Broken bone

EASTERN DECIDUOUS FOREST AND TALL GRASS PRAIRIE

COMMON NAME: Sassafras

GENUS AND SPECIES NAME: Sassafras albidum

Season: flowers April-May, fruits late August-October

Habitat: border of dry woods, glades, prairies, bottomland soils in valleys, roadsides, pastures, and thickets.

Use: bark tea can be used as blood purifier, bark used for treatment on skin eruptions, helps fight infections with open wounds, bites, fungus as well as open fractures. 

Preparation: wash roots, place in boiling water until it turns red. Steep, then allow to sit before drinking

Active Chemical: linoleic-acid

Chemical Formula: C18H32O2

EASTERN DECIDUOUS FOREST AND TALL GRASS PRAIRIE

COMMON NAME: Weeping Willow

GENUS AND SPECIES NAME: Salix Babylonica

Habitat: moist soils, foodplains, streamsides, riverbanks, hill prairies, open woods

Use: salicylic acid eases pain and reduces inflammation, headache treatment, used in toothaches, leaves are used as blood purifier and treat skin eruptions, can be chewed for sore throats, vines can be used as a splint for broken bones and stops blood flow

Preparation: to make tea, tear off piece of bark and place in water. bring water to boil and remove from the heat. Allow to steep for thirty minutes. Drink like a tea, but do not exceed three times a day. Use leaves to make poultice and apply topically to relieve pain. 

Active chemical: salicylic acid

Chemical formula:C7H6O3

EASTERN DECIDUOUS FOREST

TALLGRASS PRAIRIE

COMMON NAME: Purple Coneflower

Genus and Species Name: Echinacea purpurea

Habitat: openings in moist woods and wooded bottom lands, upland prairies, savannas, pastures, and roadsides 

Medicinal Uses: roots are used to create a tincture as a source for pain relief

Preparation: Clean roots and chop or pound (mortar and pestle) and stuff into jar. The ratio of root to alcohol or vinegar will 1:2. Add alcohol or vinegar to root in jar. Put lid on container and let sit in cool, dark place for a few (2) weeks. When ready, it can be taken straight or diluted with water if pleased. 

Active Chemical: Echinacoside

Formula:C35H46O20

TALL GRASS PRAIRIE AND EASTERN DECIDUOUS FOREST

COMMON NAME: Cattail

GENUS AND SPECIES: Typha latifolia

Season: May-July

Habitat: marshes, sloughs, ditches, margins of ponds and lakes

Use: pounded roots used as poultice for burns and sores, internal bleeding, fibers used as sutures for closing compound fractures. Burned ash is used to stop bleeding and disinfect wounds. Slime in bottom of leaf will help stop bleeding and lessen pain. 

Preparation: Burn ash and apply to wound. Obtain and apply slime to wound. Take fibers off of plant. 

(n.d.). Life Sciences at Brandeis University. Medicinal Plants-Common Cattail. Retrieved from http://www.bio.brandeis.edu/fieldbio/medicinal_plants/pages/Common_Cattail.html
(n.d.). Missouri's Fish, Forests and Wildlife | Missouri Department of Conservation. Sassafras | Missouri Department of Conservation. Retrieved from http://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/sassafras