Native Plants Then and Now

By Sandy K. Johnson, Extension Master Gardener

Master gardeners enthusiastically sing the praises of native plants. For Native Americans, there was no question of the value of the native flora and fauna that thrived here.

Native Americans cultivated, foraged, and preserved plants for thousands of years in food traditions that remained largely unchanged until Europeans arrived 400 years ago.

The indigenous people shared their knowledge of native plants with the newcomers from Europe. Lacking a wide range of plants in their diet, the colonists learned to capitalize on the resources at hand.

“For the first half of the 17th Century, Virginia was dominated by Powhatan culture. The colonists, half-starving and ill-prepared for the new world, relied heavily on native expertise,” writes Timothy W. Cameron in “The Role of Plant Foods Among Native Americans in Seventeenth-Century Virginia An Historical and Botanical Study,” (master’s thesis, Old Dominion University).

Captain John Smith, a founder of the first permanent English settlement in North America at Jamestown, described the Native practices: “for neere 3 parts of the yeare, they only observe times and seasons, and live of[f] what the Country naturally affordeth from hand to mouth.”

Over the decades, the relationship between the newcomers and the natives soured and became violent. Native Americans were pushed westward and eventually forced onto reservations, where they became dependent on government commodities augmented with meager foraged plants.

There is now a move to help Native Americans regain their food heritage, through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Indigenous Food Sovereignty Initiative. One of its grantees, the North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems, was created by Native American chef Sean Sherman. He works exclusively with indigenous ingredients at his Minneapolis restaurant. “Long ago the tribes were sovereign over their food systems, maintaining food security through a rich knowledge of the land and its food resources. They cultivated crops, foraged wild foods, hunted, and fished as good stewards,” Sherman wrote in his James Beard award-winning cookbook, The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen.

Following is a sampling of plants that were key to Native Americans, were adopted by colonists, and are essential MGNV native plants.

• Helianthus divaricatus (Woodland sunflower). Natives made full use of the sunflower: eating the seeds raw or roasted, grinding them into flour, and using the oil for cooking. A domesticated form of the sunflower dating to 900 BC was found in what is now Tennessee.
• Juniperus virginiana (Eastern redcedar). Juniper berries are the female seed cone from the redcedar. The berries are easily foraged, and the thick skin keeps the berries fresh for a long time. Crushed before using, the berries have a pine-like flavor with notes of citrus and pepper. Juniper berries were a favorite Native American seasoning for wild game like venison, bison, and duck.
• Mentha canadensis (American wild mint). In addition to being brewed as a beverage, Native Americans relied heavily on this herb for medicinal uses ranging from treating colds and pneumonia to soothing digestive problems.
• Rhus typhina (Sumac). The ruddy berries were dried and ground into a powder that provided a bright, tangy flavoring high in vitamin C. It was used as a sour ingredient long before lemons were introduced here. (Note: White sumac berries are poisonous, the red varieties are not.)

• Sambucus canadensis (Common elderberry). Native Americans used the berries for antioxidants and vitamins to support immune systems.
• Asarum canadense (Wild ginger). Native Americans used the spicy leaves to flavor food and beverages, as well as to treat digestive troubles, colds, and coughs. (Note: MGNV advises against its consumption.)
• Prunus virginiana (Chokecherry). The tart dark red berries were dried and ground into powders. Rich in vitamins and minerals, the berries were used to make sweets and were added to soups and stews. Medicinally, it was used to treat coughs and diarrhea.
• Quercus alba (White oak). Native Americans used an abundance of tree nuts for food, especially the white oak because its acorns did not require extensive leaching. Meal ground from the white oak acorns could be mixed with water and formed into loaves of bread.

Resources:

• Cameron, Timothy W. “The Role of Plant Foods Among Native Americans in Seventeenth-Century Virginia An Historical and Botanical Study” (1996). Master of Arts (MA), Thesis, Humanities, Old Dominion University, DOI: 10.25777/2cc3-2349
• North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems, a nonprofit dedicated to helping Native American tribes reclaim their food heritage.
• Sherman, Sean. 2017. The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen. University of Minnesota Press