Mullein

Scientific Name(s): Verbascum thapsus
Abundance: uncommon
What: leaves, flowers
How: both leaves and flowers as tea and smoked
Where: dry, sunny areas
When: summer, fall
Nutritional Value: medicinal
Other Uses: dried stalks used for fire drills, leaves used as lamp wicks,
Dangers: fine hairs on leaves can be an irritant. Do not consume seeds.

Medicinal Summary:
Flowers/Leaves/Stems - improves respiratory issues and inflammations; anti-inflammatory; antimicrobial; expectorant; soothes earaches (tisane, tincture, infused oil, smoked)

Leaf Arrangement: The leaves are arranged in a rosette at the base in the first year, and alternately on the stem in the second year.

Leaf Shape: The leaves are oblong to lanceolate, large, and can be up to 12 inches in length and 5 inches in width at the base, becoming smaller up the stem.

Leaf Venation: The venation is pinnate, with a prominent central vein and several smaller veins branching out to the leaf edges.

Leaf Margin: The margins are entire, meaning they are smooth and not toothed.

Leaf Color: The leaves are a soft, gray-green color due to a dense covering of fine hairs.

Flower Structure: The 5-pointed flowers are small and densely packed in a tall, elongated spike at the top of the stem. Each flower is about 0.5 inches in diameter.

Flower Color: The flowers are usually bright yellow.

Fruit: The plant produces a small, round capsule as its fruit.

Seed: The seeds are tiny, numerous, and brown.

Stem: The stem is sturdy, erect, and can grow up to 2 to 8 feet tall. It is also covered in fine hairs.

Hairs: The plant is characterized by a thick layer of woolly hairs on both the stems and leaves.

Height: Verbascum thapsus typically reaches a height of 2 to 8 feet.

2nd-year Mullein plants.


2nd-year Mullein gone to flowering.


1st-year Mullein plant


Close-up of flowers




Close-up of leaves


Mullein root.


Dried mullein stalk.


Close-up of dried mullein flowers/stalk.


Texas distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture. The marked counties are guidelines only. Plants may appear in other counties, especially if used in landscaping.


North American distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture.


Mullein tea is made from the leaves of a 1st-year plant and is considered a good cough suppressant. A similar tea can be made from the root after cleaning, peeling, and dicing. Although the leaves feel soft and fuzzy they do not make good "wild" toilet paper as the small hairs can get stuck in your skin which is very uncomfortable.

The dried leaves were smoked to help with assorted head/chest sickness. The dried flowers have a pleasant flavor.

Avoid consuming the seeds as they contain Rotenone, a poisonous material that is particularly bad for fish and other plants.


Buy my book! Outdoor Adventure Guides Foraging covers 70 of North America's tastiest and easy to find wild edibles shown with the same big pictures as here on the Foraging Texas website.

Plantain

Scientific name: Plantago species
Abundance: plentiful
What: leaves, young seed pods
How: raw, steamed
Where: Sunny fields, urban yards
When: Spring
Nutritional Value: minerals, vitamin B
Other uses: Rub mashed leaves on insect bites to relieve pain/itching

Medicinal Summary:
Leaves - demulcent; antimicrobial; anti-inflammatory; wound healer; soothes skin, gastrointestinal tract, and urinary tract inflammations (poultice, infused oil)

Leaf Arrangement: The leaves of Plantago are typically arranged in a basal rosette, emerging directly from the base of the plant.

Leaf Shape: The leaf shape varies among species, ranging from broad and ovate to long and narrow (lanceolate).

Leaf Venation: The venation is parallel, with several prominent veins running the length of the leaf.

Leaf Margin: The margins are generally entire (smooth) but can be slightly wavy or toothed in some species.

Leaf Color: The leaves are usually green, though the exact shade can vary from light to dark green.

Flower Structure: The flowers are small and borne on a spike that emerges from the rosette. The flower spike is often tall and slender.

Flower Color: Flower colors vary but are often greenish, white, or brownish.

Fruit: The fruit is a small capsule containing several seeds.

Seed: The seeds are tiny, often angular or oval, and brown.

Stem: In Plantago species, the flower spike serves as the stem, which is generally leafless and may vary in height.

Hairs: Some species have fine hairs on the leaves and stems, while others are smooth.

Height: The height of plantain plants can vary significantly, with some species being quite low to the ground and others having tall flower spikes.

Redseed Plantain (Plantago rhodosperma)






Close-up of plantain leaf.




Really big plantains, probably Plantago virginica.




Plantago lanceolate


Close up of Plantago lanceolate flower/seed stalk.


Even closer-up picture of Plantago lanceolate flower/seed head.


Out in West Texas look for Woolly Indian wheat plantain (Plantago patagonica).






Texas distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture. The marked counties are guidelines only. Plants may appear in other counties, especially if used in landscaping.


North American distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture.


Popping up in winter, plantain rosettes range from almost unnoticeable to quite large in size. The club-shaped leaves may have points along the edge and hairs. Look for it in yards, disturbed areas, and abandoned places receiving lots of winter/spring sun. One of the easiest ways to identify them is that their vein structure is "palmate" which means it has several thick veins running parallel from the base of the leaf to the end, kind of like fingers sticking up from the palm of a hand.

The young leaves have a mild "green" flavor but as they mature I personally find them too rough and stiff to be eaten raw. Cooking the older leaves makes them more tender. Juicing the leaves is a better way of using the mature plant to get their mineral and vitamins.

Plantains produce a cluster of seeds resembling a tiny ear of corn on a long stalk. When the seedhead is still young it can be eaten raw or used like tiny baby corn in a stirfry. As they get older these seedheads also get tough and are rarely eaten.

Medicinally, plantain poultices are the "go to" plant for skin issues such as scrapes, minor rashes, insect stings & bites, and minor burns. Plantain tea is very good at soothing sore throats, acid reflux, and ulcers as well as helping coughs be more effective at expelling "lung cheese". As I type this there's a bunch of plantain leaves hanging from the light fixture, drying. They'll be infused into olive oil along with comfrey to make an amazing, healing skin salve.

Supposedly smoking dried plantain leaves reduces the urge to smoke tobacco but this effect has not been confirmed.


Buy my book! Idiots Guide Foraging covers 70 of North America's tastiest and easy to find wild edibles shown with the same big pictures as here on the Foraging Texas website.

Buy my book! Outdoor Adventure Guides Foraging covers 70 of North America's tastiest and easy to find wild edibles shown with the same big pictures as here on the Foraging Texas website.

Sassafras

Scientific name: Sassafras albidum
Abundance: uncommon
What: twigs, roots, leaves
How: drinks, candy
Where: forest edge
When: all year though roots are most flavorful if harvested in late winter
Nutritional Value: none
Dangers: My lawyer says I have to warn you that drinking sassafras tea could harm you even though the compound thought to be dangerous, safrole, is destroyed by the boiling water.

Leaf Arrangement: Leaves are alternately arranged along the stems.

Leaf Shape: The leaves are variable, featuring three distinct shapes on the same tree—oval, mitten-shaped, and three-lobed.

Leaf Venation: The venation is pinnate.

Leaf Margin: Leaf margins are smooth.

Leaf Color: The upper surface of the leaves is shiny green, while the underside may have a paler hue.

Flower Structure: Small, yellow-green flowers are arranged in loose clusters.

Flower Color: The flowers are typically yellow-green and are found on separate male and female trees.

Fruit: The fruit is a dark blue-black drupe borne on a red stalk.

Seed: The seeds are small, dark, and enclosed within the drupe.

Bark: The bark is smooth and green on younger branches, becoming rougher and brown on mature trunks.

Hairs: The plant may have fine hairs on young stems and leaves.

Height: Sassafras trees can range from small shrubs to medium-sized trees, reaching heights of 20 to 40 feet.

Sassafras leaves



Three types of leaves.


Small sassafras tree.


Sassafras tree bark. As they mature the bark turns from green to grayish.


Here's a bunch of seedlings (greenish trunks) around a mother sassafras tree (brown trunk).


Close-up of Sassafras flowers, which appear in the spring before the leaves. (Picture taken end of February in Houston).


Sassafras berries, appearing in July in East Texas. Photo curtesy of Sassafras Susette Renfro-Taylor.


Close-up of sassafras berry. Photo curtesy of Sassafras Susette Renfro-Taylor.


Texas distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture. The marked counties are guidelines only. Plants may appear in other counties, especially if used in landscaping.


North American distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture.


Easily identifiable small tree, just look for the three types of leaves all on one tree. One leaf has three lobes, one has two lobes that look like a mitten, and the third leaf will be unlobed.

Root beer was originally flavored by the roots of sassafras harvested in late winter. Twigs collected at this time will also supply the root beer flavoring with the most concentrated amounts of flavor is found in the root bark of "suckers" growing around the base of the tree.

Young sassafras leaves are dried, then pounded into a fine Filé powder used in gumbo and other Cajun cooking. Filé powder shouldn't be boiled when cooked as this makes it stringy and alters the flavor. It is better added to the meal in a small serving dish for people to add to the already-cooked gumbo.

Euell Gibbons used to smoke a daily pipe mixture of peppermint, betony and sassafras in hopes that the medicinal properties of these plants would help undo damage done by his daily smoking of tobacco.


Buy my book! Outdoor Adventure Guides Foraging covers 70 of North America's tastiest and easy to find wild edibles shown with the same big pictures as here on the Foraging Texas website.

Wild Bergamot

Scientific Name(s): Monarda fistulosa
Abundance: uncommon
What: flower
How: tea; flavoring
Where: shady, moist areas
When: late spring, summer, early fall
Nutritional Value: unknown
Dangers: bees love these flowers

Medicinal Summary:
Flowers/Leaves/Stem - soothes irritated skin; antibacterial; relieves indigestion; sweat inducer; stimulant; diuretic; helps pass kidney stones; pain reliever; expectorant; headache reducer; soothes sore throat (poultice, tisane)

Leaf Arrangement: Leaves are arranged opposite-alternating along the stem. Two leaves will be directly opposite one another, but the leaf pairs above and below will be rotated 90 degrees around the stem.

Leaf Shape: The leaves are lanceolate to ovate, measuring 2 to 4 inches in length and 0.5 to 2 inches in width.

Leaf Venation: Pinnate venation is observed, with prominent veins running parallel to each other.

Leaf Margin: The leaf margin is toothed, with small serrations along the edges.

Leaf Color: The leaves exhibit a medium green coloration.

Flower Structure: Flowers are tubular in shape and are arranged in dense, terminal, spherical clusters known as inflorescences.

Flower Color: The flowers display lavender to pink-purple coloring.

Fruit: The fruit consists of small nutlets, but it is not often a significant feature for identification.

Seed: Small and irregularly shaped seeds are present but are not typically used for identification.

Stem: The stem is square-shaped and its color can vary from green to purple.

Hairs: Fine hairs can be found on the stem and sometimes on the leaves of this plant.

Height: Monarda fistulosa typically reaches a height of 2 to 4 feet.

Wild Bergamot flowers.






Texas distribution, attributed to U.S. Department of Agriculture. The marked counties are guidelines only. Plants may appear in other counties, especially if used in landscaping.

North American distribution, attributed to U.S. Department of Agriculture.


Stands of wild bergamot flowers dot the Texas countryside during summer. They prefer shade and moist soil so look for them under trees along drainage ditches and near ponds. What looks like a single big flower is actually a cluster of many long, tubular flowers...usually swarming with bees! Being a mint, they have the mint family's square, hollow stem and opposite-alternating leaves.

The flower makes a great tea with a sweet, herbal flavor similar to its smell. The flowers can be dried for later use but I prefer them fresh off the plant. A tincture (alcohol extract) made from wild bergamot is supposedly an excellent oral treatment for yeast infections. It also is used medicinally in the same manner as other mints. When smoked it SUPPOSEDLY delivers the antibiotics directly to the lungs to fight lung infections but I can't confirm this.


Buy my book! Outdoor Adventure Guides Foraging covers 70 of North America's tastiest and easy to find wild edibles shown with the same big pictures as here on the Foraging Texas website.

Wild Lettuce

Scientific Name(s): Lactuca spp.
Abundance: uncommon
What: young leaves, shoots, flower buds/stalks
How: leaves & shots raw or boiled; flower buds/stalks cooked
Where: woods, fields, disturbed areas, moist areas
When: spring
Nutritional Value: fiber, some minerals

Medicinal Summary:
Sap - sedative, cough suppressant; soothes chronic pain; anti-anxiety (tisane, tincture)

There are twelve different wild Lactuca species, of which I've only found three. These are Lactuca serriola (aka prickly lettuce), Lactuca canadensis, and Lactuca floridana. Lactuca floridana and Lactuca serriola are fairly common in the Houston area while Lactuca canadensis appears more frequently in areas north and east of Houston.

Lactuca canadensis. Note the lobed leaves at the base and unlobed leaves up higher.


Young Lactuca floridana. All leaves are lobed.


Mature Lactuca floridana.




Lactuca floridana flower.


Texas distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture. The marked counties are guidelines only. Plants may appear in other counties, especially if used in landscaping.


North American distribution, attributed to U. S. Department of Agriculture.


Both the tasty Lactuca canadenesis and the somewhat bitter Lactuca floridana can grow 7-9 feet tall.

Lactuca canadenesis Structural Features:

Leaf Arrangement: Leaves start out as basal rosette and deeply lobed when plant is young then grow alternating along the stem. Leaves higher up the stem are much less lobed than those at the base.

Leaf Shape: The leaves are lanceolate to oblanceolate, measuring 2 to 12 inches in length and 0.5 to 2 inches in width.

Leaf Venation: Pinnate veins system.

Leaf Margin: The leaf margin is typically serrated or toothed.

Leaf Color: Medium to dark green

Flower Structure: Many small (<0.5" diameter), flower heads arranged in clusters at the ends of stems.

Flower Color: The petals of the flower heads are yellow.

Fruit: The fruit consists of small achenes with a pappus (tuft of hairs) for dispersal.

Seed: Achenes are small and brown, often with a pappus attached.

Stem: The stem is erect, branching, and when damaged it produces white sap that very quickly turns yellow.

Hairs: Fine hairs/spines along rib on underside of leaf.

Height: Lactuca canadensis can reach heights of 4 to 9 feet.

Lactuca floridana Structural Features:

Leaf Arrangement: Leaves start out as basal rosette and then grow alternating along the stem. Leaves are deeply lobed in all positions and age.

Leaf Shape: The leaves are lanceolate to oblanceolate, measuring 2 to 12 inches in length and 0.5 to 2 inches in width.

Leaf Venation: Pinnate veins system.

Leaf Margin: The leaf margin is typically serrated or toothed.

Leaf Color: Medium to dark green

Flower Structure: Many small (<0.5" diameter), flower heads arranged in clusters at the ends of stems.

Flower Color: The petals of the flower heads are blue-white.

Fruit: The fruit consists of small achenes with a pappus (tuft of hairs) for dispersal.

Seed: Achenes are small and brown, often with a pappus attached.

Stem: The stem is erect, branching, and when damaged it produces white sap that very quickly turns yellow.

Hairs: Fine hairs/spines along rib on underside of leaf.

Height: Lactuca floridana can reach heights of over 14 feet.

How to tell them apart:

L. canadenesis 
Leaves: deeply lobed at base of plant but much more un-lobed, grass-like at top of plant.
Sap: white at first but quickly turns dark yellowish as it dries.
Flowers: yellow.
Height: 5-9 feet

L. biennis
Sap: stays white even after drying.
Leaves: deeply lobed from base of plant all the way to those at top.
Flowers: blue-white.
Height: up to 16 feet.

The young leaves of L. canadenesis have a slight bitterness, even less than some arugulas, and can be added to salads raw. The flower stalks are tender before the flowers open and can be snapped off and cooked similar to asparagus.

L. biennis is extremely bitter even when very young. Boiling in multiple changes of water helps but most people still don't like it, plus that removes any minerals. On the plus side, the plants produce a LOT of leaves, so you can get a lot of food from it.

There is some record of wild lettuces being smoked for medicinal purposes but it is supposedly a very harsh smoke and must be mixed with other herbs to reduce this harshness.

The sap is collected by pureeing the leaves and stem, squeezing out the juice through a tightly-woven fabric, then boiled down to a black, gooey tar. This tar contains the sedative/pain relieving compounds lactucin and lactucopicrin. The tar is usually taken by dissolving a pea-sized drop of it in a shot of alcohol.


Buy my book! Outdoor Adventure Guides Foraging covers 70 of North America's tastiest and easy to find wild edibles shown with the same big pictures as here on the Foraging Texas website.