Prairie ethnobotany

Edible Wild Plants of the Prairie: An Ethnobotanical Guide (1987)

by Kelly Kindscher

Drawings by Carol Kuhn

Many of the entries are illustrated with exquisite line drawings. The illustrations really add a lot to the quality of the book.

Includes Indian names and uses.

Provides tips on cultivation.

Contains glossary, bibliography, index.

Well worth reading, over and over. Worth buying.

Wild Onion (Allium canadense)
Prostrate Pigweed (Amaranthus graecizans)
Giant Ragweed (Ambrosia trifida)
Serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia)
Leadplant (Amorpha canescens)
Hog Peanut (Amphicarpaea bracteata)
Blue Funnel Lily (Andrstphium caeruleum)
Groundnut (Apios americana)
Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)
Groundplum Milkvetch (Astragalus crassicarpus)
Saltbush (Atriplex subspicata)
Purple Poppy Mallow (Callirhoe involucrata)
Wild Hyacinth (Camassia scilloides)
New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus americanus)
Lamb's Quarters (Chenopodium berlandieri)
Wavy-leafed Thistle (Cirsium undulatum)
Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica)
Rocky Mountain Bee Plant (Cleome serrulata)
Bastard Toadflax (Comandra umbellata)
Hazelnut (Corylus americana)
Pincushion Cactus (Coryphantha vivipara)
Buffalo Gourd (Cucurbita foetidissima)
White Prairie Clover (Dalea candida)
White Dog's Tooth Violet (Erythronium mesochoreum)
Wild Strawberry (Fragaria virginiana)
American Licorice (Glycyrrhiza lepidota)
Sunflower (Helianthus annuus)
Jerusalem Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus)
Bush Morning Glory (Ipomoea leptophylla)
Marsh Elder (Iva annua)
Gayfeather (Liatris punctata)
Prairie Parsley (Lomatium foeniculaceum)
Beebalm (Monarda fistulosa)
Prickly Pear (Opuntia macrorhiza)
Violet Wood Sorrel (Oxalis violacea)
Ground Cherry (Physalis heterophylla)
Devil's Claw (Proboscidea louisianica)
Wild Plum (Prunus americana)
Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana)
Prairie Turnip (Psoralea esculenta)
Smooth Sumac (Rhus glabra)
Buffalo Currant (Ribes odoratum)
Wild Rose (Rosa arkansana)
Dewberry (Rubus flagellaris)
Buffalo Berry (Shepherdia argentea)
Prince's Plume (Stanleya pinnata)
Spiderwort (Tradescantia occidentalis)
Prairie Violet (Viola pedatifida)
Small Soapweed (Yucca glauca)

Grasses

Blue Grama (Bouteloua gracilis)
Canada Wild Rye (Elymus canadensis)
Fescue (Festuca sp.)
Junegrass (Koeleria pyramidata)
Muhly (Muhlenbergia sp.)
Indian Ricegrass (Oryzopsis hymenoides)
Panic Grass (Panicum sp.)
Maygrass (Phalaris caroliniana)
Sand Dropseed (Sporobolus cryptandrus)
Eastern Gama Grass (Tripsacum dactyloides)
Wild Rice (Zizania aquatica)

Other edible prairie plants

Sweet Flag (Acorus calamus)
Lavender Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum)
Pussy Toes (Antennaria sp.)
Sage (Artemisia sp.)
Canadian Milkvetch (Astragalus canadensis)
Sego Lily (Calochortus gunnisonii)
Netleaf Hackberry (Celtis reticulata)
Curly Top Gumweed (Grindelia squarrosa)
Hoary Peavine (Lathyrus polumorphus)
Round Head Lespedeza (Lespedeza capitata)
Blue Flax (Linum perenne)
Mentzelia (Mentzelia albicaulis)
American Lotus (Nelumbo lutea)
Common Evening Primrose (Oenothera biennis)
Broomrape (Orobanche ludoviciana)
Knotweed (Polygonum sp.)
Cinquefoil (Potentilla sp.)
Mountain Mint (Pycnanthemum sp.)
Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis)
Cup Plant (Silphiu perfoliatum)
Goldenrod (Solidago sp.)
Greenthread (Thelesperma magapotamicum)