It is a very popular nectar source for bees and hummingbirds and is a folk remedy for the rash caused by poison ivy. One of my favorite “weeds” around our farm is jewelweed, Impatiens (see photo) which requires no cultivation and thrives in damp places in the sun. However the leaves and flowers are a traditional remedy for upper respiratory inflammation and congestion. A plant that is often falsely accused of being a medic al problem rather than a cure is goldenrod, Solidago (see photo with a moth gathering nectar). I do remember in my childhood eating cherry drops for sore throat and the bark and fruit have long been used to relieve coughs, fevers and sore throat among other things.
Black cherry, Prunus (see photo) is a common small tree in VA that produces berries that are avidly consumed by birds, and provides valuable cover along fence and hedge rows. The fact that the ro ot of ginseng can resemble the human form adds to its mystical qualities. This plant has a long hi story of use in the Orient where it is valued as a general tonic against a wide array of symptoms. A much more famous cure-all in the same family is ginseng, Panax (see photo) which has bright red berries that are eaten by forest birds. The flowers and fruits are very attractive to wildlife forest gaps or edges are necessary to provide enough sun for this plant sometimes called the “toothache tree.” This reveals a traditional use to treat pain from rheumatism, tooth ache and ear ache. One of my favorites is a weedy small tree, devil’s walking stick, Aralia (see photo). I will give five examples of our “backyard” plants that both benefit wildlife and are also traditional herbal medicines for humans.
It gives a short history of human use of 45 plants, of which about 30 are found on our farm. This little book really excited me since it offers additional reasons for encouraging the growth of certain wildlife-friendly plants. My attention was drawn to this fact by a chance encounter in the local library with a book entitled “Medicinal Plants of the Southern Appalachians” by Patricia Kyritsi Howell. Yet I was surprised to realize that many of these same plants that benefit wildlife have had a long history of human use as medicinal plants. The primary focus of management of our old farm has been to propagate and encourage plants which specifically benefit wildlife by providing the “four-fold way” of fruit, nectar, larval food, and cover. On a late November visit to o ur VA farm, we find birds are feeding on the banquet of seeds and fruits which we have spread for them by our cultivation of grasses, flowers and shrubs that are especially good for wildlife.
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