Mountain Folk Remedies: The Foxfire Americana Library (9) Read Online Free Page A

Southern Appalachian Mountains, this plant is called queen of the meadow, a fitting name for this stately herb. It blooms August through September.
    Native Americans had several uses for this plant. The one we found most interesting: a brave who was courting a young woman was assured of success if he stuck a wad of this plant in his mouth before he went visiting.
    Charles Thurmond described his experience with this plant by saying, “Joe-Pye weed is very close to boneset, and because of this, it can be used for fevers and such. I have found that a tablespoon for a child and two tablespoons for an adult is usually enough. Once, my grandmother saved one of my older uncles’ lives by breaking his fever.”
    I LLUSTRATION 14 Lily-of-the-Valley
    Lily-of-the-Valley
(Convallaria majalis)
grows in clumps in wooded, damp places. Now rare, this plant was used for headaches—you could sniff it or put it on the back of your neck. It has two green leaves with a white stalk of bell-shaped flowers. The flowers are very fragrant. This plant is dangerous and should not be used internally.
    Linden Tree
(Tilia americana)
enjoys rich forestland in the mountains. It can grow to 125 feet tall, with a trunk diameter of 5 feet. Leathery leaves are pointed, toothy, and have one- or two-inch stems. Spring brings abundant flowers, which are yellowish in color, clustered, and fragrant. Collected from this tree are the bark and the flowers, which should be dried in the shade.
    As a remedy for “risings” [boils], use the inside surface of the bark to draw them to a head. A tea made from the flowers is used as a remedy for a stomachache.
    Liverwort
(Hepatica americana)
likes wooded areas and blooms in early spring. Its flowers, which arrive in April, stand on stems four to six inches tall. There are no petals, only five to nine sepals that protect the reproductive parts of the plant. The sepals of the
Hepatica
are delicate and usually pink, white, or lilac. Hairy, soft stalks of the plant spread along the ground. The leaves are leathery, thick, and round or kidney-shaped.
    Liverwort is gathered in April for the leaves. It is believed to be medicine for the liver.
    Maidenhair Fern
(Adiantum pedatum)
has wiry black stems with light green foliage and reaches a height of two feet. It is rarely found in poor soil. It was used mainly as a medicine for women.
    Marie Mellinger wrote, “The soft fern is maidenhair. This dainty wildling is found growing near mountain trees and waterfalls with slender black stems and horseshoe-shaped fronds of palest green. Maidenhair has been a fever medicine, and the shiny black roots are sold under the name ‘Capillaire.’ It was also used for rheumatism. With agrimony and broomstraw
(Andropogon)
and ground ivy, maidenhair could give one vision to see witches. Called ‘dudder-grass,’ this fern made a mucilage for stiffening hair—or, as Gerard, an English botanist, said, ‘It maketh the hairs of the head to grow that is fallen or pulled off.’ ”
    Mustard
(Brassica)
has several different plants in the mustard family. Although not native to the Southern Appalachian region, some of those that grow in the area are winter cress, spring cress, tansy, black mustard, field mustard, and charlock. Some varieties enjoy damp areas, while others like drier soil. Most have clusters of green leaves near the base of the plant with a single, long stem rising to two feet in height. Most varieties have small flowers in varying shades of yellow. (For photos of this plant, see
Foxfire 2
, pages 74 and 80, and
Foxfire 3
, page 344.)
    As a remedy for headache, pour hot water over mustard leaves toarouse their odor and strength. Bind these leaves in a cheesecloth poultice to the head.
    I LLUSTRATION 15 New Jersey Tea
    New Jersey Tea
(Geanothus)
reaches two feet in height. The flowers are showy, puffy clusters. A tea made from the leaves was once a popular beverage. Native Americans used the root tea for colds, fevers, snakebites,