Empress Tree – Paulownia tomentosa

Empress Tree Flowers

The Princess tree was introduced into the U.S. as an ornamental and landscape tree around 1840. It was first imported to Europe in the 1830′s by the Dutch East India Company and brought to North America a few years later. This tree has since become naturalized in the eastern U.S. and is also grown on the west coast

Princess tree is native to western and central China where historical records describe its medicinal, ornamental, and timber uses as early as the third century B.C. It was cultivated centuries ago in Japan where it is valued in many traditions.

The flowers have a delicate sweet fragrance. Flower aroma is reminiscent of vanilla

In China, an old custom is to plant an Empress Tree when a baby girl is born. The fast-growing tree matures when she does. When she is eligible for marriage the tree is cut down and carved into wooden articles for her dowry. Carving the wood of Paulownia is an art form in Japan and China.

Trumpet Creeper – Campsis radicans

Lipstick Vine

This easily grown vine has been cultivated in North America since Colonial times. The root is diaphoretic and vulnerary

The tubular flowers and large quantities of nectar produced by the trumpet creeper are attractants for hummingbirds and butterflies. The vines also provide habitat to ants, and birds like to nest in the vines

The showy flowers of trumpet creeper make this plant appropriate for some gardening and landscaping needs. It is often used as a cover for fences, arbors, walls, pillars or large trellises and as a groundcover. The cigar-like fruit may be considered decorative during winter

Ants inhabit the blossoms – or perhaps they’re shopping for nectar. At any rate if you cut trumpet vines for indoor arrangements go over them carefully to flush out any creature that may be lurking within the trumpet’s depths.

Catalpa tree – Catalpa speciosa

Catalpa seedpods

catalpa flower showing the calyx

The name derives from the Catawba Native American name catawba for these trees (the tribal totem), with the spelling Catalpa being due to a transcription error on the part of the describing botanist (Scopoli) making the first formal scientific description of the genus.

Historically catalpa wood has been valued for manufacturing fence posts. Pioneer doctors used the seedpods and seed to make a decoction for chronic bronchial infections, spasmodic asthma, labored breathing, and heart conditions

In Japan — the magical bow Azusa-Yumi is called the “bow made from the catalpa tree”.

A silly note: as children my brother, his friends, and I would take the seedpods, and pretend they were cigars. We would puff happily all day on a single seedpod! Until one day when someone got really smart and brought along a lighter. We lite one up and passed it around. Dizziness and nausea hit immediately, and put an end to such silly play!

American White Waterlily – Nymphaea odorata

These flowers are scented with a tint of rose, being the strongest in the morning. The flower buds (before the flowers open) are eaten cooked as a vegetable or pickled. The young flowers and leaves can be added to a salad, soup, or stew.

American White Waterlily - pink type

The Eastern Native American used it as food and medicine. The roots were used as a poultice for tumors, it was used internally as well as externally. The leaves and flowers were used as a cooling compress

American White Waterlily

Yellow Pond Lily or Spatterdock – Nuphar lutea

This aquatic plant has large floating leaves, and yellow, globular flowers. It is a perennial which is considered Endangered in Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, and Ohio.

This lily was a source of food and medicine for the Native Americans. These flowers are reported to have a brandy like scent. Native Americans consumed the starchy rootstocks as boiled or roasted vegetables and harvested the seed for grinding into flour

The roots are anaphrodisiac, anodyne, antiscrofulatic, astringent, cardiotonic, demulcent and sedative. Caution should be exercised because large doses are potentially toxic.

They are very important for the ecosystem since they provide shade for fish and cover from predators. They are a home for tons of tiny creatures, like the bonnet worm, which are then eaten by fish. Also, larger animals like beavers, muskrats, and deer eat different parts of the plants

Indian Pipes – Monotropa uniflora

Indian Pipes

About 1/3 of our acre is left natural. In the woods at the base of a rotted tree stump I found these plants. As ghostly as they look, they need the moist duskiness of the woods to grow. These plant carry many names…Ghost plant, Indian Pipes, Corpse Plant…all of them are very descriptive!

It was on my 59th birthday that Gaia gave me the wonderful gift of sighting these rare beauties. I had learned about these very rare plants back when I was 12 years old and at Girl Scout Camp…. I never really expected to see them. You can imagine my surprise when I found these in my backyard!

This plant lacks chlorophyll. It gains its nutrients from a relationship with a fungus and with a tree. It either takes what it needs from a decaying stump (as mine is) or from a fungus that has attached itself to a tree. Many fungi and trees have this type of relationship — it’s called a “mycorrhizal relationship,” but the introduction of another plant into the chain is unusual.

In the past this plant was eaten, it reportedly tastes like asparagus when cooked, or tasteless when raw. The Cherokee Indians of North America pulverized the root and gave it for the treatment of epilepsy and convulsions. When it is made into a tincture, the color of the tincture is a dark blue, and the smell is like pickling vinegar!

It is not the regular garden plant, but I think I will keep the natural section of the yard for gifts like this one!

Lipiope – Liriope muscari

Liriope flower

This is one of the plants that an Elderly neighbor gifted me with this summer. Her husband had dug out tons of it and wanted it gone! My husband and I have been trying to find enough places for it this year.

The plant is very hardy, and nothing seems to kill it! I have some in a bucket, not planted for 7 or 8 weeks now…and found them blooming this week!!!

What surprised me while researching it was it’s medicinal uses. Looking at it I expected it to be less valuable! But the Koreans used it as a tonic to increase stamina. The root has been used as an anti inflammatory, a pectoral (Useful in relieving disorders of the chest or respiratory tract), a stimulant (temporarily arouses or accelerates physiological or organic activity), and an aphrodisiac (stimulating sexual arousal).

There is one reference I found for this plant as a food plant…The root may be eaten after cooking. The root sometimes have a fleshy, tuberous part near their tip (presumably, this is the part eaten)

Butterfly Weed – Asclepias tuberose

Butterfly weed

Butterfly Weed or Pleurisy Root is a smaller member of the Milkweed family. It is said that the plant hates its roots disturbed, so does not transplant well; but I have transplanted several roots, with two definite successes! I first noticed this plant in a field opposite my house back in the early 1970’s. I really liked it then, but after my kids grew up and my youngest daughter earned her Native American name (loosely translates into Butterfly Woman) I fell in love with it!

Yellow Butterfly Weed

In the 19th Century Butterfly Weed was listed as an official medicine in the American Pharmacopoeia from 1820 to 1905. As its other common name implies (Pleurisy Root) has been used in lung diseases and complaints. In bronchitis, pleurisy, and pneumonia it reduces inflammations, and assists in expectoration of mucous. The Cherokee Indians of North America used a root tea to treat diarrhea and heart conditions as well as the lung complaints.

Daylily – Hemerocallis fulva

The species name means “beautiful for a day,” and it is so true. Each flower only lasts a day, it then withers away; a new flower will replace it on the marrow. This is another of the plants an elder neighbor gifted us with this year. I was completely surprised when they flowered not 2 weeks after transplant. They are extremely hardy and spread by stolons underground. If left undisturbed they will make large colonies of plants.

I have placed some in shade at the edge of the trees that line the property border; they will bloom less abundantly, but will naturalize the area well.

In China and Japan they are used to treat cancer, arsenic poisoning, uterine bleeding, vaginal yeast infections, as a diuretic and to treat urinary tract disorders. The fresh flowers can be added to a salad; the buds can be added to stir fry, mixed veggies, and added to soups or stews. All parts of the daylily are edible, and have been cultivated for thousands of years in Asia for food and medicine.

Not only are these plants beautiful, they are healthy in many ways. With the exception of cats; daylilies are harmful to the kidneys of domestic cats.

One Year Old!

Tobacco - Nicotiana tabacum

It is July 27^th and I am one year old! On July 25^th, 2009 I smoked my last cigarette! I had been smoking since 1979, and had tried to quit smoking on several occasions; but to no avail. According to the American Cancer Society, one-year smoke free lessens my chances of another heart attack by 50%! Now that was a great reason to quit!

How did I do it? How was I finally able to put this drug behind me? Most of it was my state of mind. My Cardiologist told me 6 weeks after my heart attack that if I didn’t quit smoking that instant, that I did not need to ever waste his time again! Well…. that only made me walk away from his lousy bedside manner, and continue to smoke. In fact I probably smoked more for a while because of his poor judgment.

Three years later I had made up my mind to finally quit, my health was failing again (this time I could see it!) I was experiencing more times that I needed to take the Nitrostat for chest discomfort and my stamina had gone away, I couldn’t walk any distance at all. And I was getting scared. So I started to research my options.

I first checked out the plant Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) and was convinced it is not the devil many would have you believe it to be. It is used as medicine and the leaves are even edible! Although Nicotine is present in every part of the plant it is still not the worst culprit out there. The Cigarette industry puts approximately 599 chemicals into the finished product. And now by state law (in many places) they are adding even more chemicals to make the cigarrettes go out if you do not puff often enough! Some of the chemicals added are:

            Benzene – a petrol additive

            Formaldehyde – embalming fluid

            Ammoinia – a cleansing agent, often found in dry cleaning fluids

            Acetone – nail polish remover

            Arsenic – used in rat poison

            Hydrogen Cyanid – A poison used in gas chambers

There are over 4,000 chemicals in cigarettes. Between 51 and 69 of them are known to be carcinogenic.

Then I talked my husband into quitting with me. It has been proven that if you quit with someone else your chances of actually succeeding goes up significantly. You also need to enlist family and friends as back up. They need to stand with you, to take your phone calls at rough moments and help you through that time period.

We also chose to do over-the-phone counseling with the American Cancer Society. Some hospitals offer group counseling for quitting the cigarette addiction also. Many doctors suggest adding nicotine replacement therapies such as nicotine patches, Nicotine Spray, Nicotine Inhalers, nicotine gum, or the Lozenges. There are other medicines that can be taken to help with the withdrawal process, such as Zyban or Chantix (both by prescription only).

We tried the patches, but found that in the heat of summer they were useless…they didn’t stick!

What I did do differently than anyone else I have spoken to is to put Aromatherapy to work. When I was feeling the urge, I would inhale the scent of Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) Essential Oil. Lavender Essential Oil is known for its ability to remove or reduce nervous tension and irritability. To try this you place one drop of the essential oil in the palm of one hand. Now rub your hands together to warm the oil, cup your hands, and place around your nose. Inhale deeply and relax!

Other natural ways to reduce the anxiety level may be the use of either, Valerian (Valeriana officinal) or St. John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum). The Valerian acts as a calmative while going through withdrawal. St. John’s Wort works as an anti-anxiety and antidepressant, making it very useful during quitting for many people. Oat Straw (Avina sativa) is an excellent nerve tonic, soothing the central nervous system.

Another plant that can be useful in cutting the addiction is Indian Tobacco (Lobelia inflata). If it is taken in tincture form (and mixed with water) it causes the body to reject the nicotine when you inhale tobacco. It causes nausea and in severe cases even vomiting. Warning: People with heart disease, high blood pressure, tobacco sensitivity, paralysis, seizure disorder, shortness of breath, or who are recovering from shock should not take this herb.

Some products available for quitting that are made of herbs are:

Stop Smoking Tea by Health King (Licorice [Glycyrrhiza glabra], Peppermint [Mentha × piperita], Green Tea [Camellia sinensis] and jasmine flower [Jasminum sambac])

Smoke Free tablets by Boericke & Tafel (Caladium [Caladium Seguinum],  Spurge Larel [Daphne Indica], Valerian [Valeriana Officinalis])

Crave-Rx Drops by Native Remedies (Wild Oats [Avina sativa], Malabar tamarind [Garcinia cambogia], Gotu Cola [Centella asiatica]

After one-year smoke free I have noticed great improvements in my overall health. I can now walk the dog without either chest pain or being winded! I can walk around the botanic garden I like to visit for hours at a time, with my only complaint being my legs are tired! I still get those urges for a cigarette, but they are getting fewer and farther apart!