blight
Fruits: Fall
Medical use: Nut capsule stops flux, 1 scruple for a man, 10 grains for a child Green or dried leaves can be used for whooping cough, nagging distressing cough, controlling the paroxysm, frequent hiccups, irritable or excitable respiratory problems. When combined with Lobelia Lobelia inflata and Blue Cohosh Caulophyllum thalictroides. Tincture of leaves gathered in summer treats diarrhea and whooping cough.
Dose: 1 oz to 1 pt boiling water infused for 15 min. A wineglass full three times per day, children get half that amount. Fluid extract is 10 drops 3 times pre day and half for children.
Culinary use: roast the nuts and then crack them out of the shells, the nuts can be eaten as is, made into flour, or dipped into sugar syrup to make candied nuts.
WARNING: THIS TREE IS INCREASINGLY UNCOMMON, DO NOT USE UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY, ALSO DO NOT CONFUSE WITH THE HORSE CHESTNUT AESCULUS HIPPOCASTANUM WHICH HAS BITTER AND MILDLY POISONOUS FRUIT



Climbing Spiderling Commicarpus scandens

Location: dry soil on fence rows, waste grounds, edges of ravines, gravely valleys, chaparral thickets to altitudes of 4,500 ft in southwest and west Texas.
Medical use: decoction of leaves treats venereal disease



Condalia, Bluewood Condalia hookeri

Location: in dry soil in central, southern, and western Texas. On the coast from Matagorda County to Cameron County, frequent along the lower Rio Grande River. In central region the greatest concentration is in the limestone plateau area and west to the Pecos River, Less common west of the Pecos and north into the Panhandle.
fruits: intervals during the summer
Culinary use: makes good jellies
Other use: wood makes a blue dye



Condalia, Lote-bush Condalia obtusifolia

Location: south Texas plains, Edwards plateau, and Trans-Pecos area
Fruits: June
Medical use: treats sores and wounds
Culinary use: fruit is edible
Other use: Roots are used as a soap substitute



Condalia, Southwestern Candalia lycioides

Location: on dry hills and desert flats ascending to an altitude of 5,000 feet in extreme west Texas
Medical use: an eye treatment was made from the roots
Culinary use: The fruit is edible
Other use: Bark of the root is substituted for soap in Mexico



Coral Bean, Cockspur Erythrina crista-galli

Location: Usually cultivated but escapes in coastal Texas
Medical use: The beans cause a curare-like paralyzing action when administered intravenously. Should be studied further for clinical use.



Coyotillo, Humboldt Karwinkia humboldtiana

Location: dry plains and prairies in south Texas and southern Edwards plateau Medical use: a decoction of leaves and roots are used to treat fevers
WARNING: SEEDS ARE POISONOUS AND ARE REPORTED TO CAUSE PARALYSIS IN THE LIMBS OF HUMANS AND DOMESTIC LIVESTOCK



Crabb-apple, Prairie Pyrus ioensis

Location: central, and eastern half of Texas
Fruits: September-October
Culinary use: Can be eaten raw but is very sour, used for astringents and vinegar. Pectin for making jams and jellies can be extracted by using under ripe fruit, barely cover with water and simmer until soft then strain.



Creeper, Virginia Parthenocissus quinquefolia

Location: widespread in Texas
Medical use: bark is used for a tonic, expectorant, and remedy for dropsy.
WARNING: BERRIES CAN BE FATAL WHEN EATEN IN QUANTITYS



Creeping, Skyflower Duranta repens

Location: escapes from cultivation in the lower Rio Grande valley
Fruits:
Medical use: remedy for fevers



Creosote Bush, Coville Larrea tridentata

Location: south Texas plains, Trans-Pecos, and southern Edwards plateau in desert and dry soil.
Medical use: Tea of leaves are used to reduce cancers, skin conditions, arthritis, backache, hair growth, eyesight, bowel elimination but not a laxative , kidney infections, prostate trouble, sinus, stomach cancer, throat, bronchial problems, weight loss problems. Boiled leaves are used externally to treat bruises rheumatism and pain. Heated and sharpened sticks are inserted into tooth cavities for pain.
Dose: 1 tbs. of leaves and small twigs to 1 pt of boiling water in a screw top jar, let stand overnight, drink 1/4 of the liquid 1/2 hour before bedtime
Culinary use: the buds are pickled and eaten by Mexican Indians



Croton, Cortes Croton cortesianus

Location: Southern and western Texas in Cameron and Hildago Counties
Medical use: Plant is known in Mexico as "Palillo" is used as a caustic in the treatment of skin diseases



Croton, Fragrant Croton suaveolens

Location: Ledges and clefts of rock on dry slopes of hills. In Fort Davis, Jeff Davis County, and in Val Verde County. Medical use: Known in Mexico as "Encinillo" and used for baths during convalescence from fevers


Croton, Leather Weed Croton corymbulosus

Location: usually on sandy mesas or dry rocky slopes at altitudes of 2,000-6,000 feet in the Trans-Pecos
Culinary use: Tea can be made from the foliage



Croton, New Mexican Croton neomexicanus

Location: in western Texas on low rocky hills and plains at altitudes of 4,000-5,800 feet.
Medical use: Root bark is used in Mexico as a purgative



Croton, Mexican Croton ciliato-glandulosus

Location: the Mexican desert plateau area at altitudes of 3,000-4,500 feet 3 1/2 miles southwest of Roma in Starr County. Medical use: the leaves are used in Mexico as a purgative and febrifuge



Currant, Rothrock Ribes wolfii

Location: in damp woods in the aspen and conifer belts of 6,000-12,000 feet in Trans-Pecos
Fruit: August
Culinary use: fruit can be made into jams, jellies, and meat sauces



Cypress, bald Taxodium distichum

Location: found in eastern and southern parts of the state both wild and cultivated. Usually near a good water source lake, river, swamp
Fruit: October-December
Medical use: cone resin is an analgesic for wounds



Cypress, Bald Montezuma Taxodium mucronatum

Location: Lower Rio Grande river, uncommon
Medical use: Resin is for wounds, ulcers, cutaneous diseases, toothache and gout Bark is an emmenagogue and diuretic Leaves are resolutive and treats itch Pitch is used for bronchitis and chest affections, derived by putting fresh chips into a pit, covering with earth and then fired.



Cyrilla, American Cyrilla racemiflora

Location: in swamps on the Gulf coastal plain in eastern Texas
Medical use: the spongy lower bark is used as a styptic



Dogwood, Flowering Cornus florida

Location: statewide and also cultivated
Medical use: dried bark of the root is used as a powder or fluid extract for intermittent fever
Other use: dye is made from the roots



Dogwood, Rough Leaf Cornus drummondii

Location: edges of streams, thickets, and fence rows in central, southern, and east Texas
Medical use: bark is used to wash mangy dogs

Elder, American Sambucus canadensis

Location: rich moist soils along streams and in low areas. East and northeast Texas Flowers: May-July
Medical use: leaves are used as a poultice for sores and tumors. Flowers are used as a diaphoretic, diuretic, febrifuge, and as an alternative for rheumatism and syphilis. Fruit is used as a laxative.
Culinary use: flowers are used as a flavoring in drinks by soaking in water. also improve the flavor of plain flours. fruit is made into pies, wines, and jellies
Other use: dried leaves are used as an insecticide, bark is used as a black dye.



Elder, Mexican Sambucus mexicana

Location: along low places, ditches, and streams at altitudes of 1,000-4,000 feet in the desert or desert grassland.
Flowers: April-June also after rains
Medical use: flowers are a gentle excitant and sudorific, Fruit is a diaphoretic and an alternative for rheumatism and syphilis. Inner bark is a hydragogue cathartic and in large doses a emetic. Also used for dropsy and epilepsy.
Fruit: makes excellent wines and pies and is often dried for further use by Indians.
Other use: Stems make a dark dye



Elm, Slippery Ulmus rubra

Location: Northeast, north central, and central Texas
Medical use: Inner bark is chewed as a thirst quencher and throat soother. also dried, powdered and made into a drink for digestive problems, urinary, gastric and duodenal ulcers, and gastritis. Tincture of fresh bark treats constipation, deafness, hemorrhoids, herpes, pain, and syphilis. Also added as a soothing element to cough mixtures. Inner bark is harvested in spring, dried and powdered for internal use
Culinary Use: The inner bark can make a good tea when steeped in hot water for approx. 15 minutes. It alson can be dried and ground into a flour.



Ephedra, Erect Ephedra antisyphilitica

Location: Dry soils and gravely plains, rocky hillsides, old fields and pastures and calcareous slopes of Central and Western Texas.
Medical use: Used to treat syphilis.



Eupatorium, Blue Eupatorium azureum

Location: in caliche soil in southwest Texas
Medical use: used for astringent poultices



Eupatorium, Christmas Bush Eupatorium conyzoides

Location: in rocky or clay soils in Texas along the Rio Grande River in Jim Wells, Kleberg, Nueces, Hildago, and Cameron Counties.
Medical use: leaves are used for an emmenagogue



Euphorbia, Wax Euphorbia antisyphilitica

Location: Gravely limestone hills of the Texas Big Bend area.
Medical use: Known as Candelilla in Mexico it is used as a purgative and treating venereal disease
Other use: Stems are boiled to obtain a wax



Fiddlewood, Berlandier Citharexylum berlandieri

Location: Confined to the valley of the lower Rio Grande Valley in Cameron, Hidalgo, and Willacy Counties. One mile from Boca Chica Beach below Brownsville, Texas
Medical use: used as a cold remedy in Mexico



Fig, Common Ficus carica

Location: Cultivated but escapes in frost free area along road sides
Medical use: Ripe figs are nutritious, laxitive and demulcent. Unripe can be an irritant. Latex of tree is anthelmintic against internal parasites


Four-wing Saltbush Atriplex canescens

Location: many soil types in western Texas
Fruit: august-September
Culinary use: SW indians grind seeds to use for baking powder in bread making

Fremont Screw-bean Prosopis pubescens

Location: In west Texas on the alluvial bottom lands of the upper Rio Grande River and its tributaries from Uvalde County wets to El Paso County.
Medical use: the powdered root bark was used by the Pima to treat wounds Culinary use: The beans were ground into pinole meal and made into bread, or was steeped for a cooling drink. Crude syrup can be made by boiling down the beans.



Gooseberry, Georgia Ribes curvatum

Location: in dry rocky soil, but rare in Texas
Fruit: July
Culinary use: fruit can be made into jams, jellies, and meat sauces



Grape, Canyon Vitis arizonica

Location: ravines and gulches at altitudes of 2,000-7,500 feet in western Texas
Fruit: July-August
Culinary use: Pueblo indians, formerly cultivated the vine and ate the fruit fresh or dried



Grape, Long's Vitis longii

Location: along sandy banks and bluffs, nearly always in ravines and gulches tributary to larger streams along the Red, Canadian, Cimarron, and Arkansas rivers, and through the Panhandle
Fruit: July-August
Culinary use: The fruit is sometimes made into pies in the Panhandle area. The underripe fruit is an exelent source for pectin. Young leavesbest in spring and before the summer heat starts can be boiled for 10-15 minutes and served with butter, or they can be lightly boiled and then used to wrap meats when baking in an oven or on coals be sure to use several layers if using coals



Grape, Mustang Vitis candicans

Location: of the greatest size in the bottomlands of limy Cretaceous hills of southwestern Texas, also on central, northern, and eastern Texas.
Fruit: June-August
Culinary use: The grapes are somewhat sour but are edible, may cause skin irritations in some. The skin is rather sour, but i've found squeezing the pulp out of the center is a rather nice snack in the summer. When cooking with the fruit be sure to add sugar. The underripe fruit is an exelent source for pectin. Young leaves best in spring and before the summer heat starts can be boiled for 10-15 minutes and served with butter, or they can be lightly boiled and then used to wrap meats when baking in an oven or on coals be sure to use several layers if using coals



Grape, Summer Vitis aestivalis

Location: warm sandy soil, dry woods, thickets, and along roadsides
Fruit: September-October
Culinary use: The fruit makes excellent preserves, jellies, and wines



Greenbrier, Lanceleaf Smilax lanceolata

Location: rich ground, thickets, fields, edges of ditches or streams in East Texas
Culinary use: tubers were beaten to a pulp and then strained and further ground to make a meal for dough or for a cooling drink. Young shoots can be used as cooked greens or in a salad *besure to remove the thorns first. Roots can be used to substitute for gelatin, wash throughly then pound to seperate starches from the fibers, the reddish powder left over makes a mild jelly when combined with warm water. The powder can also be used to thicken gravies when combined with another flour or starch.


Greenbrier, Laurel Smilax laurifolia

Location: sandy, acid swamps or wet woods in East Texas
Culinary use: tubers were beaten to a pulp and then strained and further ground to make a meal for dough or for a cooling drink. Young shoots can be used as cooked greens or in a salad *besure to remove the thorns first. Roots can be used to substitute for gelatin, wash throughly then pound to seperate starches from the fibers, the reddish powder left over makes a mild jelly when combined with warm water. The powder can also be used to thicken gravies when combined with another flour or starch.



Hackberry, Common Celtis occidentalis

Location: primarily in east Texas
Fruits: September
Medical use: Bark is a cathartic and a anthelmintic Tincture is prepared from inner bark gathered when the tree is in full foliage, pounded to a pulp then weighed. The pulp is then mixed with alcohol and let stand for eight days. The is separated by decanting, pressing, and mass filtration.
Culinary use: fruit is edible and quite sweet



Hardy Yellow Trumpet Tecoma stans

Location: well drained dry soil in full sun in western and southern Texas
Medical use: decoction of the plant is used for stomach cramps and diabetes. Roots are used as a diuretic, tonic, anti syphilitic, and anthelmintic.
Culinary use: Beer is prepared form the root



Hawthorn, May Crataegus opaca

Location: wet soil of east Texas
Fruits: May
Cuilinary use: The fruit is a bit bitter raw, but can be made into good jams and jellies, no need to add pectin. A tea cab be made by steeping the fruit in hot water along with some mint


Heimia, Willow-Leaf Heimia salicifolia Location: usually along streams or resacas in southwest Texas Medical use: plant is used as an emetic, anti syphilitic, hemostatic, febrifuge, diuretic, laxative, vulnerary, sudorific, tonic, and astringent. If the juice or a decoction is taken internally it is said to produce a mild and pleasant intoxication during which all objects appear to be yellow


Hickory, Black Carya texana Location: east Texas Pineywoods and post oak savanna in sandy soil Fruit: September-October Culinary use: Milk can be made by pounding then boiling the nuts Black salt can be made by boiling ashes down to a powder. Use nuts  as a substitute for walnuts in recipies.  The sap can be made into syrup.


Honeysuckle, Western White Lonicera albiflora Location: in central and western Texas northward into Oklahoma Fruit: October-November Medical use: Fruit is used as an emetic and cathartic.


Hop Tree Ptelea trifoliata Location: statewide, but mostly in east and central Texas in dry environs fruit: August-September Medical use: Bark is used to treat dyspepsia, asthma, phthisis, syphilis, diarrhea, rheumatism, epilepsy, fever, a bitter stomic, and as a mild tonic. The bark is gathered after the fruit is ripe but before the leaves start to turn, a tincture can be prepared then separated by pressure and filtration. Culinary use: fruit can substitute for hops in beer making.


Jerusalem-thorn Parkinsonia aculeata Location: moist sandy soils in the south Texas Plains and southern Edwards plateau, also cultivated as an ornament Medical use: Leaves are made into tea to treat diabetes, epilepsy, as a sudorific and abortificant, also as a febrifuge. Culinary use: seeds can be pounded into a flour to make bread


Jessamine, Carolina Gelsemium sempervirens Location: sandy moist soil of eastern and southern Texas Medical use: dried rhizome administered as a tincture treats facial neuralgia, rheumatism, and gonorrhea.
WARNING: SHOULD BE USED BY PROFESSIONAL PHYSICIANS ONLY,
OVERDOSE HAS RESULTED IN VERTIGO, AND DEATH.


Juniper, Alligator Juniperus deppeana Location: High mountains of Trans-Pecos at an altitude of 4,000-8,000 feet in the Chisos, Davis, Eagle, and Limpia Mountains of West Texas Medical use: Leaves are a local remedy for rheumatism and neuralgia in nearby Chihuahua, Mexico.


Juniper, One-Seed Juniperus monosperma Location: Lower hills approaching taller mountains at altitudes of 3,000-7,000 feet Fruit: September Culinary use: The seeds can be ground into flour


Juniper, rocky Mountain Juniperus scopulorum Location: in rocky soil in the panhandle and Guadalupe mountains at altitudes up to 6,000 ft. Medical use: Tea from small twigs in large amounts is a diuretic Culinary use: Berries are used to flavor gin, roasted as a coffee substitute, made into meal or mush cakes, flavoring sauerkraut, beer making berries + barley and as a substitute for pepper. Tea can be made from the twigs.  Crushed berries are good for seasoning lamb.


Kentucky Coffee-tree Gymnocladus dioica Location: in low rich soil in the northern gulf coast plain Culinary use: seeds are poisonous but when roasted make a coffee substitute sorry, it's decaf WARNING: THE SEEDS ARE POISONOUS IN THE RAW STATE


Krameria, Gray's Krameria grayi Location: dry soil of barren hillsides and desert areas at altitudes of 1,000-4,000 feet in the Trans-Pecos Medical use: Root infusion is used by the Pima as a remedy for sores Other use: Mexicans use root bark for a yellow or reddish brown dye


Krameria, Little-leaf Krameria parvifolia Location: In western Texas on dry rocky slopes and plains at altitudes of 500-5,000 feet Medical use: A decoction of the plant was used as an eyewash and a remedy for sores Other use: Makes a brown or red dye


Lantana, Texas Lantana horrida Location: grows mostly in sandy soil abundant in coastal areas and scattered across central Texas to the Rio Grande and north to Cook and Archer Counties Medical use: A decoction of the leaves is used for a stomach tonic. Also used for snake bites, a strong decoction is taken internally and a poultice of leaves is applied to the bite


Lime Prickly-ash Zanthoxylum fagara Location: along the gulf coast from Harris co. to the Rio Grande valley Medical use: Extracts of the bark and leaves are used as a nerve tonic and sudorific Culinary use: powdered bark and leaves are a condiment Other use: powdered bark is a yellow dye


Locust, Common Honey Gleditsia triacanthos Location: in Pineywoods, upper post oak Savannah and Blackland prairies in moist soil Fruits: September-October Culinary use: young pods are edible and very sweet but become bitter with age
WARNING: BE SURE NOT TO CONFUSE THE PODS WITH THOSE OF THE KENTUCKY COFFEE TREE WHICH IS POISIONOUS


Locust, New Mexico Robinia neomexicana Location: moist soil along streams in the sun at altitudes of 4,000-8,500 feet in the conifer belt in Trans-Pecos region. Also known as U-a de Gato. Medical use: Used as a remedy for rheumatism by the Hopi


Long Stalk Green Thread Thelesperma longipes Location: dry hills and mesas, slopes, and canyons at altitudes of 5,000-6,000 feet in western Texas in the Guadalupe Mountains and perhaps elsewhere. Culinary use: used for tea in Mexico


Madrone, Texas Arbutus texana Location: central Texas and isolated patches in the Trans-Pecos on limestone or igneous hills Fruits Medical use: used medicinally as an astringent in Mexico Culinary use: Fruit is edible


Magnolia, Sweet-bay Magnolia virginiana Location: low, wet, acid, sandy soil of Texas and is occasionally cultivated Culinary use: leaves are used for flavoring meats Other use: flowers are used for their fragrance


Mahonia, Laredo Mahonia trifoilata Location: dry hillsides over most of central, south, and west Texas Fruits: ripens in June Culinary use: seeds when roasted make a coffee substitute Other use: yellow dye is made from wood and roots


Malpighia, Barbados Cherry Malpighia glabra Location: southern Texas in Cameron and Hildago Counties, also cultivated Medical use: used as an astringent and febrifuge, high in tannin Culinary use: fruit is edible and made into preserves


Manzanita, Point Leaf Arctostaphylos pungens Location: rocky mesas and dry slopes at altitudes of 3,000-8,000 feet in west Texas Fruit: July-April Culinary use: fruit is often making into jelly


Maple, Box-elder Acer negundo Location: found near streams in east, north central, and central Texas Culinary use: can be tapped for sugar, though it is inferior to sugar maple


Maple, Sugar Acer saccharum Location: east Texas Culinary use: sap can be used for syrup, fermented, and vinegar seeds are edible after removing wings, soaking, boiling, and roasting Inner bark cam be pounded into flour


Maple, Big Tooth Acer grandidentatum Location: valleys, canyons, banks of mountain streams at altitudes of 4,000-6,000 feet in the Guadalupe, Davis, and Chisos Mountains of the Trans-Pecos region Culinary use: sap is used for sugar making


Maple, Florida Sugar Acer barbatum Location: in moist rich soil in Texas Culinary use: Seasons are not distinct enough in the south for proper sap flow, but sugar can be produced from the sap, about 1 lb for every 15 quarts


Mayten, Guttapercha Maytenus phyllanthoides Location: on sandy bluffs on tidal beaches on the coasts of Texas Medical use: leaves are used as a remedy for scurvy and toothaches. Gum is substituted for guttapercha and used to bind splints for broken limbs.


Mesquite, Honey Prosopis glandulosa Location: found in dry areas, overtaking grasslands quickly, grown statewide except in the far east Pineywoods Fruits: August-September Culinary use: Legumes can be eaten contain almost 30% sugar or pounded into pinole meal and baked or fermented into alcohol and were an important of the southwestern indians diet. Gum is made into candy Other use: beans are used to make black dye, mend pottery and to make gun arabic


Milkberry, David Chiococca alba Location: southwestern Texas in lower Rio Grande valley area Medical use: used to treat dropsy, venereal disease, and rheumatism. Cahinca extracted from the bark is an emeto-cathartic capable of producing serious gastro-intestinal disturbances, diuretic, and purgative, and is used by the natives of Brazil as a remedy for snakebite, rheumatism, and dropsy. Dose: 20 grains-1 drachm of powdered bark


Mulberry Morus var. Location: Red Morus rubra found in rich moist soil Black Morus nigra old gardens, roadsides, thickets and waste grounds, also cultivated White Morus alba escapes cultivation Texas Morus microphylla West of the Colorado River on dry limestone hills Fruits: May-August Culinary use: the fruit is edible, makes good jellies and jams pectin must be added, dried berries can be used in muffins and cakes becareful, they tend to spoil easily in the presence of moisture young leading shoots can be eaten but must be boiled for at least 20 minutes Other use: inner bark is made into cloth and heavy paper
WARNING: UNRIPE FRUIT AND RAW SHOOTS CONTAIN HALLUCINOGENS


Mulberry, Common Paper Broussonetia papyrifera Location: statewide but escapes cultivation Other use: cloth or thick paper can be made by pounding bark with a wooden mallet


Naked Seed Weed Selloa glutinosa Location: rocky soils of dry hillsides and arid grasslands at altitudes of 2,000-6,000 feet in western Texas. Medical use: a decoction of the plant is used as a remedy for diarrhea and a solution of the gum is used externally as a remedy for rheumatism and ulcers.


Nightshade, Mullein Solanum verbascifolium Location: in the lower Rio Grande Valley and around old resacas at Olmito in Cameron County Medical use: leaves were heated and applied to the forehead for headaches. Also applied as a poultice to ulcers and boils.
WARNING: THE BERRIES ARE VERY POISIONOUS


Oak Quercus var. Location: statewide in various species Fruit: August-October Medical use: Bark collected in early spring is used as an internal astringent, diarrhea, mucous discharge, and hemorrhage. Tea is used to strengthen outer blood vessels White oak bark Quercus alba treats goiter, nasal drip and improves digestion A solution of acorns, bark and milk helped to treat ulcerated bladder Dose: 1 oz bark to 1 qt water and boiled down to 1 pt, taken by the glassful Culinary use: acorns are edible after leaching 15-30 min. in boiling water to get rid of tannin Acorns can be deep fried, ground into a flour and then either used on its own or added to other flour to add protein, or dried till bitter for use as a coffee substitute White oak acorns are the best and sweetest Other use: the bark can be used for tannin in tanning hides


Ocotillo Fouquieria splendens Location: dry, rocky, hillsides, or desert flats in western and southern Texas Medical use: Cough medicine is made from the flowers, powdered root is for dressing wounds and swellings of the Apache indians Culinary use: Flowers and seed pods are eaten by the Cahuilla Indians as well as a beverage from the flowers Other use: Bark contains gum, resin, wax and was used for waxing leather


Paloverde, Blue Cercidium floridum Location: Trans-Pecos Culinary use: the pods and seeds are ground into a meal


Pawpaw, Common Asimina triloba Location: rich soil of the east Texas bottomlands Fruit: autumn Medical use: a tonic and stimulant Dose: coarsely powered fresh ripe seeds are covered with five parts by weight of alcohol and allowed to stand for eight days in a well stoppered dark bottle, then the tincture is filtered off. Culinary use: the fruit is used for deserts or eaten raw with cream, high in carbohydrates.
WARNING: HANDLING THE FRUIT MAY CAUSE SKIN IRRITATIONS


Pear, Common Pyrus communis Location: often cultivated in Texas and commonly escapes Fruit: July-October Culinary use: fruit is edible in many raw or cooked forms


Pecan Carya illinoensis Location: in riverbottoms, concentrated in east and south central Texas, also grown as an ornamental Fruit: September-October Medical use: Leaves and bark are used as an astringent Culinary use: nuts are edible


Pepper tree, California Schinus molle Location: found in dry sandy soil occasionally in west Texas Medical use: Powdered bark or its decoction is used to treat swollen feet, as a astringent, and balsamic. Gum is chewed and has purgative and vulneary properties. In Mexico it is applied as an emulsion to the eyes to hinder the development of cataracts, and to treat genito-urinary and venereal diseases. Leaves are chewed to harden the gums and heal ulcers of the mouth Fruit is used as a substitute for cubeb in the treatment of gonorrhea, and a syrup is prepared for bronchitis. Culinary use: Seeds are sometimes used to adulterate pepper. Fruit is ground and mixed with atole or other substances to form beverages. An intoxication liquor "copalote" can be made by fermenting the fruit pulp for one or two days,


Persimmon, Common Diospyros virginiana Location: south Texas plains and Edwards plateau in many soil types, west to the valley of the Colorado river. Fruit: August-February but vary variable Medical use: bark is used as an astringent Culinary use: fruit is edible and is very high in carbohydrates and acidic, the native americans would mix the pulp with crushed corn to make into a kind of bread


Persimmon, Texas Diospyros texasn Location: central and west Texas on rocky hillsides, abundant in Edwards plateau. When near the coast usually on soils with lime composition because of the marine shells. Reaching its easternmost limit in Harris County near the coast. Fruit: August-February but variable as to when Culinary use: smaller than the common persimmon but is still edible Other use: juice is used for dying skins black


Pine, Pinyon Pinus edulis Location: in Culberson and Hudspeth Co. at altitudes of 4,000-7,000 ft Fruit: August-September Culinary use: Seeds are edible and can be used for cooking. The inner bark of pines can be dried and made into flour, though I would reccomend using it only in emergency situations. Tea made from the needles are high in vitamin A and C, young needles have the best flavor.


Pine, var. Pinus var. Location: Statewide and represented by several species Culinary use: The inner bark of pines can be dried and made into flour, though I would reccomend using it only in emergency situations. Tea made from the needles are high in vitamin A and C, young needles have the best flavor.


Plum, American Prunus americana Location: Found statewide in several varieties Fruit: June-October Culinary use: fruit makes good jellies, preserves, and eaten raw or cooked. Also can be used for wine making.


Plum, Creek Prunus rivularis Location: along streams in sunny sits. River valleys of Texas along the Colorado, Guadalupe, and Leona rivers. Fruit: June Culinary use: fruit is edible


Plum, Flatwoods Prunus umbellata Location: sandy soils of Texas Fruit: June - August Culinary use: fruit is used for jams and jellies


Plum, Oklahoma Prunus gracilis Location: found on dry sandy soils in the sun of north Texas Fruits: June-August Culinary use: the fruit is edible, but rather sour


Plum, Reverchon Hog Prunus reverchonii Location: well drained moist limestone soils in the sun, central and northern Texas Fruit: July-September Culinary use: fruit is edible, but of poor quality. Drought resistant


Plumbago, Climbing Plumbago scandens Location: southwest Texas Medical use: a decoction of the plant is used as an emetic
WARNING: PLANT CAN PRODUCE BLISTERS ON THE SKIN


Poreleaf, Shrubby Porophyllum scoparium Location: rocky banks and plains of southwestern Texas Medical use: used by the natives as a remedy for fevers, rheumatism, and affections of the stomach and intestines.


Porliera, Texas Porliera angustifolia Location: in south Texas plains, southern Edwards plateau, and Trans-Pecos areas Medical use: Extracts of the root are used for rheumatism, venereal disease, and as a sudorific Other use: bark of roots is used as a soap for woolens


Prickly Ash, Hercules-club Zanthoxylum clava-herculis Location: eastern third of Texas in woodlands, uncommon also cultivated fruits: august-September Medical use: bark is chewed to numb oral tissues and increase salivation Powdered bark is made into a rheumatic liniment Fruits are antispasmodic, stimulant, carminative, and acts on the mucous tissues Tincture treats hepatic and pancreatic sluggishness, chronic muscular rheumatism, lumbago, scrofula, temporary paralysis, female troubles, typhus, typhoid pneumonia, and syphilis. Dose: 1 tsp. bark to 1 c boiling water, one mouthful throughout the day. Tincture: 5-20 drops in water. Rheumatic liniment: 1 oz powdered bark in 4 oz of oil Rheumatic: decoction of 1 oz in 1 qt of water, 1 pt per day Tympanitis: 1/2 - 1 drachm of tincture in sweetened water hourly


Prickly Ash, Lime Zanthoxylum fagara Location: Southwestern and coastal Texas to Harris and Galveston Counties, abundant in lower Rio Grande valley Medical use: Extracts of the bark and leaves are taken as a sudorific and nerve tonic. Culinary use: Powdered bark and leaves are used as a condiment Other use: Bark and leaves make a yellow dye


Privet Lippia Lippia ligustrina Location: rocky limestone soil at altitudes of 1,000-4,000 feet in southern, central, and west Texas Flower: Intermittently March-November especially after rains Medical use: Leaves and flowers are used to treat diseases of the urinary tract


Randia, Texas Randia aculeata Location: in south Texas along the Rio Grande valley in sandy or clay loams Fruit: September-October Medical use: the fruit is a remedy for dysentery Other use: the fruit is also a blue dye


Redbud, Eastern Cercis canadensis Location: east, central Texas and southern Trans-Pecos area in rich soil along streams and in bottomlands Medical use: bark is astringent and used to treat dysentery Culinary use: leaves are edible raw, pickled, or fried, young pods can be sauted and served with butter. The flowers can be added to salads


Rubber Plant Jatropha dioica Location: two varieties are found on dry slopes, mesas, and rocky limestone bluffs. Sessile flower is the most common in the southwest, while Grass leaf is confined to the Trans-Pecos region Medical use: Juice has astringent properties and hardens the gums, for skin eruptions, sores, dysentery, hemorrhoids, and venereal diseases, to prepare a gargle for sore throat, as a wash to restore and give luster to hair, and to remove stains from teeth Roots are chewed for toothaches Other use: plant yields a dark red dye, but may damage the cloth


Sage Brush, Big Artemisia tridentata Location: dry and stony soils usually in deep soil pockets. Widely distributed in the west. Medical use: plant is a diaphoretic, antiperiodic or laxative. Culinary use: Cahuilla Indians of California ground the seeds into meal which was then made into some sort of pinole.


Sage Brush, Fringed Artemisia frigida Location: on dry, stony soil to an altitude of 7,000 feet in western Texas Medical use: used as a diuretic and mild cathartic. Leaves contain an essential oil that is antiseptic. Culinary use: Roast the leaves with sweet corn to flavor it.


Sage Brush, Sand Artemisia filifolia Location: in sandy soils to an altitude of 6,000 feet in the lower panhandle. Medical use: A decoction of the leaves is used for intestinal worms and affections of the stomach.


Saltwort, Maritime Batis maritima Location: Sandy beaches, mud flats and saline marshes near the sea. From Galveston Island, Texas through Matagorda Island, to Corpus Christi, Texas. Medical use: Treats ulcers and diuretic Culinary use: Leaves have a salty flavor in salads Other use: ashes are used for making soap and glass


Sassafras Sassafras albidum Location: in east Texas Pineywoods in sandy woods and disturbed ground Medical use: Roots and bark are made into tea and used to treat rheumatism, varicose ulcers, menstrual cramps, skin diseases, and as an alcohol soberant. An oil can be prepared from the root and bark and is used to relieve toothaches and is used in the preparation of liniments for bruises and swelling Culinary use: Leaves are use as spice for cooking and can be rubbed into a fine powder for filet. Tea can be made from the roots by washing them and then leaving the roots to saok in water like you would make sun tea untill the water turns reddish brown, then sweeten to taste.
WARNING: SASSAFRAS HAS BEEN FOUND TO BE POTENTIALLY CARCINOGENIC AND CAUTION IS ADVISED
WARNING: SASSAFRAS SHOULD NOT BE USED BY THIN BLOODED PERSONS


Service-berry, Big Bend Amelanchier denticulata Location: Chisos Mountains of Brewster County and south into Mexico Fruit: May-June Culinary use: fruit was eaten by the native indians Other use: The flexible stems were made into canes by the Mexicans and known as "varitas de apizaco"


Service-berry, Shadblow Amelanchier arborea Location: northeast Texas and occasionally cultivated Fruit: June-July Culinary use: the berries can be eaten raw or cooked into pies


Service-berry, Utah Amelanchier utahensis Location: in dry canyons, rock slopes, and mountainsides at altitudes of 4,000-8,000 feet in the Guadalupe Mountians Fruit: May-June Culinary use: Fruit can be eaten raw or made into bread. Often made into a paste and combined with jerked dry meat as an ingredient in pemmican. Settlers made fruit into puddings and pies. Watch out because birds and ground squirrels tend to get most of the fruit before it is ripe.


Silverleaf, Texas Leucophyllum frutescens Location: in central, western, and southwestern Texas, also planted along highways and culverts. Medical use: used my Mexican indians for chills and fevers


Snakeweed, Broom Gutierrezia sarothrae Location: arid rocky plains at altitudes of 2,800-7,000 feet in western Texas Medical use: decoction of the plant is used for a emmenagogue and for gastric disturbances


Soapberry, Western Sapindus saponaria Location: in moist soils along streams statewide except the Pineywoods, high plains, and upper south Texas plains Fruit: September-October Medical use: Fruit is used to treat renal disorders, rheumatism, and fevers Other use: The fruit is used in Mexico as a laundry soap



Sophora, Mescal Bean Sophora secundiflora Location: in limestone soils of the Edwards plateau, south Texas, and parts of the Trans Pecos Fruit: September Medical use: The beans are used as a narcotic my native americans. Very small amounts of powdered seeds was added to a beverage to produce intoxication, delirium, excitement, and finally a long sleep.
WARNING: FOR USE BY PROFESSIONAL HERBALISTS ONLY,
USE IN VERY SMALL AMOUNTS AND UNDER CLOSE SUPERVISION.
LARGER AMOUNTS ARE DANGEROUS AND POISONOUS



Sophora, Necklace-Pod Sophora tomentosa Location: in coastal dunes along the Texas seashore Medical use: Plant is diuretic, sudorific, and have purgative properties and is used to treat venereal disease. Roots and leaves are used to treat cholera
WARNING: SEEDS ARE POISONOUS AND SHOULD NOT BE USED



Spice Bush Lindera benzoin Location: found in low woods and swamps Fruit: August-September Medical use: A decoction of the bark, leaves, and berries is used to treat diaphoresis, act as a febrifuge, tonic, stimulant, antiperiodic, and anthelmintic. Bark is aromatic and made into tonics, astringent, stimulants, and chewed Oil of the berries was used as an embrocation in neuralgic and rheumatic pains. Tincture preparation: fresh young twigs are gathered before the buds have burst in the spring and are chopped and pounded to a pulp and weighed. Then two parts by weight of alcohol are taken, and one sixth of the alcohol are mixed with the pulp and then the rest of the alcohol is added. After stirring well it is placed in a well stoppered dark glass vial and allowed to stand for eight days. The tincture is then filtered. Culinary use: Plant parts are made into tea Powdered fruit can substitute for allspice



Sotol, Wheeler Dasyliriun wheeleri Location: rocky and gravely hillsides or slopes at altitudes of 3,000-,000 feet in Texas near El Paso Culinary use: Sotol can be made into an alcoholic drink by roasting the heads in a pit for 24 hours, then distilling the expressed juice.



St. Andrew's Cross Ascyrum hypericoides Location: usually in sandy soil Medical use: Extract of the leaves is used as an astringent and resolutive Seeds have purgative properties



Sumac, Evergreen Rhus sempervirens Location: dry rocky soil on the Edwards plateau and Trans-Pecos area at altitudes of 2,000-7,500 feet Fruit: September Medical use: Dried leaves are boiled for asthma relief Culinary use: Berries are steeped for a cooling drink Other use: Called Tamaichia by the Comanche, dried leaves are used to combine with tobacco



Sumac, Flame-leaf and Prairie Rhus copallina var. lanceolata Location: moist soil in shade or sun in Trans-Pecos, central, and north central Texas west of Dallas and Austin and in Palo Duro canyon Culinary use: fruit is crushed and mixed with water to make a cooling drink Other use: The fruit makes a black dye



Sumac, Skunk-bush Rhus aromatica Location: on limestone outcrops in central, northern, western, and southwestern Texas Fruit: August-September Culinary use: Fruit can be eaten or made into a cooling drink by steeping in water



Sumac, Smooth Rhus glabra Location: rich moist soils in east and north central Texas Fruit: September-October Medical use: Dried leaves are boiled for asthma relief, malaria, fevers, canker sores, and sore throats An injection of bark infusion or tea when drunk will give relief from leukorrhea, rectal conditions, chronic diarrhea, and rectal hemorrhage. Berries and leaves are made into a poultice for skin diseases. Juice of berries is good for dysentery and urinary problems Tincture treats debility, diarrhea, dysentery, epistaxis, hemorrhages, headache, and mouth ulcers. Tincture preparation: fresh bark and root is gathered, pounded and weighed. Two parts by weight of alcohol is added and allowed to stand for eight days then separated by filtration Dose: 1 tsp. steeped for 1/2 hr in 1 c of water. 2-4 cupfuls per day. In tincture form 10-20 drops Culinary use: Berries can be dried for winter use and make a good cooling drink. The juice can substitute for vinegar when making jellies and other recipes. Other use: Infusion of berries is used is a black dye for wool



Sweetgum Liquidambar styraciflua Location: low bottomlands of east Texas, also planted as an ornamental Medical use: Sap/gum treats catarrhs of genitourinary system, pulmonary afflictions, consumption, dysentery, and children's bowel complaints. Sap can also be melted with equal parts of olive oil to treat inflammations, injuries, and afflictions of the epidermis. Dose: 1 tsp. of bark to 1 c of boiling water, 1-2 cupfuls per day Culinary use: the extruded sap from wounds can be chewed like gum.


Tar Bush, American Flourensia cernua Location: in dry soil of valleys, mesas, and flats to an altitude of 5,000 feet in western Texas Medical use: a decoction of the leaves and flower heads are a remedy for indigestion and female ailments.



Tree of Heaven Ailanthus altissima Location: cultivated but often escapes. Found in waste places, trash heaps, vacant lots, and other out of the way places in light moist soils. Medical use: Bark is used for tapeworm and is a remedy for dysentery



Tree Tobacco Nicotiana glauca Location: Ditches, stream banks, roadsides, waste places through Texas Medical use: Leaves are applied as a poultice to relieve pain, especially headaches. Other use: good for killing aphids
WARNING: POISONOUS IF TAKEN INTERNALLY



Treebine, Waterwithe Cissus sicyoides Location: southwest Texas Medical use: Leaves are applied to sores and a decoction treats rheumatism Other use: Macerated leaves are used for washing clothes and fruit is a blue dye



Viburnum, Blackhaw Viburnum prunifolium Location: east Texas, but very uncommon Fruit: August-September Medical use: powdered bark of the root or stems used for uterine colic and as a general antispasmodic, also relaxes the uterine muscle. Culinary use: the fruit is edible and sweet, high in vitamin C.


Walnut, Eastern Black Juglans nigra Location: eastern half of Texas along streams, also cultivated for nuts Fruit: September-October Medical use: Tincture of leaves or green fruit rind treats acne, anus burning of, auxiliary glands suppuration of, chancre, ecthyma, eyes pain over, favus, flatulence, headache, herpes, herpes progenitalis, levitation sensation of, menorrhagia, puroura, ringworm, scurvy, spleen pain in, syphilis. Tea treats scrofula, ulcers, wounds, gargle, and rickets. Externally it is used for cleansing wounds and ulcers, also skin diseases and tuberculosis. Rind of green fruit removes ringworm and tetters, and treats diphtheria. Distilled fresh walnuts in alcohol calms hysteria, cerebral, and pregnant vomiting. Dose: Of tincture 1-2 tsp every 20-30 minutes till relieved. Of tea 1 tsp of inner bark, leaves, or rinds cut small or granulated, to 1 c of boiling water. Drink 1-4 c a day often, a large mouthful at a time. Culinary use: The fruit when powdered makes a rich flour Oil can substitute for oil or butter when cooking



Wax-Mallow, Drummond Malvaviscus drummondii Location: sandy, low grounds along streams on the coastal plains. Fruit: August-September Medical use: Leaves are used as an emollient, flowers are used in Mexico in a decoction for digestive tract inflammation and as an emmenagogue Culinary use: fruit can be eaten raw or cooked, and has a mealy taste



Wax Myrtle Myrica pensylvanica Location: Sandy, boggy soils in East Texas but rare. Specimens have been collected in Angelina Co. State Park, Boykin Springs and from the banks of the San Jacinto River near Humble, Texas Medical use: contains myricine acid Bark stimulate and astringent, large doses are emetic also treats diarrhea, jaundice, and scrofula bark should be gathered in the fall, cleanse and separate with a hammer, dry completely and keep in a dark cool dry place in a sealed container. Treats mucous accumulation in the alimentary canal. which is a good breeding ground for Externally the powdered bark is used to stimulate indolent ulcers, and as a decoction for gargle. An injection for chronic inflammation of the throat and leukorrhea. Culinary use: Berries substitute for bay leaves



White Fringe-tree Location: east Texas Pineywoods in moist soil and woodlands Medical use: bark is said to have diuretic properties and used as a fever remedy in infusion form Preparation: fresh bark is gathered and pounded to a pulp. then two parts by weight of alcohol is taken and on sixth of it is mixed and then the rest is added. Let sit for eight days and then filtered by pressure.



White Popinac Lead-tree Leucaena leucocephala Location: found in lower Rio Grande valley and Cameron Co. escaping from cultivation Medical use: Seeds are reported to have emmenagogic and abortive properties Culinary use: seeds are cooked and eaten with rice



Willow, Desert Chilopsis linearis Location: in desert washes in Trans-Pecos and western Edwards plateau Flowers: June-September Medical use: decoction of flowers is used for coughs and bronchial disturbances



Willow, Gulf Black Salix nigra Location: statewide in wet soil, except in the high plains region. Concentrated on the Brazos, San Bernard and Colorado rivers. Medical use: Tincture of bark treated diarrhea, emissions, fever, gonorrhea, and impotence Poultice simmered powdered bark good for gangrene and external ulcers Dose: about 3 grains



Willow, Yew Leaf Salix taxifolia Location: found on rivers in the Trans-Pecos at altitudes of 3,000-6,000 ft. Medical use: bark is a remedy for malaria



Wisteria, Kentucky Wisteria macrostachya Location: in low wet woods or on the edges of swamps Culinary use: Pioneers used the fresh flowers in salads and mixed them with batter to make fritters.



Witch Hazel, Common Hamamelis virginiana Location: southeast Texas and a small concentration in southwest central Texas Medical use: Solution of bark and leaves is used to treat internal bleeding, excessive menstruation, inflammation, hemorrhoids, and congestion. A solution can be used as an enema or douche for diarrhea, dysentery, and simple vaginitis, also as a mouthwash for bleeding gums and inflamed oral tissues. Dose: simmer 10 min., 1 oz of leaves or bark in 1 pt of water. 1 wineglass 3-4 times daily. Of the tincture 5-20 drops, adjust for age. Enema 1/2 oz after bloody discharge.



Xylosma, Mexican Xylossma blepharodes Location: lower Rio Grande valley near Combes, Cameron Co. Texas but found mostly in Nuevo Le-n, Veracruz and Chiapas, Mexico. Medical use: used as a remedy for tuberculosis



Yaupon, Desert Schaefferia cuneifolia Location: western and southwestern Texas. Along the Rio Grande at La Joya, Hildago County; at Langtry, Val Verde County; and in Big Bend National Park, Brewster County. Medical use: Known in Mexico as Capul, the roots are used as a remedy for venereal disease



Yaupon, Holly Ilex vomitoria Location: found in low moist woods mostly in southern east Texas and near the coast. Occasionally cultivated as an ornamental. Medical use: Raw leaves act as a purgative in cerimonies by the Texas indians. Culinary use: A smoky flavored caffinated tea can be made by roasting green leaves in a skilit untill they turn brown and stop popping and then seteeped like an oriental tea. Good flavor and has one heck of a kick.
WARNING: DO NOT USE LEAVES IN THEIR GREEN STATE OR EAT THE BERRIES AS THEY WILL CAUSE VOMITING AND DIARRHEA


Yucca, Carneros Giant Yucca carnerosana Location: limestone foothills approaching higher Mountians in Texas, though it is confined to Brewster County at altitudes of 2,700-6,300 feet. Also planted as a decoration along highways in the Trans-Pecos areas Culinary use: interior of trunks can be eaten . Immature flowers and fruit can be boiled or roasted.



Yucca, Datil Yucca baccata Location: dry plains and mesas at altitudes of 2,000-8,000 feet in Trans-Pecos region Culinary use: fruit cna be eaten raw, dried, or roasted



Yucca, Var. Yucca var. Location: several species are found in well drained areas statewide growing wild or cultivated as an ornament Flower: December-April Fruit: mature year round though most plentiful in late summer-fall Medical use: Leaves are used to jab snake bites to induce bleeding Seeds have purgative properties Culinary use: Flowers can be eaten raw, boiled, or pickled. Raw petals have a crisp lettus like taste. Fruit and sap is fermented into an alcoholic drink, baked in ashes, or eaten raw. Heart of young flowering stalk can be eaten boiled or roasted though this will kill the young plant. Seeds can be roasted or ground into meal. Other use: Roots can be used for soap, for body and clothes.



PLANTS AND WILDFLOWERS

Alfalfa Medicago sativa Location: cultivated for livestock use Culinary use: Sprouts can be eaten and the leaves used for tea. Contains many good minerals and vitamins as well as essential salts about 40% protein good for all ill health and recovering persons contains vitamin K, B8, and P. Good to provide better production from farm animals.

Barberry Berberis trifoliolata Location: central, south, and west Texas in arid soil Fruit: late spring Medical use: Tincture of bark treats colic, bilious attack, bladder affections, calculus, duodenum, dysmenorrhea, fevers, fistula, gallstones, herpes, irritation, jaundice, joint affections, leukorrhea, liver disorders, lumbago, opthalmia, oxaluria, polypus, renal colic, rheumatism, neuralgia of spermatic cords, spleen, tumors, urine, vaganismus. Root tea is good for a blood tonic, cough medicine, and kidney ailments, early stage tuberculosis, choleric, tetters, ringworm, and liver ailments. Liquid chewed from the root is placed on injuries and wounds, or washed with an decoction. A preparation of bark or berries can be a gargle for sore mouth and for chronic opthalmia. Extract is good for female genital organs, pain and inflammation of the gallbladder, increasing bile, and reducing high blood pressure. Dose: 1/2 oz to 1 pt boiling water, steep for 10 min., 1-4 c per day before meals, made fresh daily. Of tincture 1/2 - 1 fluid dram. Can be combined with fringe tree and cherry. Culinary use: Fruit can be used for jellies, raisins, but are too acidic for eating raw. To extract juice heat the berries in a close covered stone jar without water till the juice flows A drink can be made by adding lemon, mint, and sugar to the juice. Other use: yellow dye

Blackberry, Zarzamora Rubus trivialis Location: east, central, and southern Texas in thickets, along fences, etc.... Fruit: spring-summer Medical use: treats chronic diarrhea, dysentery, cholera, excessive menstruation, fevers, and hot distempers of the body, head, eyes, and other parts. Leaves when bruised treat hemorrhoids and when in tea form for sore throat. do not use wilted leaves A decoction of root or leaves may be used freely 4-5 times pre day. Dose: 1 tsp. of root or leaves to 1 c boiling water for 15 min., 3-4 per day depending on age Of tincture 1/2 - 1 dram, 3-4 times per day. Culinary use: Fruit is edible raw or cooked, aspics, brandy, jam, jelly, and vinegar.

Blue Flag Iris versicolor Location: Medical use: good for gastric disturbances, titration of resinoid, irisin for anus fissure of, bilious attack, constipation, crusta lactea, diabetes, diarrhea, dysentery, dysmenorrhea, dyspepsia, eczema, fistula, gastrodynia, intermittent headache, impetigo, liver affections of, migraine, neuralgia, nocturnal emissions, pancreas affections of, parotid glands affections of, pregnancy morning sickness, psoriasis, rectum burning in, rheumatism, salivation, sciatica, vomiting, whitlow, herpes zoster. External uses infected wounds, ulcers, fistula, and freckles. Fresh root pulp relieves external pain Tincture excites salivary and biliary excretions, the tincture is prepared from roots gathered in early spring or autumn 1 part root to 2 parts alcohol Dose: tincture 10-25 drops in water three times per day. Of powdered root 1 tsp in boiling water, 2-3 tbsp 6 times per day.
WARNING: DO NOT CONFUSE WITH THE DEADLY CALAMUS

Cardinal Flower Lobelia cardinalis Location: in most parts of the state in shady wetlands or beside streams Flower: Spring-Fall Medical use: Treats fevers, phrenitis, meningitis, pneumonia, pleurisy, hepatitis, peritonitis, nephritis, and periostitis. Convulsions can be treated with an injection of herb infusion. Plant should be gathered from late July - mid October, dried in the shade then preserved in packages or covered vessels, especially in powdered form. Should be administered with another drug, as alone it does not work. Dose: 1 oz to 1 pt boiling water makes ordinary infusion, 1 tbs. every hour or half hour. Weak infusion every 10 min. to relax the muscular system to aid in setting broken bones and dislocations. Or a cloth soaked in warm infusion is applied to the area.
WARNING: FOR USE BE PROFESSIONAL HERBALISTS ONLY.BE VERY CAREFUL IN ADMINISTRATION, DEATH HAS OCCURRED FROM OVERDOSES, NEVER GIVE WHEN THE SYSTEM IS RELAXED OR WHEN THERE IS CONGESTION.

Chickweed Stellaria media Location: in moist disturbed soils, common and weedy Medical use: Treats internal inflammation, liver ailments internally and externally. bronchitis, pleurisy, coughs, colds, hoarseness, rheumatism, inflammation or weakness of the bowels and stomach, lungs, bronchial tubes, scurvy, kidney trouble, to ease hemorrhoids, and to increase circulation in the liver, gout, and psoriasis. Externally used for swellings, weals, scabs, boils, burns, sore or inflamed eyes apply on cotton pads over closed eyes, erysipelas, tumors, hemorrhoids, cancer-swollen testes, ulcerated throat and mouth. Dose: 1 oz of plant to 1 1/2 pt of water simmered to 1 pt, one wineglass every 2-3 hours. Use externally as a poultice for inflamed surfaces, boils, and skin eruptions. Culinary use: leaves are good eaten raw or cooked like spinach

Cleavers Galium aparine Location: east, northeast, and south Texas in fields, gentle slopes, in woods, and along seashores Medical use: whole herb is used as a diuretic, tonic, refrigerant, alterative, and aperient. Good for urinary obstructions, cooling scarlet fever, measles, and acute fevers. Also used for weight loss 1/4 c of fresh herb or dried in 1/2 pt of boiling water Poultices are used for skin afflictions. Dose: 2-4 oz dried herb or 20-40 drops of the tincture in water given 3-4 times per day

Clover, Crimson Trifolium incarnatum Location: east Texas along the Louisiana and Oklahoma borders with an area stretching into central Texas. Grows in fields, along roadsides, and is very abundant. Medical use: Leaves are made into s strong infusion to suspend the spasms of whooping cough or into a salve for indolent sores. Culinary use: Leaves are good to add to salads, or as a tea. Clover is high in protein. You should dip the clover in salt water before using, and do not overindulge in clover as it causes bloating. Dried flowers can be used for tea.

Coneflower, purple Echinacea sanguina Location: in east Texas in sand or gravel in prairies, and pine forests. Flower: Late spring

Corydalis, Scrambled Eggs Corydalis var. Location: in sandy or rocky areas, prairies, fields, and woods Flower: Late winter

Damiana Turnera Turnera diffusa Location: western Texas Medical use: A decoction of leaves are used to treat dysentery, malaria, syphilitic diseases, pains in the stomach and intestines, dyspepsia, and paralysis. Diuretic, astringent, tonic, expectorant, and laxative properties.

Damianita Chrysactinia mexicana Location: central to west Texas and a small area near Laredo Flower: Spring-Fall Medical use: used for fever, rheumatism, and as a diuretic, sudorific, antispasmodic, and aphrodisiac NOTE: not to be confused with the official drug Damiana which is prepared from Turnera diffusa

Dandelion Taraxacum officinale Location: an invader in broken ground, lawns, and fields across Texas Flower: nearly year round Medical use: A mild detergent, aperient, and diuretic. Recommended for hepatic obstruction, hypochondriasis, and icterus. Fresh root is gathered in March, July, or November and is chopped and pounded to a pulp then pressed. The juice is then mixed with an equal part of alcohol and allowed to stand for eight days, the whole is then separated by filtration. Culinary use: The leaves can be used like greens, the flowers fried, or made into wine. Be sure to pick early in the spring, pick plants that have grown in the shade for bright sun makes the greens bitter. If they are bitter, then blanch before using. Roots can be roasted and used as a coffee substitute.

Farkleberry Vaccinium arboreum Location: east Texas as an understory shrub in dry sandy soil in pine and hardwood forests Fruit: fall Medical use: berries cool feverish liver and for stomach conditions. also in arresting vomiting and dropsy and gravel. To make tincture place 2-3 handfuls of bilberry in a bottle and pour brandy over them. Violent continuous diarrhea accompanied by great pain, sometimes with loss of blood, is stopped by taking 1 tablespoon of the brandy in 1/4 pint of water, may be repeated in 8-10 hours. for diarrhea, dysentery, and derangement's of the bowels, a decoction of the leaf tea will bring relief. Also as a gargle for sore throat and feminine hygiene for leukorrhea. May be similar to insulin for sugar diabetes. Dose: of leave 1 tsp to 1 c of boiling water. of the tincture 10-30 drops depending on the severity of the case and age.. Externally fresh tea is used for sores, wounds, and ulcers. Culinary use: The fruit is a little dry but good for jellies Other use: used to dye leather brown or yellow.

Fringe Tree Chionanthus virginicus Location: east Texas woodlands, thickets, and moist woods

Groundsel, Texas Senecio ampullaceus Location: east and south Texas along the gulf. usually in sunny, sandy soils and forming large colonies Flower: spring

Horehound Marrubium vulgare Location: disturbed soil, fields, farms, just about anywhere Flower: nearly year round

Linden, Basswood Tilia caroliniana Location: east and central Texas in moist soil along streams Flower: spring-summer

Mandrake, Mayapple Podophyllum peltatum Location: east Texas in lush forests, moist shady fields, growing in large colonies Flower: early spring

Milkweed, Green Asclepias asperula Location: north, central, and west Texas in sandy and rocky soil Flower: spring - fall Medical use: Juice when applied to the skin forms a tough adhesive pellicle and is used to cover ulcers and recent wounds Fluid extract 10 drops - 1 fluidrachm is used to treat amenorrhoea, dropsy, urine retention, asthma, dyspepsia, cough, and dyspnoea. Tincture is prepared by gathering fresh root in full vigor then pounding to a pulp. The pulp is then weighed and mixed with two parts by weight alcohol and let stand for eight days. The mix is then decanted, strained, and filtered. Culinary use: Young sprouts substitute for asparagus.

Mint  Location: Culinary use: Can add to salads or other foods Other use: an aromatic oil can be extracted

Mountain Pink Centaurium beyrichii Location: rocky limestone hills of central and southwestern parts of the state Flower: late spring into summer

Mullein Verbascum thapsus Location: in sunny disturbed ground, fields, and open woods statewide Flower: spring-fall

Nettle, Stinging Cnidosolus texanus Location: Culinary use: Young nettles are tender and require little cooking, high in vitamin A and C. Also up to 40% protein

Plantain, Heller's Plantago helleri Location: central and southwestern Texas in sand or gravel on hillsides Flower: Medical use: Used to treat pulmonary ailments. Decoction of roots is used to treat tertian intermittent 1-4 oz for chill Infusion of seeds in milk checks hemorrhages from mucous surfaces. Fibrous strings in the petioles are used for aching teeth when placed in the ear of the affected side and helps to treat the bites of venomous reptiles and insects. Tincture is prepared by gathering the plant when it is coming into flower and then pounded to a pulp. The pulp is weighed and twice its weight in alcohol is added, allowed to stand for eight days, and strained. Culinary use: Good in salad and high in vitamin A and C

Pokeweed, Small Rivina humilis Location: in south, west, and parts of north Texas in shade, woods, shrubs, and along streams in limestone soil.

Ragweed Ambrosia artemisiaefoila Location: Medical use: used to check discharges, mercurial ptyalism, leucorrhoea, and septic forms of diarrhea, dysentery, and enteritis. also an emmenagogue, febrifuge, and anthelmintic. The whole plant should be gathered at the height of the flowering season to retain pollen. Macerated for fourteen days in twice its weight of absolute alcohol, being kept in the dark and shaken twice a day. The tincture is then pressed, strained, and filtered.

Sage, Mealy Salvia farinacea Location: west, south, and parts of northern Texas in dry limestone soil Flower: spring-fall

Senna Cassia lindheimeriana Location: mainly in west Texas along the Rio Grande and south into Brownsville in dry limestone soil Medical use: used as a laxative, vermifuge, and cathartic to treat colic in infants, exaustion, nitrogenous wastes, sleeplessness, and sneezing. Dose: tincture 1-2 tbs.., of powder 10-20 grains, and of infusion 1/2 - 1c steeped 30 min. WARNING: DO NOT ADMINISTER IN INFLAMMATORY CONDITIONS

Skullcap Scutellaria drummondii Location: most of Texas except in the panhandle and east Texas Pineywoods Flower: late summer-winter

Silverleaf Nightshade Solanum elaeagnifolium Location: statewide in disturbed soils Flower: spring-fall Medical use: Treats cutaneous diseases, syphilitic conditions, excites venereal functions, leprosy, teeter, eczema, scrofula, rheumatic and cachectic affections, ill-conditioned ulcers, glandular swellings, obstructed menstruation, and as a treatment of cancers. Tea is taken 1-2 cups is good for skin/hair diseases and worms. Bark in vodka is taken a few drops at a time for heart disease Dose: 1 tsp. of cut or powdered leaf in 1 pt of boiling water and steep for 1/2 hour, 1 teaspoon full in 1 c of boiling water as required. Of the tincture 10-20 drops in water 3-4 times per day Externally 1 lb of bark is heated slowly in 1 lb of lard for 8 hours treats painful tumors, ulcers, irritated skin, piles, burns, scalds, etc...

Sunflower Helianthus annuus Location: statewide in fields and disturbed soil often covering large areas Flower: spring-fall Culinary use: seeds make flour and oil, or roasted. Oil is released by boiling till the oil floated to the top

Trillium, Red Trillium gracile Location: far east Texas along the Louisiana border in pine woods though locally diminishing Flower: spring Medical use: used as an astringent, restringent, pectoral, tonic, antiseptic, alterative. treats hematuria, uterine hemorrhage, metrorrhagia, hematemesis, leucorrhoea, menorrhoea, and restringent after parturition. Leaves boiled in lard is good for ulcers and tumors Root poultice is good for tumors, indolent and offensive ulcers, insect stings, and to restrain gangrene. Tincture of fresh root treats catarrh of bladder, climacteric, diabetes, dysentery, fainting with flooding, fibroma hemorrhages from, hemorrhages postpartum, antepartum, menorrhagia, metrorrhagia, writer's cramp. Roots are used as an aid to lessen pain during delivery. Tubers are used for external ulcers and inflammation A tincture is prepared from the tubers 1:2 by weight, the tincture is decanted off and a heavy cream sediment should remain Dose: useful in pulmonary conditions, root with slippery elm and lobelia Lobelia inflata in powder form 10-20 grains 1 tsp. of powdered root boiled in 1 pt of milk is good for diarrhea and dysentery 1 tsp of powdered root in 1 c boiling water 2-3 c per day

Verbena, Prairie Glandularia bipinnatifida Location: statewide in sunny, sandy or calcareous soil, forming colonies Flower: nearly year round, but mainly in the spring

Violet, Prairie Viola sororia, missouriensis Location: in east Texas except for a few colonies in north and west Texas. grows in moist woods along rivers and streams Culinary use: the entire plant can be eaten and is extremely rich in vitamin A and C. Very mild tasting. The flowers can be used to flavor foods such as vinegar, sugar, and drinks

Water-Lilly, White Nymphaea odorata Location: east Texas, a large aquatic plant rooted in mud, ponds, lakes, and slow moving streams Flower: spring-fall Medical use: A decoction of root are used for leucorrhoea, and a maceration in poultice form treats suppurating glands and styptic Juice of roots and lemons are used as a facial astringent to treat pimples Tincture is prepared from root gathered in the fall then chopped and pounded to a pulp then weighed. Two parts by weight of alcohol is added and stirred well. Then let sit for eight days and strained. Culinary use: Fresh leaves are boiled and eaten as greens Other use: fresh roots substitute for soap

Yarrow, Milfoil Achillea millefolium Location: north and northeast Texas in partial shade, fields and at the forest edge Flower: spring-summer

CACTI

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Agave, Century Plant Agave americana

Location: Native to Mexico, cultivated in Texas and escapes in West Texas
Medical use: Fresh juice is a laxative and diuretic. Leaves are counter irritant Gum can be used like gum arabic
Culinary use: The sap can be made into mescal or tequila. Mescal is made by cutting the central bud just before blooming and a hollow is made in the stalk, almost bowl shaped. The exuded sap is collected and allowed to ferment till milky. If allowed to ferment further, it will become vinegar. Tequila is made by taking the fermented sap and distilling it.


_____________________________________________________________
Agave, Harvard Agave havardiana

Location: scattered over the foothills and slopes of western Texas in the Chisos, Davis, and Sierra Blanca Mountains.
Culinary use: Mescal was made by baking crowns by either pit baking or refuse heap baking and then allowing them to ferment.


_____________________________________________________________
Agave, New Mexico Agave neomexicana

Location: In the vicinity of Pine Springs, just below the New Mexico line, on the slopes of the Guadalupe Mountains.
Culinary use: used by the Mescalero and Chiricahua Apache for food. Mescal is prepared by baking in a stone lined pit 10-12 ft in diameter and 3-4 ft deep. A large stone is set in the center and a charcoal cross drawn on it. A fire of oak and juniper is built in the morning and usually dies down by noon, then moist Bear grass Nolina microcarpa is laid on top and a small ceremony held. The tops are then added and covered by more moist grass and soil so that none of the steam can escape. Allowed to bake about 8-12 hours the pit is opened and checked to ensure even cooking and then covered and allowed to cook the rest of the day and into the next morning. The cooked tops can be made into meal or an alcoholic drink. To make the drink the inner portion is pounded and put into a pouch then buried for 2 days. The juice was then squeezed out and allowed to ferment for 2-3 more days. Another drink could be made by macerating the centers in water and allowing to ferment several days, then straining and boiling down the liquid to make a powerful alcoholic drink.






Cactus, Deerhorn Peniocereus greggii Location: Dry alluvial soil at altitudes of 2,000-4,000 feet in western Texas Medical use: Slices of the cactus are bound to the chest for chest colds Culinary use: In Mexico the tubers are sliced and fried

Prickly Pear, Lindheimer Opuntia lindheimeri Location: central south, and southern Edwards plateau Fruit: July-September Medical use: Poultice of young joints reduces inflammation, and a decoction of the joints is good for pulmonic and pleurutic afflictions. Tea made from the fruit -or- tuna helps gallstones Culinary use: The pads and joins can be eaten after burning off the spines Syrup can be made by boiling the ripe fruit and straining off the seed The boiled and fermented juice is known as "colonche" When the juice is boiled down to a paste it is known as "melcocha" Queso de tuna tuna cheese is prepared from a pulp of the fruit seed Other use: Juice of the joints is boiled with tallow to make hard candle wax




APPENDIX

FORMULA PREPARATION

Infusion
pouring near boiling water over herb and letting stand 5-10 min. works best for leaves and flowers, must be taken the same day

Decoctions
Simmering herb for at least 15 min. then straining
must be taken the same day

Maceration
steeping the herb in room temperature water for 12 hours and straining or pressing

Tinctures
made in the same way as macerations but using an alcohol/water mix. Either ethyl alcohol or diluted vodka stores well

Fluid extract
one part herb to one part alcohol

Teas
same as infusions, may be sweetened, but do not add milk

Juicing
large quantities of herb are needed.

Syrup
concentrated sugar solutions to make herbs more palatable and help to preserve infusions and decoctions. liquid is heated before adding sugar or honey
17 fluid ounces of liquid to 18 ounces of sweetener

Poultices
heating herbs with water and then applying under a wrap

Compress
made by soaking a cloth in hot infusion, decoction, or diluted tincture

Oils
Made by heating 9 oz of dried herb or 27 oz of fresh herb in 17 fl. oz. of oil in a double boiler for 2-3 hours
-or-
by filling a jar with herb and topping up with oil, covering for 2-3 weeks and renewing herb another 2-3 weeks
-or-
by adding 25-50 drops of essential oil to 100 ml. 5 tbsp. of oil

Ointments
made by heating herbs in petroleum jelly or other solid fat in a double boiler for about 2 hours then straining while still hot
2 1/2 oz of dried herb to 18 oz of fat

Powders
ground dried herbs. can be mixed with milk or water or mixed with oil or honey




VOLUME AND MEASUREMENT CONVERSION GUIDE

Apothecaries Weight (Dry Measure

US and Metric Equivalent
1 grain =

0.06 grams
1 scruple = 20 grains = .33 dram = 1.20 grams
1 dram = 3 scruples = 60 grains = 3.89 grams
1 ounce = 8 drams = 480 grains = 31.1 grams
1 pound = 12 ounces = 5760 grains= 373.2 grams


Liquid Capacity

US and Metric Equivalent
minim =

0.062 milliliter
fluid dram = 60 minims =
3.69 milliliters
fluid ounce = 8 fluid drams =
29.57 milliliters
gill = 4 fluid ounces = 1/2 cup = 118.29 milliliters
32 fluid drams =

0.24 liter
pint = 16 fluid ounces = 4 gills = 0.47 liter
quart = 32 fluid ounces = 2 pints = 0.95 liter
gallon = 4 quarts = 8 pints = 3.79 liters
teaspoon =

5 milliliters
tablespoon = 3 teaspoons =
15 milliliters





BIBLIOGRAPHY



Bown, Deni. American Herb Society of America, Encylopedia of Herbs and their Uses.

New York: Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc., 1995.



Enquist, Marshall. Wildflowers of the Texas Hill Country.

Austin, Texas: Lone Star Botanical, 1987.



Hutchens, Alma R. A Handbook of Native American Herbs.

Boston, Mass.: Shambhala Publications Inc., 1992.



Millspaugh, Charles F. American Medicinal Plants.

New York: Dover Publications, 1974.



Tull, Delena and George Oxford Miller. A Field Guide to Wildflowers, Trees, and Shrubs of

Texas.

Houston, Texas: Gulf Publishing Co., 1991.



Vines, Robert A. Trees of East Texas.

Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1977.



Vines, Robert A. Trees of Central Texas.

Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1977.



Vines, Robert A. Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines of the Southwest.

Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1960.



Williams, Kim. Eating Wild Plants.

Missoula, Montana: Mountain Press Publishing Co., 1984.




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