Names

Shoshone:

English: Grouse Whortleberry

Scientific: Vaccinium scoparium

Zone

Subalpine

Harvest Time

• Mid to late summer

Primary Uses

• Berries: In pemican and goatsup tiny and red
• Leaves high in proanthocyanidin

Secondary Uses

• Leaves: eye medicine
• Old people’s medicine

Cautions

• None Listed

Active Principle(s)

• None Listed

Video Description of Plant

Click play on the video to learn more about this plant.

Notes

Medicinal Uses

• Diarrhea: Leaf tea
• Eyes: Leaf and berry tea as eye medicine
• Old People’s Medicine: Leaf tea to prevent blindness (macular degeneration)
• Vitamin C: Leaf, berry tea

Names

Shoshone: day.wah.pee

English: Whitebark Pine

Scientific: Pinus albicaulis

Zone

Subalpine

Harvest Time

• Any time

Primary Uses

• Nuts favored by Mtn. Shoshone and Grizzly

Secondary Uses

• Inner Bark as emergency survival food

Cautions

• Very sticky to harvest

Active Principle(s)

• None Listed

Video Description of Plant

Click play on the video to learn more about this plant.

Notes

Medicinal Uses

• Burns: Pitch made into a salve with animal fat
• Congestion: Pitch swallowed as an expectorant
• Fever: inner bark boiled as a tea
• Immune: Pitch (boosts local immune response)
• Infection: “sunopee” bandage made of pitch
• Lungs: Inner Bark tea as a decongestant
• Old People’s Medicine: Pitch salve for rheumatic joints
• Pain: Pitch salve used on achy joints
• Pneumonia: Pitch swallowed as an expectorant
• Rash: Pitch salve
• Stings: Pitch mixed with tobacco for bees, wasps, scorpions
• Stomach: Pitch for upset stomach
• Urinary Tract infection: pitch swallowed
• Vitamin C: needle tea
• Wounds: Bandage made of pitch “sunopee”

Processing

• Use fire to release Nut from the cone

Names

Shoshone: bah.soo

English: Subalpine Fir & Englemann Spruce

Scientific: Abies bifolia & Picea engelmannii

Zone

Subalpine

Harvest Time

• Anytime
• Branch tips – June

Primary Uses

• Tea from fir needles, for sickness prevention

Secondary Uses

• Use Sap for bandage sealant

Cautions

• None Listed

Active Principle(s)

• Pro Antho Cyanidins in tips
• Complete protein in nuts

Video Description of Plant

Click play on the video to learn more about this plant.

Notes

Process Prep

• Boil branches – 20 minutes

General Notes

• Wintertime tea for general health

Medicinal Uses

• Anti-inflammatory – tea of needles
• Chest Cold – Inner bark boiled for tea
• Congestion – pitch swallowed as an expectorant
• Fever – tea of boiled branches and needles
• Immune system – pitch (topical)
• Infection – pitch w/ animal fat makes an antimicrobial bandage
• Lungs- tea of needles
• Old People’s Medicine- Pitch salve for rheumatic joints
• Pain-pitch salve used on achy joints
• Rash-pitch salve
• Vitamin C-needle tea
• Wounds- bondage made of pitch

Names

Shoshone: doo.suh.geep

English: Elk Thistle

Scientific: Cirsium foliosum

Zone

Montane

Harvest Time

• July or June in Montane on foothills zones

Primary Uses

• Edible stems, leaves, roots have more vitamin C than an orange, and many B-vitamins

Secondary Uses

• Rubbing Stick

Cautions

• Very sharp spines

Active Principle(s)

• None Listed

Video Description of Plant

Click play on the video to learn more about this plant.

Notes

Processing Notes

• Cleave away spiny leaf edges are stem sides results = nutritious salad leaves and celery like stems

Uses

• Crushing plants applied as a poultice for abrasions
• Plant tea used to inhibit conception
• Mashed stems and leaves applied over sore eyes
• Plant tea for fever
• Stems and leaves and roots as food
• Food to expel worms from intestines
• Mashed leaves and stems applied to rash
• Stems mashed and applied to any skin injury
• Stems and leaves mashed and applied to swollen skin

Names

Shoshone:
doe.sah.tin.gee.sah

English: Harebell

Scientific: Campanula otundifolia

Zone

Montane

Harvest Time

• Summer trail food or emergency food

Primary Uses

• Food

Secondary Uses

• None Listed

Cautions

• None Listed

Active Principle(s)

• None Listed

Video Description of Plant

Click play on the video to learn more about this plant.

Notes

Processing Preparation

• Eat raw

Names

Shoshone:

English: Alumroot

Scientific: Heuchera parviflora

Zone

Montane

Harvest Time

• Any time of year roots or tea

Primary Uses

• Stops bleeding
• Root tea for diarrhea

Secondary Uses

• None Listed

Cautions

• None Listed

Active Principle(s)

• Malic acid
• Astringent tannins

Video Description of Plant

Click play on the video to learn more about this plant.

Notes

Processing Notes

• Feather the root, i.e. cut gills into the root; press into cut, wrap bandage around

Root uses

• Bleeding, Diarrhea

Names

Shoshone:

English: Edible Valarian

Scientific: Valeriana edulus

Zone

Montane

Harvest Time

• Not Specified

Primary Uses

• Sleep aid or anxiety

Secondary Uses

• Sedative medicine 1/2 tsp dried root

Cautions

• Do not use when fresh; bad odor

Active Principle(s)

• Isovaleric acid

Video Description of Plant

Click play on the video to learn more about this plant.

Notes

Processing Notes

• Save, dry the root

Root Uses

• Antibacterial, Anxiety Aid, Ear infection, headache, sleeplessness, anxiety, epilepsy, relaxant, PTSD, sleep aid

Names

Shoshone:

English: Wolf Lichen

Scientific: Letharia vulpina

Zone

Montane

Harvest Time

• Not specified

Primary Uses

• Spiritual protection from strangers who may want to harm you or steal from you

Secondary Uses

• Was used by sheep ranchers to kill wolves

Cautions

• Deadly Poison

Active Principle(s)

• None Listed

Video Description of Plant

Click play on the video to learn more about this plant.

Notes

Preparation

• Keep it dried, and on your body for the protection

Names

Shoshone:

English: Black Tree Lichen

Scientific: Bryoria pseudofusescens

Zone

Montane

Harvest Time

• Any time of year with long poles to get from tall trees

Primary Uses

• A black jello dessert

Secondary Uses

• The camouflage used by the wildman (sasquatch)
• Cooked and dried as a thickener for soup stews, and bread making

Cautions

• Most lichens are not edible, but deadly for consumption by people. But not this one

Active Principle(s)

• None Listed

Video Description of Plant

Click play on the video to learn more about this plant.

Notes

• Cooked and dried and powdered used as a thickener
• Tea uses
  • Antibacterial, antiviral
• Process Prep
  • Steam underground rocks and leaves take 12-20 hours serviceberries can flavor jelly

Names

Shoshone:

English: Wild Chives

Scientific: Allium sibiricum

Zone

Montane

Harvest Time

• 1. Food: spring and summer
• 2. Medicine
  • June: low elevation
  • July: Montane zone

Primary Uses

• Flavor in cooking
  • Top:
    • Meats, stews
  • Buds:
    • The sweetest onion flavor

Secondary Uses

• Crushed plants applied to rattlesnake bites and other venoms

Cautions

• Not necessary to dig up roots, since whole plant has the onion flavor

Active Principle(s)

• None Listed

Video Description of Plant

Click play on the video to learn more about this plant.

Notes

Food Uses

• Antibacterial-eaten to combat bacterial food poisoning
• Cough plants boiled down to thick syrup
• Intestinal Health-Cold infusion of plant for intestinal worms and parasites
• Old people’s medicine-to stimulate appetite
• Pain-24 hour cold infusion applied to venomous stings and bites
• Stings-mashed plants applied to stings and bites such as rattlesnake
• Throat-mashed plants with sweetener for sore throat
• Medicine for coughs and sores

Process Prep

• Food: raw or boiled
• Medicine: plant soaked 24 hours