The Storyteller Trilogy (131 page)

CARIBOU LEAVES
(wormwood, silverleaf),
Artemisia tilesii
: This perennial plant attains a height of two to three feet on a single stem. The hairy, lobed leaves are silver underneath and a darker green on top. A spike of small clustered flowers grows at the top of the stem in late summer. Fresh leaves are used to make a tea that is said to purify the blood and stop internal bleeding, and to wash cuts and sore eyes. The leaves are heated and layered over arthritic joints to ease pain. Caution: caribou leaves may be toxic in large doses.

CLOUDBERRY
(salmonberry),
Rubus chamaemorus
: Not to be confused with the larger, shrublike salmonberry,
R. spectabilis
, this small plant grows to about six inches in height and bears a single white flower and a salmon-colored berry shaped like a raspberry. The green leaves are serrated and have five main lobes. The berries are edible but not as flavorful as raspberries, and are high in vitamin C. The juice from the berries is said to be a remedy for hives.

CRAMPBARK:
See
Highbush Cranberry,
below.

DOG FENNEL
(wild chamomile, pineapple weed),
Matricaria matricariodes
: This small (three- to twelve-inch) plant thrives in all but the northernmost part of Alaska. The leaves are delicate and feathery; rayless domed yellow flowers, usually less than a half inch across, emit a pineapple fragrance when crushed. A tea made of flowers (and foliage, if desired) is soothing and is said to release tension and promote sleep. Aleuts drank dog fennel tea to ease gas pains. Caution: in some individuals, large amounts of the tea may cause nausea or vomiting. Those with sensitive skin may notice minor skin irritation after picking or handling the herb.

FIREWEED
(wild asparagus),
Epilobium angustifolium
: Fireweed grows throughout Alaska and northern North America. Plants grow upright to a height of three to five feet and end in a spikelike flower cluster. Each flower has four petals, which bloom from the bottom of the stalk up during midsummer to late summer. Colors vary from a deep and brilliant red-pink to nearly white. Leaves are willowlike: long and narrow, and medium green in color. Early spring shoots (high in vitamins A and C) may be harvested prior to development of the leaves without harm to the plant. (Harvesting the white stem below the soil level actually promotes plant growth.) The tip of the stem should be discarded due to the disagreeable taste; the rest can be steamed and eaten like asparagus. Leaves should be harvested before flowers bloom to add to soups as seasoning. Flowers are often used in salads and also make good jelly. Fireweed leaves steeped for tea are said to settle stomachaches. Salves made from roots are said to draw out infection.

GOOSEFOOT
(lamb’s quarter, pigweed),
Chenopodium album
: Soft goose-foot-shaped leaves grow in an alternating pattern from stems that average one to three feet in height (though these can grow to ten feet). If grown domestically, the plant can be difficult to contain due to effusive self-seeding. Greens, good in salads, are high in vitamins A and C, and the B complex. Tea decoctions are used as a wash for sores inside the mouth. Leaves are used as a poultice for wounds and rheumatism. Caution: plants contain oxalic acid and when eaten in extremely large amounts might cause kidney damage.

GOOSE GRASS
(northern bedstraw),
Galium boreale
: The narrow leaves grow in groups of four under the fragrant white flower sprays. Young plants warmed (not boiled) in hot water and placed on external wounds are said to help clot the blood. The dried plant, made into a salve with softened fat, was used to treat external skin irritations. Teas (steeped, not boiled) made of young leaves, seeds or roots may be diuretic. Roots produce a purplish dye.

HIGHBUSH CRANBERRY
(crampbark, mooseberry),
Viburnum edule
: This erect but scraggly bush grows throughout Alaska from the Alaska Peninsula to the Brooks Range. Its lobed leaves are shaped somewhat like maple leaves, grow opposite one another and are coarsely toothed. The average height of the highbush cranberry is about four to six feet, though they sometimes reach ten feet. Five-petaled white flowers grow in flat clusters and mature into flavorful but bitter red berries in August and September. (A frost sweetens the berries considerably.) Berries are high in vitamin C and make tasty jelly. The inner bark, boiled into tea, is used as a gargle for sore throats and colds. Highbush cranberry bark contains
glucoside vibumine
, a muscle relaxant. Bark made into tea decoctions is used to relieve menstrual and stomach cramps, and is said to be effective on infected skin abrasions.

IITIKAALUX
(cow parsnip, wild celery),
Heracleum lanatum
: A thick-stemmed, hearty plant that grows to nine feet in height. The coarse, dark leaves have three main lobes with serrated edges. It is also known by the Russian name
poochki
or
putchki.
Stems and leaf stalks taste like a spicy celery but must be peeled before eating because the outer layer is a skin irritant. White flowers grow in inverted bowl-shaped clusters at the tops of the plants. Roots are also edible, and leaves were dried to flavor soups and stews. The root was chewed raw to ease sore throats and was heated and a section pushed into a painful tooth to deaden root pain. Caution: gloves should be worn when harvesting. Iitikaalux is similar in appearance to poisonous water hemlock.

LIGIGE’
(soapberry or dog berry),
Shepherdia canadensis
: A shrub that grows to six feet in height with smooth, round-tipped, dark green leaves. The orange-colored berries ripen in July and are edible but bitter. They foam like soap when beaten.

LUNGWORT
(chiming bells),
Mertensia paniculata
: Two- to three-foot plants sport hairy, elongated ovate leaves that grow opposite one another on the stem. Small groups of delicate, purplish, bell-like flowers cluster at the ends of short drooping stems. Flowers and leaves are said to be good added to teas. Leaves are better picked before the plants flower. The plant has supposedly been used to relieve asthma and other types of lung congestion.

MARSH MARIGOLD
(cowslip, meadowbright),
Caltha palustris
: A short plant (about a foot tall) that thrives in marshy areas. Arching stems grow from a central cluster, and leaves are large (up to six or seven inches across), rounded and roughly kidney shaped. Each flower has five rounded petals and is bright yellow. They range throughout Alaska. The marsh marigold is used as an expectorant and is thought to loosen lung and bronchial mucus. Caution: marsh marigold contains
glucoside protoanemonin
, a toxin that can be destroyed by boiling. Greens should be used only after boiling twice. Daily use can cause damage to kidneys. Those with sensitive skin may experience a contact dermatitis after handling the plants. Please note that marsh marigold looks similar to wild calla, which is considered poisonous. Both plants grow in similar habitats.

NAGOONBERRY
(wineberry),
Rubus arcticus
,
Rubus stellatus
: A ground-hugging berry plant that grows in wet, open areas. Leaves are trilobate and resemble strawberry leaves; red berries look like small raspberries. Blossoms are bright pink. The berries are delicious and high in vitamin C, but are difficult to find in large quantities. Leaves and roots are used to relieve diarrhea. Caution: use only fresh or very dry leaves. Wilted leaves are said to induce vomiting.

PLANTAIN
(goosetongue, seashore plantain—not to be confused with broad-leaved plantain, an introduced plant),
Plantago maritima
: Pointed, narrow leaves grow from the plant base to a height of twelve inches. It grows along the southeastern Alaskan seacoast and is a favorite food of the Alaska brown bear. Leaves are good raw or cooked and are mashed to use as a salve for skin irritations. Caution: seashore plantain closely resembles poisonous arrowgrass, and they grow in the same general areas. Arrowgrass contains cyanide.

RASPBERRY,
Rubus idaeus
: A prickly shrub that grows up to six feet in height. Berries are prime, bright red and made up of many drupelets, each containing a single seed. Soft leaves have five to seven lobes, are pointed and have serrated edges. Flowers are white and contain five petals. Raspberry leaf tea is said to aid in the health of reproductive organs. Berries are high in vitamins B and C and a number of minerals, including calcium. Caution: wilted leaves are slightly toxic. Some people experience contact dermatitis after handling leaves or berries.

SALMONBERRY
(not to be confused with
Rubus chamaemorus;
see
Cloudberry,
above),
Rubus spectabilis
:
A
woody biennial shrub that grows up to seven feet in height. Bright rose-purple flowers are five-petaled and mature into large raspberrylike berries, red or salmon pink in color. Berries are high in vitamin C. Bark and leaf infusions are used to treat stomach upset, and root teas are said to relieve diarrhea. Poultices of pounded bark are used to relieve toothache. Caution: wilted leaves are slightly toxic.

SPRUCE
(white spruce),
Picea glauca
; (black spruce),
Picea mariana
: Evergreen trees with four-sided needles. Black spruce have a more scraggly appearance and generally grow on wetter, lower ground than white spruce. Needles are high in vitamin C and may be boiled into a relaxing tonic tea (carefully strained). Warmed pitch is used as a chest plaster said to help relieve congestion, and also may be used as makeshift “stitches” to close cuts.

SOUR DOCK
(sorrel, curly dock, yellow dock),
Rumex crispus
; (arctic dock),
Rumex arcticus
: Leaves are shaped like spearheads, wavy at the edges, and fan out from the base of the plant. A central stalk grows to three or four feet in height and bears clusters of edible reddish seeds. Steamed leaves are said to remove warts. The root of these plants is crushed and used as a poultice for skin eruptions. Fresh leaves are abundant in vitamins C and A, but they also contain oxalic acid, so consumption should be moderate.

WILLOW,
Salix
: A narrow-leafed shrub or small tree with smooth gray, yellowish and/or brownish bark. There are presently more than thirty species of willow in Alaska. The leaves are a very good source of vitamin C, though in some varieties they taste quite bitter. The leaves and inner bark contain salicin, which acts like aspirin to deaden pain. Bark can be chipped and boiled to render a pain-relieving tea. Leaves can also be boiled for tea. Leaves are chewed and placed over insect bites to relieve itching. Roots and branches are used to make baskets and woven fish weirs.

XOS COGH
(devil’s club),
Echinopanax horridum
: A prickly, woody-stemmed plant that may reach heights of eight feet. Large leaves resemble maple leaves. Tea decoctions are said to help stabilize blood sugar and prevent cancer. The root, pounded and heated, can be used to treat skin abrasions and infections and insect bites. The plant’s spines are considered a nemesis of hikers.

YELLOW DOCK:
See
Sour Dock,
above.

YELLOW VIOLET,
Violaceae
: Small yellow five-petaled flowers are borne on stems that grow to approximately ten inches. Flowers carry irregular dark lines at the center of each petal. Serrated leaves are heart-shaped. Both leaves and flowers are edible. Leaves are a good source of vitamin C. Leaves were mixed with fat and used as a salve on skin contusions. Caution: leaves and flowers tend to have a laxative effect.

M
ERE WORDS CANNOT CONVEY
my gratitude, nor the debt I owe so many for their help, encouragement and willingness to share their expertise.

All those I cited in
Song of the River
again deserve my mention: our friends in Akutan, Anchorage, Atka, Beluga, Dutch Harbor, St. George, St. Paul and Unalaska. You will never know how much I have learned and continue to learn from all of you, and how much you mean to Neil and me. To those steadfast friends whose expertise has guided me since my first novel,
Mother Earth Father Sky
, again I say thank you: Dr. William Laughlin, Mike and Rayna Livingston, Dr. Ragan and Dorthea Callaway, and Mark and Forbes McDonald.

My sincere thanks to those who read this manuscript in its many versions: my husband, Neil; my daughter, Krystal; my parents, Pat and Bob McHaney; my sister Tish Walker; my friends Linda Hudson and Joe Claxton, astute readers all. I am fortunate to have friends and family like you, willing to help by wading through pages riddled with notes and typos and pleas for feedback!

My gratitude to our friends at Shobunsha and Tuttle-Mori in Japan, and our translators, Akio Namekata, Hiromi Kawashima and Atsuko Sakurauchi, who patiently introduced us to their beautiful and complex culture. A special mention to Mr. Hashida Yoshinori, who was so generous with his books and information about the prehistoric culture of the Japanese Islands and the Jomon People; and to Mr. Ohno and his wife, who so graciously allowed us to experience a wide variety of the bounty of Pacific Rim seafoods at their beautiful Tokyo home.

My sincere thanks also to my father, who was able to give me information about dislocated shoulders from his firsthand experience, and not once chided me for lack of sensitivity when my interest proved to be motivated as much by literary concerns as sympathy!

I am truly fortunate to have Rhoda Weyr as my agent. She is a gifted editor as well as a wise counselor and friend, always astute in both business and literary matters. My most sincere appreciation and heartfelt thanks go to my editor at Avon Books, Ann McKay Thoroman, and her very gifted staff.

Words always fail me when I seek to convey my thanks to my husband, Neil. I am grateful for his insight, his computer work on the map and his knowledge about wildlife and survival skills. He is gifted in so many areas where I am not, and always willing to advise when advice is needed and to listen without criticism when I want a sounding board. We convey our appreciation to our children, Krystal and Neil and Tonya; to our parents and friends; and to our extended families, always supporting, always encouraging. We are abundantly blessed.