Michigan is one of the most aptly named states of America. Its name comes from the Ojibwe word mishigamaa which means “large water” or “large lake”, and given the state’s location in the midst of the Great Lakes, you can see why it is so suitable. It has over sixty thousand lakes and ponds and a person in Michigan is never more than six miles from a natural water source. It is formed from two peninsulas, the lower and the upper, separated by the Straits of Mackinac. The Upper Peninsula or ‘The U.P.’ is an important tourist area.
The state has many natural plants and this article will give details of some of them:
Yarrow (Achillea millefoliun)is a flowering plant found across the Northern Hemisphere. It used to be known as herbal militaris after its use in staunching the flow of blood from wounds. It grows to between two and three feet and flowers in early summer.
White Baneberry (Actaea pachypoda) is an herbaceous perennial growing to around two feet. It is most memorable for the fruit it produces, a white berry with a black stigma scar, giving it the name “doll’s eyes”. The berries are poisonous, as is the rest of the plant. The indigenous people of the area were reported to have made tea from the roots of this plant. This was then drunk after childbirth.
Tall Agrimony (Agrimonia gryposepala) is a member of the rose family. It grows to around three feet and flowers in summer. It was used as a treatment for diarrhoea and fever by the indigenous people of the area.
Nodding Wild Onion (Allium cernuum) is a member of the onion family and is cultivated for its single flowering stem which terminates in an umbel of white flowers. The flower head often bends or ‘nods’ giving the plant its common name. The bulb of the plant is edible with a strong onion flavour.
Hemp Dogbane (Apocynum cannabinum) is a perennial herbaceous plant that is similar to Cannabis only in that it is a fibre plant. It is given the name dogbane due to it being a poisonous plant, Apocynum actually means “poisonous to dogs”.
Eastern Red Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) also known as Canada Columbine is an herbaceous perennial which is grown for its red and yellow flowers which appear in late spring. Various Native American tribes used the Eastern Red Columbine for herbal remedies.
Canadian Wild Ginger (Asarum canadense) is found in deciduous forests across eastern North America. It has hairy purple flowers and fleshy rhizomes that branch out to form a clump. Native Americans used the rhizomes as a seasoning and it has an aroma similar to ginger. However, it does contain the carcinogen aristolochic acid so should not be used as a substitute for the real thing. Canadian snakeroot oil is a distillate made from the ground root. The plant was used to treat dysentery, digestive problems, coughs, scarlet fever, sore throats, headaches, asthma and convulsions by the Native Americans who also found it useful as a stimulant and an appetite enhancer.
Turtlehead (Chelone glabra) can be found in wetlands and riparian forests. It has simple leaves on stout upright stems. It has been used as a method of birth control by the Abenaki people. The Abenaki lived from New England to Quebec although they retreated toward Quebec after the English settlement of New England began. It can be an indicator of the presence of deer as it is a popular browsing plant for them.
Northern Bugleweed (Lycopus uniflorus) is a member of the mint family which is often found in moist areas such as marshes. It grows to about two feet and has small white flowers. The root was used as a food source by the indigenous people of the area.
In all, there are over one hundred and sixty different plants native to the state of Michigan, far too many to list here. Many of the plants can be found elsewhere in the United States and also in Canada, and many of them were used by the Native Americans of the region.
Sources:
Rabeler, Richard K. – Gleason’s Plants of Michigan: A Field Guide – The University of Michigan Press (2007)
Gleason, Henry A – The Plants of Michigan: Simple Keys for the identification of the native seed plants of the state – George Wahr (1939)
