- Region
- North America
- Origin
- Prairies of central North America, from Alberta and Manitoba to Texas
- Traditions
- Lakota medicine, Anishinaabe medicine
North America · Food · № 962
Astragalus crassicarpus
Food · North America
Ground plum
Astragalus crassicarpus
A low legume with purple-pink flowers and thick, round pods that lie on the ground like small plums. Only the young pods are edible.
Safety notes
Apart from the young pods the plant is poisonous. Many related species of Astragalus, the 'locoweeds', are poisonous even as pods and look alike: only eat it if you know the species for certain. Traditional use is no proof of effect; consult a doctor or pharmacist if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, take medication or have a medical condition.
Cautions by tradition (2)
- Lakota (Teton Sioux) medicine: Only the young pods are edible; related species are poisonous.
- Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) medicine: Apart from the young pods, the plant is poisonous.
Preparation
The young, juicy pods raw or cooked; the root as an ingredient of a mixture.
Use in traditions
In Dakota the plant is called pte ta wote, 'buffalo food'. The Dakota ate the pods straight from the plant, and the Pawnee quenched their thirst with them. The Lakota gave the plant to horses as medicine. Among the Ojibwe the root was one of the four ingredients of the medicine bi'jikiwuk.
Applications
Use by tradition
How different herbal traditions describe this herb. Amounts are traditional guidelines checked for obvious errors; they are not medical advice. For poisonous plants no dosage is given on purpose.
Lakota (Teton Sioux) medicine
Attributed effects
In Dakota 'buffalo food'. A food of the prairie and a remedy for horses.
Preparation and amount
Eat the young pods fresh from the plant; the plant as medicine for horses.
Caution: Only the young pods are edible; related species are poisonous.
Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) medicine
Attributed effects
One of the four ingredients of bi'jikiwuk (Main'gans).
Preparation and amount
Wash, scrape, dry and powder the root; mixed in equal parts with fringed sage and prairie rose.
Caution: Apart from the young pods, the plant is poisonous.
- Ways to prepare herbs
- Powder and kitchen