The medicinal or remedio uses referenced in
this text are solely to inform the reader of the traditional and
historical folkways of the people of New Mexico. This information
is not medical advice. Always consult your physician before using
any medicinal product.
A binomial ("bi" = two, "nomial" = name)
consists of Genus & species and forms the basis for any
taxonomical (classification of living organisms) system
(including plants, animals, fungi, bacteria, viruses, and
protists). If the first part of the name matches in any two
plants, they are closely related (same Genus). If the second part
of any two plant names match it only means they share that
characteristic, it does not mean they are the same species or
even distantly related.
The taxonomy of plants on this page is displayed in the following
way:
A heavily-branched, weedy, 1- to 6-foot [30.5 to 182.9 cm] tall
annual with inconspicuous greenish flowers crowded in leaf axils
or at the ends of stems, and an edible and nutritious seed.
Mostly a spindly plant with a mealy or glandular surface,
goosefoot tends to appear around ruins and waste lands after the
summer rains.
The varieties of goosefoot that have triangular or rhombic leaves
[ C. album, a European variety], Quelite Salado, are known as Lamb's
Quarters, and C. ambrosioides,Pazote, is known as Mexican tea. C. botrys is Yerba del Chivatito. C.
graveolins is Yerba de Zorillo.
Goosefoot seeds were another important source of food in the
world of "The Ancient Pubelo People.1
It is one of the important wild greens available in New Mexico throughout the
summer. In more recent times it is the goosefoot greens, boiled or fried, that
are consumed.
Groundcherry [Physalis spp.]
including New Mexico Groundcherry [P.
foetens], [P. hederaefolia], [P. subulata var. neomexicana] known as Tomate del Campo, and Virginia Groundcherry
[P. virginiana] known as
Tomatillo
Groundcherries like to grow in canyon bottoms
and slopes that are somewhat disturbed. They grow to about 2 feet [61.0 cm]
in height, and have nodding, five-sided yellow flowers with dark
centers, and paper-lantern-like seed husks that enclose a single
pea-size edible berry.
P. ixocarpa or P.
philadelphica, a native of Mexico and used in ancient
times, this tomatillo completely fills the paper lantern husk
that is characteristic of Physalis with 1 to 2-inch [2.5 to 5.1 cm] diameter
little green tomatoes. They have a tart flavor that becomes more
complex when cooked. Tomatillos are an important ingredient of
salsa verde.
Groundcherry fruits have been collected and eaten for well over a
thousand years. The orange or red berry may be eaten raw or
cooked.
An 18-inch [45.7 cm] tall many-branched herb on which, in mid to late
summer, the ball-like yellow disk flowers glisten with a milky goo, also exuded
by the leaves and stem. If you see gumweed growing you are looking at wasteland;
it is common along roads and on heavily grazed land.
Gumweed tea has been used to treat kidney problems, stomachaches,and sores and
abrasions. It is reported that at Cochiti the blossom was applied directly to an
aching tooth. There is some evidence of the prehistoric use of gumweed seeds as
food, but little is known of this.
Horse Nettle [Solanum elaeagnifolium]
Tomatillo del Campo
A two- to three-foot [61 to 91.4 cm] tall prickly herb with
dull green leaves, the Horse Nettle bears all-summer-long bright purple flowers
with 5 yellow-orange stamens, and then globelike juicy berries that go from green to
yellow to orange to brown to black as the season progresses. The Horse Nettle
prefers recently disturbed land and is common along roadsides. Closely related to
the wild potato, but lacks a root tuber.
Dried and powdered Horse Nettle berries are reported to have been used as snuff
at Cochiti, and a brew of plant parts has been used to treat stomach ailments
and to sustain milk flow for nursing mothers. Until recently the berries were
used as rennet to produce cheese.
A native, southwestern, warm season perennial bunchgrass up
to two feet [61.0 cm]tall, producing an open cluster of 2-bract (paired arms)
seed heads, each containing a single seed, in the spring or early summer. The
seeds are relatively high in protein.
Indian Ricegrass seeds do not easily germinate; in nature they do best if scarred
(by chewing) and soaked in an acid environment (partially digested), yet another
example of a plant that has evolved to take advantage of the animals around it.
If you want to grow your own Indian Ricegrass you should try to imitate nature.
First scar the seeds by rubbing them with sandpaper, and then soak them for a day
in a very weak acid solution. Finally, plant them in soil that has good drainage.
Ricegrass prefers semi-arid environments where it grows in pockets of dry, sandy
soil on the mesas and in arroyo bottoms.
It is likely that this grass was very common on the open plains before the advent
of heavy grazing of the rangelands by cattle and sheep, which began about 1870.
Archaeological evidence indicates that before the arrival of corn (maize) Indian
ricegrass was possibly the most important wild cereal, and it continued to be
eaten even after corn became the main subsistence food. It is not commonly eaten
today.
S. cryptandrus, Sand dropseed, a related
plant, prefers sandy disturbed land, where it grows up to three feet [91.4 cm]
tall. All the heads of a field of sand dropseed curve in the same direction.
The seed is smaller than Indian ricegrass but still quite large. In Archaic times
dropseed was an important food source. See needlegrass for an
alternate sacaton.
Indian Tea [Thelesperma megapotamicum]
also known as Greenthread, Cota
This slender plant with sparse pairs of threadlike leaves
often grows on grassy flats in patches up to two feet [61.0 cm] high, and is
topped all summer long by petalless golden flower heads.
This is one of the most popular wild consumables in the Southwest, producing a
popular green tea. The stems and flowers are dried for use throughout the year.
It has been used at Cochiti for colds and at Santo Domingo for gastric or muscle
cramps.
Jimsonweed [Datura meteloides] or
Sacred Datura Toloache
An annual plant that prefers dry disrupted locations such as
roadsides, vacant lots, and low arroyos. A large-leafed sprawling plant with
6- to 8-inch [15.2 to 20.3 cm] white trumpet flowers, which bloom in the evening
and often last into the next day, and spiny fruit. All parts of this plant contain
alkaloid poisons.
In Nahuatl it is called toloatzin,"nodding head",
because of the plant's inclined pods.
The name jimsonweed comes from "Jamestown weed", a name the plant
earned during the Revolutionary War when General George Washington's troops
bivouacked at Jamestown were accidentally served a preparation of this plant. The
troops were incapacitated for several days.
The roots, leaves, and flowers were ground and applied to wounds or skin
infections. Jimsonweed has important ceremonial associations with many Indian
tribes, the reason it is known as Sacred Datura.
A relatively tall, often over 18 inches [45.7 cm], very deep-rooted
perennial bunchgrass with round, hollow stem -- the culm. In late summer bluestem
can be very colorful, with red-purple-brown stems and silvery seed heads.
Little bluestem requires less water than big bluestem,
A.gerardii. Big bluestem grows in low spots where moisture collects, up
to six feet tall in bunches two feet or more wide. Little and big bluestem
grasses were important forage for cattle in the old West.
In the old days, including those days before "the old West", brooms or
brushes were made from the culms of bluestem.
Almost all milkweed species in New Mexico have milky sap,
flowers composed of five erect hooded structures borne in showy clusters, and
long distinctive fruit pods which enclose seeds with long silky hairs. Flowers
range from greenish-white to pink and orange.
The drought-tolerant Antelope Horns flowers are green and pink,with dark striping
in the raised center, and the long narrow leaves are shaped like antelope horns.
The green milkweed pods may be eaten raw, as may the fleshy root. The milk was
allowed to thicken and then chewed. Milkweed products are sold today at health
food stores. Traditional uses included treatment for respiratory problems and for
difficultly in labor. Milkweed fibers have been identified in prehistoric
textiles.
A. subverticillata, Lechones, a narrow-leafed species of
milkweed, is poisonous.
Needlegrass [Stipa neomexicana]
Popotón or
Sacatón or New Mexico Feathergrass
A relatively tall, often over 18 inches [45.7 cm] , large-grained
perennial bunchgrass with round and hollow stem, or culm. The seeds are needlelike,
and can poke or lodge in animal fur. There are several related species.
Also S. comata, Needle-and-Thread Grass, called this
because of the sharp needle seed and its six-inch [15.2 cm] long thread, which
hygroscopically [coils or uncoils from changes in humidity] "drills"
the seed into the soil.
S. robusta, Sleepygrass or Popotón
, grows up to five feet [152.4 cm] in height. Its name comes from its
effect on cattle.
S. wrightii, Sacaton, has leaves up
to four feet long and branched feather-like seed heads that may be seven feet
tall. S. airoides, Alkali sacaton, a bunchgrass with bluish
leaves, growing up to 5 feet [152.4 cm] tall.
S. tennuissima, Threadgrass, up to 2.5 feet [76.2 cm]
tall with silvery-gold seed heads.
S. neomexicana, New Mexico Feathergrass, grows 30 to 40
inches [76.2 to 101.6 cm] tall. It is found on dry ridge crests where there is
little grass cover. Its seeds were an important food source, and is associated
with prehistoric habitations.
From the Nahuatl Popotl, for the livestock-edible variety,
also known as "sleepy grass" for its mildly narcotic effect, and
Zacatl for the tougher variety used for rough brooms. Small
bundles of Popote stalks tied crosswise in a small
cloth bag with other ingredients are worn as a talisman against
witches. See Sand dropseed for an alternate sacaton.
Related to Old World lovage [Angelica spp.],
Oshá is eaten as a green celery-like vegetable.
Possibly the best-known herb in historic New Mexico, Oshá is used to treat
practically everything. The root, chewed, soothes mouth irritations, and in a tea
is a treatment for colds and flu, and in powder form is used to make a cough
syrup.
Probably most important is the reputed power of sprigs of oshá as a
talisman against everything from rattlesnake bites to the curses of witches.
Russian Thistle is a rounded, bushy, many-branched annual up
to 4 feet [121.9 cm] in height. The flowers are green and inconspicuous, and the
leaves are tipped with a sharp point. It is a very prolific producer of seeds.
Imported from Europe and widely spread over ruins, roadsides, and other disturbed
land, it is sometimes called 'tumbleweed'.
Alkali sacaton is a 2- to 5-foot [61.0 to 152.4 cm] tall
perennial bunchgrass with bluish-green leaves. Sacaton establishes easily in
alkaline or sandy soils, where it is a good stabilizer, but it is not particularly
drought tolerant. It requires some water at least seasonally. For desert travelers
the presence of Sacaton is an indicator of good water within a few feet of the surface.
Its seeds were an important source of food in ancient times.
Scorpionweed [Phacelia spp.],
including [P. corrugata] and New Mexico Scorpionweed
[P. neomexicana]
A small plant whose sticky glistening leaves are lobed along
the margins, and whose curled stem is lined with minute bell-shaped violet
flowers with protruding filaments. Scorpionweed thrives in dry barren soils.
The roots and leaves of scorpionweed, powdered and mixed with water, are applied
directly to sprains, swellings, and rashes.
This relatively tall perennial bunchgrass with round and
hollow stems -- the culm -- is a native, southwestern, warm season perennial.
Seeds are borne in two parallel rows on the same side of the flowering stalk,
hence the name. Side-Oats grama is extremely common on the rocky slopes of the
Cerrillos Hills. It also grows well on alluvial soils.
Individual plants are commonly 15 to 30 inches [38.1 to 76.2 cm] tall, which makes
Side-Oats Grama the tallest of the grama grasses. The growing season for Side-Oats
Grama begins earlier in the spring than Blue Grama, and lasts later into the fall as well.
Brooms or brushes were made from the culms of this grass.
- Poaceae -
Black Grama [B. eriopoda]
- Poaceae -
Blue Grama [B. gracilis]
A 6- to 18-inch [15.2 to 45.7 cm] tufted or clumping sod-forming
grass with small seed spikes. Primary reproduction is by means of creeping
horizontal stems above or below ground.
Blackfeet Indians used Blue Grama as a predictor of the coming winter based on
the number of spikes per stalk. One spike meant a mild winter and three a severe
winter.
Imported from Europe into the US in the early 1900s as cattle
fodder -- approximating alfalfa in nutritional value for cattle, horses, sheep
and goats -- the many-branched 1- to 6-foot [30.5 to 182.9 cm] tall annual has
prospered. Kochia's deep root system makes it resistant to drought -- it can
survive on as little as 7 inches [17.8 cm] of rain per year. Kochia is able to
germinate in low soil temperatures and the seedling is very resistant to cold.
Its main stem is sometimes tinged in red. It has stalkless narrow leaves and
inconspicuous flowers.
Great expanses of Kochia regularly blanket abandoned habitation sites, especially
ancient ruins or 'melted adobe' structures such as the San Marcos Pueblo site
two miles east of the Cerrillos Hills.
Wafer Parsnip [Cymopterus bulbosus, C. montanus,
C. purpureus, C. acaulis] also known as Wild Parsley,
Chimajá
A small early-spring perennial herb one to two inches high,
[2.5 to 5.1 cm] with dull deep green dissected leaves and tiny purple flowers
gathered at the ends of short stalks - called "umbles." The seeds set in the
late spring or early summer.
Used raw as an appetizer or fresh or dried as seasoning.
C. acaulis, with yellow flowers, and sugar was used in
whiskey to create a fiesta-time cordial called mestela.
See wild celery.
Wild Buckwheat [Eriogonum jamesii]
also known as Antelope sage. Colita de Rata
A perennial up to one foot [30.5 cm] tall, favoring dry rocky
slopes, Wild buckwheat or Antelope sage has a basal whorl of grayish spoon-shaped
leaves. Creamy white flowers form in clusters on the stem.
Several members of the buckwheat family are known to contain saponin, a slightly
toxic substance that can lead to severe stomach upset if eaten, and thus it has
long been used as an emetic or for treatment of stomachaches. Nonetheless, from
the archaeological evidence wild buckwheat appears to have been a fairly important
food plant in the world of "The Ancient Pueblo People1.
Note also E. annuum, Annual Buckwheat, a gray wooly tall
plant topped with sprays of tiny white flowers. Becomes pink in the autumn.
E. corymbosum, Buckwheat Brush, white lacy masses of
flowers atop a two-foot [61.0 cm] tall woody branches that turn reddish-brown in
the autumn.
E. umbellatum, Sulfur Buckwheat, summertime bright yellow
clusters of flowers that hold their color when dried. Foliage smooth and green
above, hairy underneath. Bees love this plant.
A small early-spring perennial herb one to two inches
[2.5 to 5.1 cm] high, found in the sandy soil among the stones, with glossy deep
green dissected leaves and tiny yellow flowers gathered at the ends of short
stalks - called "umbles." The seeds set in late spring or early summer.
Both the leaves and the crunchy root taste like celery. Used raw as an appetizer
or fresh or dried as seasoning. See Wafer Parsnip.
A low herbaceous non-prickly plant closely related to the
Horse-Nettle, common to old clearings, old habitation sites and other disturbed
land, with smooth-margined leaves, mostly paired, and white flowers.
The mildly alkaloid-toxic cherry-sized tubers must be cooked and are usually
peeled before eating.
Yerba Mansa [Anemopsis californica]
also known as Manso or Swamp Root
Growing to a height of 18-inches [45.7 cm], Yerba Mansa is
common in wet, alkaline seeps across most of the Southwest. It prefers moist ground,
but with its wide-spread roots can tolerate dry conditions. The leaves are large
and patterned. The floresence is composed of a raised center of tiny flowers
surrounded by white bracts.
Yerba mansa is possibly the most widely known and most respected of all medicinal
plants.
This herb is prepared as a very bitter tea used as a gargle and to treat stomach
disorders. As a rub Manso is used to treat arthritis, rheumatism, cuts, scrapes,
and hemorrhoids.
This website is maintained by the Cerrillos
Hills Park Coalition
and is dedicated to the creation, enhancement and stewardship
of an historical, recreational, and cultural open space in
the
Cerrillos Hills, Santa Fe County, New Mexico, USA
Also S. comata, Needle-and-Thread Grass, called this
because of the sharp needle seed and its six-inch [15.2 cm] long thread, which
hygroscopically [coils or uncoils from changes in humidity] "drills"
the seed into the soil.
