Names

Shoshone:
Unknown

English: Prairie Smoke or “Mtn. Avens or 3-flowered avens”

Scientific: Geum triflorum

Zone

Upper Foothills

Harvest Time

• Any time

Primary Uses

• Peel root bark to white succulent core; lay into wound, site in bleeding. cook peeled root in a soup, for diarrhea

Secondary Uses

• None listed

Cautions

• Too much tea may cause constipation

Active Principle(s)

• Vitamin C and B-vitamins

Video Description of Plant

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Notes

Medicinal Uses:

• Rash: root infusion applied to rashes to soothe and heal
• Ulcers: root tea is astringent for ulcers
• Bleeding: Root powder or infusion
• Diarrhea: Root tea

Process Prep

• Root fresh or dried made into tea
• Tea – 2-3 cups/day. 1 Tbls root/cup water boiled

Names

Shoshone:
bee·yah·soe·reenp

English: Giant Wild Rye or “Great Basin”

Scientific: Elymus cinereus

Zone

Upper Foothills

Harvest Time

• harvest between flowering and seeding

Primary Uses

• Specific blades’ edge were used to remove eyelid growths: archeologists use this grass asa confirmation of the SheepEater/Duka-Dika peoples’ campsite location in high elevation.
• From rain/snow melt, due to unique water-shedding of leaf blades when bundled

Secondary Uses

• For grazing animals, in heavy-snow winters, this serves as survival grass

Cautions

• None listed

Active Principle(s)

• None listed

Video Description of Plant

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Notes

General Use:

• Folded leaves used to scrape away dust inflammation inside eyelids for wounds

Process Prep

• Tie in bundles for thatching
• Bend mid leaf to make scraping tool for sand abrasions and pustules

Names

Shoshone:
bah·hoonh

English: Wild Tobacco or “coyote tobacco”

Scientific: Nicotania trigonophilia

Zone

Upper Foothills

Harvest Time

• When flowering

Primary Uses

• On a rack, where meat is drying
• Used on arthritic joint

Secondary Uses

• Flower/specifically, the calyx part; smoke it.

Cautions

• Leaves alkaloid content is so high that mouth + tongue burns, if leaves are smoked without being diluted with a secondary plant

Active Principle(s)

• Nicotine, anabasine, and several other toxic alkaloids

Video Description of Plant

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Notes

Medicinal Uses

• Antibacterial: Standard infusion wound wash
• Anti-inflammatory: Infusion for muscle ache. Sitz bath menstrual cramps
• Arthritis: Infusion as topical analgesic
• Burns: Infusion as an analgesic
• Ears: Smudge blown in-ears to relieve congestion
• Hemorrhoids: Infusion topical
• Pain: Infusion for muscle pain and joint pain
• Skin: Poultice, analgesic for skin injuries
• Stings: Poultice for bee, wasp, scorpion stings
• Swelling: Poultice, analgesic
• Wounds: Wound dressing infusion

Process Prep

• Dry leaves for medicine
• Dry flower calyx for smoking

Names

Shoshone:
Unknown

English: Pineappleweed – “Under-the Horse’s Hoof” – “Indian Perfume”

Scientific: Matricaria matricarioides

Zone

Upper Foothills

Harvest Time

• When flowering, harvest whole plant

Primary Uses

• Use to relax; put in a calm mood, or go to sleep
• Fly repellant ton meat/berries perfume
• Mothers would tie onto cradleboard, use to calm, put to sleep, and sweeten the air around the baby

Secondary Uses

• Drink in p.m. because of sleep inducement

Cautions

• some people may be allergic to this plant

Active Principle(s)

• Azuline, a sedative

Video Description of Plant

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Notes

Medicinal Uses:

• Anxiety: Whole plant tea
• Cancer: Mixed with other plant meds for skin cancer
• Cough: Whole plant tea
• Diarrhea: Flower tea
• General Malaise: Flower tea mixed with evening primrose seeds
• Hyperactivity: Tea as relaxant
• Mental Health: Tea has a calming effect
• Nervous System: Tea relaxant
• Rash: Water infusion or oil used to treat rashes
• Skin: Infusion, improves skin integrity
• Sleep: Tea
• Swelling: Topical poultice for swelling and redness
• Ulcers: Tea soothing to stomach ulcers
• Yeast Infection: Tea is antifungal

Process Prep

• Use fresh or dry
• 1 tsp flowers/cup tea

Names

Shoshone:
Unknown

English: Heartleaf Arnica

Scientific: Arnica cordifolia

Zone

Upper Foothills

Harvest Time

• Whole plant any time after flowering

Primary Uses

• Topical only for pain relief: rub into arthritic site; old injuries; infected sites

Secondary Uses

• None listed

Cautions

• Poisonous for any internal use. Do not use on open cuts, may cause nausea

Active Principle(s)

• None listed

Video Description of Plant

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Notes

Medicinal Uses:

• Anti-inflammatory: Leaves and flowers as topical counter irritant
• Arthritis: Leaves and flowers rubbed on joints
• Burns: Crushed leaf on blisters
• Pain: Topical counter-irritant
• Wounds: Part of wound dressing for closed wounds and bruises

Process Prep

• Use fresh or preserve in alcohol or buffalo back fat
• topical only

Names

Shoshone:
Unknown

English: Pipsissewa

Scientific: Chimaphila ubellata

Zone

Upper Foothills

Harvest Time

• Not Specified
• Leaves for medicine

Primary Uses

• Leaves used as urinary tract infection treatment

Secondary Uses

• None listed

Cautions

• None listed

Active Principle(s)

• Ericolin
• arbutin

Video Description of Plant

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Notes

Medicinal Uses

• Abrasion: Leaf infusion
• Antibacterial: Leaf tea
• Glomerulitis: Leaf tea
• Infection: Tea for UTI or topical
• Kidney Nephritis: Leaf tea
• Kidney Stone: Leaf tea with bedstraw
• Urinary Tract Infection: Leaf tea

Process Prep

• Dry leaves
• 1 tsp/cup

Names

Shoshone:
new·wuh·bownh

English: Bearberry

Scientific: Arctostaphylos uva-ursi

Zone

Upper Foothills

Harvest Time

• Berries in fall – food leaves for medicine and for smoking

Primary Uses

• Dry the berries or freeze for them to taste like apples
• UTI’s

Secondary Uses

• Mix with tobacco to smoke in pipe

Cautions

• None listed

Active Principle(s)

• Ericolin

Video Description of Plant

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

Notes

Medicinal Uses

• Abrasion: Leaf infusion
• Antibacterial: Leaf tea
• Glomerulitis: Leaf tea
• Infection: Tea to treat UTI or topical
• Kidney Nephritis: leaf tea
• Kidney stones: Leaf tea along with bedstraw
• Urinary Tract Infection: Leaf tea
• Vitamin C: Berry as food
• Wounds: Leaf infusion part of topical dressing

Process Prep

• Dry leaves
• 1 tsp/cup

Names

Shoshone:
gahn

English: Bitterroot – “First-Root”

Scientific: Lewisia rediviva

Zone

Upper Foothills

Harvest Time

• The first harvested plant in spring where the leaves are presented long before the showy pink flowers.

Primary Uses

• Use as thickener in soups from dried root

Secondary Uses

• Heart medicine as gravy or tea
• Blood purifier
• Increase lactation

Cautions

• None listed

Active Principle(s)

• None listed

Video Description of Plant

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Notes

Processing Prep

• Peel the red bark off the white roots. Dry then powder it. Use as thickener in soups.
• Rehydrate dried roots and mash-up as a jelly-like thickener

Medicinal Uses

• Healing: Root gravy healing to digestive tract
• Heart: Root tea for heart trouble
• Immune: Root gravy believed to strengthen the digestive system – where immunity begins
• Itching: Root tea drunk
• Intestinal Health: Functions as a prebiotic for healthy gut
• Liver: Root tea to strengthen the liver
• Lungs: Root tea for diaphragm health
• Old People’s Medicine: Gravy improves digestion
• Pneumonia: Root tea
• Skin: Root tea blood purifies for skin eruptions