Chapter III: Part 3

=Sensitive Fern= (_Onoclea sensibilis_ L.), “aˈ nanaˈ ganûck” [fern]. The Pillager Ojibwe powder the dry root, and make a tea to give the patient whose breasts are caked, to stimulate the flow of milk. There is no record of its medicinal use by white men.

=Brake= (_Pteris aquilina_ L.), “anaˈ ganûck” [general fern name]. This is the general name of the bracken fern, where used for food. When used for medicine, it is called by the Flambeau Ojibwe—“makateˈ wa anaˈ ganûck” [black fern], and the root is made into tea to alleviate cramps in the stomach. It is only used by the women for this purpose. The dried leaves are smoked upon live coals to relieve a headache. Under the name “aˈ nanaganaˈ wûck” the root is used by the Pillager Ojibwe in the same manner as by the Flambeau Ojibwe. White men have considered this root to be pectoral, demulcent, purgative and anthelmintic. A syrup solution is used in pulmonary and hepatic diseases. A strong decoction is used to expel worms.

PRIMULACEAE (PRIMROSE FAMILY)

So far as is known, none of the Primrose family is used by the Ojibwe for medicine. The Pillager Ojibwe did not know the Tufted Loosestrife (_Lysimachia thyrsiflora_ L.).

RANUNCULACEAE (CROWFOOT FAMILY)

=Red Baneberry= (_Actaea rubra_ [Ait.] Willd.), “wîckobidjiˈbîk” [sweet root], shown in plate 76, fig. 1. The Pillager Ojibwe make a tea from the root, to be drunk by women after childbirth. It is to clear up the system. A man also eats the root for stomach troubles. White men use the root as a substitute for Black Cohosh (_Cimicifuga racemosa_), which it resembles in appearances and properties. It has been used in treating ovarian neuralgia, uterine tenderness, subinvolution, and amenorrhea. It has also been used as a substitute for digitalis in fatty or irritable heart, but only after other remedies have failed. Headache due to eyestrain has also been cured by this root.

=Canada Anemone= (_Anemone canadensis_ L.), “mîdewidjiˈ bîk” [medicine lodge root], shown in plate 74, fig. 2. The Pillager Ojibwe eat the root of this plant to clear the throat so they can sing well in the medicine lodge ceremony,—a sort of throat lozenge. Most of the anemones have been substituted for _Pulsatilla_ and used for the same host of diseases by eclectic practitioners. Included in these ailments are: cataract, paralysis, rheumatism, melancholia, syphilis, dysmenorrhea, and many other morbid conditions.

=Thimble-weed= (_Anemone cylindrica_ Gray.), “gande gwaˈ soninkeˈ cînagwûk” [looks like tumble-weed]. The Flambeau Ojibwe use the root for making a tea to relieve lung congestion and tuberculosis. Among the white men it has the same uses as Canada Anemone.

=Wild Columbine= (_Aquilegia canadensis_ L.), shown in plate 74, fig. 1. The Pillager Ojibwe have no name for this plant, but the root is considered a good medicine for stomach trouble. Eclectic practitioners consider it a diuretic, diaphoretic, and antiscorbutic, using it in jaundice, in smallpox to promote eruption, and in scurvy.

=Goldthread= (_Coptis trifolia_ [L.] Salisb.), “wesa waˈ nikweˈak” [yellow?] and “wesa wadjiˈbîkweˈak” [yellow root], shown in plate 75, fig. 1. The Flambeau Ojibwe use the decoction of the root to soothe and heal the baby’s gums while it is teething. It is also used as a mouth wash for adults when their mouths are sore. This use has been adopted by white men, who also use it in dyspepsia and chronic inflammation of the stomach.

=Bristly Crowfoot= (_Ranunculus pennsylvanicus_ L. f.), “manweˈ gons”. The seeds are a hunting medicine with the Flambeau Ojibwe. Several of the _Ranunculaceae_ have been used as counter-irritants by the white men.

=Cursed Crowfoot= (_Ranunculus sceleratus_ L.). The Pillager Ojibwe do not know this plant, and have no name for it. Eclectic practitioners have used it as a counter-irritant.

=Purple Meadow Rue= (_Thalictrum dasycarpum_ Fisch. & Lall.), shown in plate 73, fig. 1. The Pillager Ojibwe have no Indian name for this, but use the root to make a tea to reduce fever. The properties of this root are considered almost identical with _Berberis_, which is used by white men as a tonic, stimulant and antiperiodic.

ROSACEAE (ROSE FAMILY)

=Agrimony= (_Agrimonia gryposepala_ Wallr.), “sagaˈ tîgans” [seeds stick], shown in plate 77, fig. 1. The Flambeau Ojibwe use the root with other ingredients as a medicine for urinary troubles. It is not much valued now by white men, although it has been used for its bitter astringent properties.

=Smooth Juneberry= (_Amelanchier laevis_ Wiegand), “gozigaˈgominagaˈwûnj” [thorny wood][119] according to John Whitefeather, Flambeau Ojibwe, and “bîsegaˈgomînagaˈwûnj” according to Charley Burns, another Flambeau Ojibwe who said that the bark was used for medicine, but he did not know what it was to treat. The Pillager Ojibwe call it “gozigaˈgomînûk” and say that the bark is to make a tea for the expectant mother. There is no record of its medicinal use by white men.

=Hawthorn= (_Crataegus_ sp.), “mînesagaˈ wûnj” [berries and thorn bush], shown in plate 77, fig. 2. The Flambeau Ojibwe use both the fruit and the bark for medicine, a kind not made now, other than for women. Eclectic practitioners have used the berries for their astringent and reputed cardiac properties.

=Wild Strawberry= (_Fragaria virginiana_ Duchesne), “odeˈ imînîdjiˈ bîk,” [heart berry root].[120] The root of the common Wild Strawberry is used to make a tea good for the stomach-ache, and especially for babies. The white man uses the herb as an astringent and tonic for convalescents and especially for children having bowel and bladder weakness.

=Large-leaved Avens= (_Geum macrophyllum_ Willd.), “wicaˈwasaˈ konek” [yellow light]. The Flambeau Ojibwe use this for a female remedy. Eclectic practitioners consider the root tonic and astringent.

=Rough Cinquefoil= (_Potentilla monspeliensis_ L.), “tcodeˈ imînagaˈ wûnj” [like a strawberry]. This plant seemed to be known to all the Pillager Ojibwe, even the eight-year-old girls, as a physic. There is no record of its use as a medicine by white men.

=Marsh Five-finger= (_Potentilla palustris_ [L.] Scop.), “bebaˈ akwûndek” [floats about]. This was dug from the water by John Whitefeather’s wife, Flambeau Ojibwe, who said it was a cure for cramps in the stomach, and is used alone as one medicine. Under the Pillager Ojibwe name of “mûckiˈ godjiˈbîk” [swamp root], John Peper said that it was medicine with them, but he did not know how to use it. There is no record of its use as medicine by white men.

=Pin Cherry= (_Prunus pennsylvanica_ L. f.), “baeˈwimînûn”. The inner bark is a valued remedy for coughs. Most of the species of cherry have been used by white men for the bitter principle contained, which suits it for use as a stomachic and bitter tonic in gastric atony and general debility. The syrup of wild cherry has been used as a pleasant vehicle for other drugs.

=Wild Cherry= (_Prunus serotina_ Ehrh.) “okweˈ mîn” [worm out of a fly’s egg; refers to the little worms in a cherry when it is ripe].[121] The Flambeau Ojibwe value the bark of this species to make a tea as a remedy for coughs and colds. It is used the same as Pin Cherry by white men.

=Choke Cherry= (_Prunus virginiana_ L.), “aˈ sasaweˈ mînagaˈ wûnj.”[122] The Pillager Ojibwe make a tea for lung trouble from the inner bark. This is the official bark in the pharmacopoeia, which is used as a stomachic and bitter tonic useful in gastric atony and general debility. Wild cherry syrup is used to mask other unpleasant drugs.

=Smooth Rose= (_Rosa blanda_ Ait.), “ogîneˈ mînagaˈ ons” [rose berries].[123] The Pillager Ojibwe use the skin of the fruit or “rose hip” for stomach trouble. The Flambeau Ojibwe call it “ogîni” or “ogîniˈ gawûnj” [rose berries]. They dry and powder the flowers for use in relieving heartburn. The skin of the rose hips is a medicine for indigestion. Rose hips are described by white men as refrigerant and astringent, but are only used in medicine to prepare the confection of hips. Roses are used almost wholly today to impart their pleasant odor to pharmaceutical preparations.

=High Bush Blackberry= (_Rubus allegheniensis_ Porter), “oˈdatagaˈ gomîc” [its name].[124] The Flambeau Ojibwe boil the canes to obtain a tea that is used as a diuretic. The roots furnish a tea for arresting flux. Blackberry and Dewberry root are official in the U. S. Pharmacopoeia because of their tonic and astringent properties. They are favorite household remedies among white men in the treatment of summer diarrhea of children and adults. Blackberry cordial is often used for the same purpose.

=Red Raspberry= (_Rubus idaeus_ L. _aculeatissimus_ [C. A. Mey] Regel & Tiling) “meskwaˈ mînagaˈ wûnj” [red bush berry]. The Flambeau Ojibwe value the berries as a seasoner for their medicines. That is, the flavor is used to disguise less pleasant ingredients. The root bark makes a tea for healing sore eyes. Under the name Rubi Idei Fructus, N. F. white men use the berries for making an agreeable syrup as a vehicle for less pleasant tasting medicines. When the Red Raspberry is not readily available the Black Cap Raspberry is used in the same manner.

=Meadow-sweet= (_Spiraea salicifolia_ L.), “wabûckîkiˈ bug” [rabbit leaf]. The Flambeau Ojibwe use the root as a trapping medicine. There is no record of its use by the white man.

=Steeple Bush= (_Spiraea tomentosa_ L.), “memîsgwûˈnagûg” [squaws’ drink]. The Flambeau Ojibwe make a tea from the leaves and flowers of the Steeple Bush to drink for the sickness of pregnancy and to act as an easy parturient. The whites have used the root and the leaves as an astringent and tonic, in diarrhea, hemorrhages, gonorrhea, ulcers, etc.

RUBIACEAE (MADDER FAMILY)

=Goose Grass= (_Galium aparine_ L.), “sakateˈ bwi” [stickers]. The whole plant is used by the Pillager Ojibwe to make a tea used for a diuretic, in kidney trouble, gravel, stoppage of urine, and allied ailments. Other species are used in much the same way and for the same purposes. White men have recognized it as a valuable refrigerant and diuretic, and have found it useful in diseases of the urinary organs. It is not recommended for diseases of a passive character, on account of its refrigerant and sedative effects, but is used freely in fevers and all acute diseases.

=Small Cleaver= (_Galium tinctorium_ L.), “waboskîkiˈ mînûn” [rabbit swamp berries]. The Flambeau Ojibwe make a medicinal tea from the whole plant, for its beneficial effect upon the respiratory organs. Eclectic practitioners have used it for its nervine, antispasmodic, expectorant and diaphoretic properties. It has been successfully used in asthma, cough, and chronic bronchitis. The plant has a pungent, aromatic, pleasant, persistent taste.

=Small Bedstraw= (_Galium trifidum_ L.), “ojîbweˈ oweˈ cûwûn”, [ojibwe male genitalia]. The Pillager Ojibwe make a medicinal tea of this species for skin diseases such as eczema, ringworm and scrofula. White men undoubtedly use it in much the same way as the preceding species through error in identifying it correctly.

RUTACEAE (RUE FAMILY)

=Prickly Ash= (_Zanthoxylum americanum_ Mill.), “gawaˈ kumîc”,[125] [its name]. Both Flambeau and Pillager Ojibwe make trips further south to get this bark, since none of the trees grow near them. They want it for treating quinsy and sore throat. They say that even the berries are good for a hot tea to treat sore throat, and also to use as a spray on the chest to cool and relieve congestion in bronchitis. Among the white men, it is considered a stimulant, tonic, alterative and sialagogue and is used for chronic rheumatism, colic, syphilis, and hepatic derangements.

SALICACEAE (WILLOW FAMILY)

=Balsam Poplar= (_Populus balsamifera_ L.), “manasaˈ di” [perfume poplar]. The Pillager Ojibwe cook the buds of the Balsam Poplar in lard or bear fat, and use the cold product for a salve on cuts, wounds or bruises. They also rub it on the inside of the nostrils, so that the balsamic odors can course through the respiratory passages and open them in case of congestion from cold, catarrh or bronchitis. Poplar buds are also official with white men who use them as a stimulating expectorant, and in the form of an ointment in treating sluggish ulcers and sores. Eclectic practitioners have used tinctures of the buds for stomach and kidney treatment and in scurvy and rheumatism, and sometimes, apply it to the chest. The bark is used by white men for a tonic and cathartic, of service in gout and rheumatism.

=Large-toothed Aspen= (_Populus grandidentata_ Michx.), “asadi” [bitter bark]. The Flambeau Ojibwe use the young roots of this tree in a tea as a hemostatic. There is no record of its use by the whites.

=Quaking Aspen= (_Populus tremuloides_ Michx.), “asadi” [poplar]. The Flambeau Ojibwe give this tree the same name as the Large-toothed Aspen. They use the bark of a young trunk for poulticing cuts and wounds. The astringent salacin in the inner bark undoubtedly draws the cuts together and causes healing. The Pillager Ojibwe distinguish the tree with a slightly different name, “asadins”, the diminutive of “asadi”, meaning “little poplar”. They use the inner bark for poulticing a sore arm or leg, and make the inner layer of their splints of the inner bark so that a broken limb may heal healthily. Eclectic practitioners use both bark and leaves in treating acute rheumatism, also to lower the temperature in fevers, to relieve pain and reduce arterial swellings, colds, hay fever, influenza, neuralgia and diabetes. Externally the whites have used it as a wash for gangrenous wounds, eczema, cancer, burns, and body odor.

=Crack Willow= (_Salix fragilis_ L.), “sizigoˈ bimîc” [willow name]. This tree has escaped from cultivation around the water-courses of the Flambeau Reservation and has been accepted by the Ojibwe there as efficacious along with the native willows. The bark is astringent from its salacin content and is used as a styptic and poultice for sores. Willow bark was formerly employed by physicians among the whites as a stomachic and antiperiodic in the treatment of intermittents, but is rarely used today.

=Shining Willow= (_Salix lucida_ Muhl.), “zigoˈ bamîc”. The Pillager Ojibwe use the bark of this species as an external remedy for sores. The Ojibwe do not generally distinguish any particular willow with any other name, but Whitefeather, Flambeau Ojibwe, called this species “mûckigoˈ bamîc” [swamp tree] and said it was used on a cut to stop the bleeding, and that the bark was also a poultice material for sores. Other Flambeau Ojibwe called it “sizigoˈ bamîc”, but it was generally noticed that in that latitude the Shining Willow was invariably found in swamps, and not along streams, so there is justification for Whitefeather’s name. Among the whites, this bark was used formerly as a stomachic and antiperiodic.

=Bog Willow= (_Salix pedicellaris_ Pursh.), “sizigoˈ bamîc”. This is a species of the cold bogs and meadows found far up toward the Arctic Circle. While the Pillager Ojibwe did not give it a distinctive name, they said it was not used for bark to smoke, but for bark to treat stomach trouble. There is no record of its use by whites.

SARRACENIACEAE (PITCHER-PLANT FAMILY)

=Pitcher-plant= (_Sarracenia purpurea_ L.), “oˈ makakiˈ wîdass” [frog’s leggins], as shown in plate 67, fig. 1. Bearskin, Flambeau Ojibwe medicine man had a slight variant in pronouncing this—“oˈ makakiˈ odass”. He said that the root is used to make a tea to help a woman accomplish parturition. Eclectic practitioners used the whole plant to make a tea for a tonic, stimulant, diuretic and laxative.

SAXIFRAGACEAE (SAXIFRAGE FAMILY)

=Wild Red Currant= (_Ribes triste_ Pall.), “mîciˈ tcimînûk.” The Flambeau Ojibwe use the leaves as some sort of a female remedy. There is no record of its use by the whites.

SCROPHULARIACEAE (FIGWORT FAMILY)

=Butter and Eggs= (_Linaria vulgaris_ Hill.), “owacawaˈ skwûneg” [yellow light]. The whole plant is dried by the Flambeau Ojibwe and used in the kettle with other foliage and twigs as a bronchial inhalant in the sweat lodge. The Ojibwe name for medicine to be inhaled is “nokweˈsîkûn” which sounds much like the Menomini Indian name for the same thing,—“naˈ sîkon”. The eclectic practitioners claimed that the plant is diuretic, and cathartic, using it in dropsy, jaundice, and cutaneous eruptions. The fresh plant was sometimes used as a poultice for hemorrhoidal tumors, and an ointment was made of the fresh flowers for the same purpose and to use locally in diseases of the skin. In Germany, the flowers were used for a yellow dye.

=Cow Wheat= (_Melampyrum lineare_ Lam.), “agoñgasiˈ mînûk” [chipmunk berries]. The Flambeau Ojibwe say that this plant is made into a tea, which is a “little medicine for the eyes”. There is no record of its medicinal use by the whites.

=Wood Betony= (_Pedicularis canadensis_ L.), “mandamîˈ nîodjiˈ bîkîns” [little corn root]. According to John Peper, Pillager Ojibwe, this root was a bad kind of medicine, an aphrodisiac, when cut fine and placed in some dish of food without the knowledge of those who were going to eat it. There is no record of its medicinal use by the whites.

=Mullein= (_Verbascum thapsus_ L.). The Flambeau Ojibwe have no name for this since it has come into their territory from the south and they do not use it. The writer has gathered this for his grandmother who smoked the leaves for relieving asthma and bronchitis. The flowers are supposed to have diuretic properties and have been used in the treatment of tuberculosis.

THYMELEACEAE (MEZEREUM FAMILY)

=Moosewood= (_Dirca palustris_ L.), “djibeˈ gûb” [djibe means a dead person, or ghost or spirit]. The bark of Moosewood is very soft, strong and elastic, so that twigs can be tied into knots. The Pillager Ojibwe say that all their people use it as a tea for a diuretic. The bark is sometimes substituted for Mezereum bark, which is official in the U. S. pharmacopoeia. It is usually used in a compound decoction with sarsaparilla for chronic skin diseases, and syphilitic, rheumatic and scrofulous conditions. As an external ointment, it was used for a stimulant to foul or ill-conditioned ulcers.

TYPHACEAE (CAT-TAIL FAMILY)

=Cat-tail= (_Typha latifolia_ L.), “bebamasûˈn” [it flies around]. The Flambeau Ojibwe used the fuzz of the fruit for a war medicine. They claim that the fuzz thrown into an enemy’s face will blind him.

UMBELLIFERAE (PARSLEY FAMILY)

=Musquash Root= (_Cicuta maculata_ L.), “apagwasîˈgons”. The Pillager Ojibwe say that this root is used a little in their medicine, but did not know just how. It was smoked in hunting.

=Cow Parsnip= (_Heracleum lanatum_ Michx.) “piˈ pîgweˈ wanûck” [flute stem].[126] The Pillager Ojibwe pound the fresh root and apply it as a poultice to cure sores. The fresh leaves and root are known to produce vesication or blisters by the whites, and therefore have been used by them as counter-irritants. The root has been used by eclectic practitioners to cure epilepsy. In infusions, it is thought to cure dyspeptic disorders.

=Sweet Cicely= (_Osmorhiza longistylis_ [Torr.] D. C.), “osagaˈ tîkûm” [interlaced twigs]. The same name was applied by the Pillager Ojibwe to _O. claytoni_, and evidently they did not distinguish between the two species. A tea for making parturition easier is prepared from the roots. The liquorice flavor of the tea is said to be good for a sore throat.

=Wild Parsnip= (_Pastinaca sativa_ L.), “pigweˈwûnûsk” [flute stem]. The Pillager Ojibwe are quite cautious in using this poisonous root. They claim that a little bit is very powerful, while much is poisonous. They use a very minute quantity mixed with four other kinds of roots to make a medicinal tea for female troubles. There is no record of its medicinal use by the whites.

=Black Snakeroot= (_Sanicula marilandica_ L.), “masan” [from the woods]. The Flambeau Ojibwe use the root pounded as a poultice to cure rattlesnake bite or any snake bite. Bearskin, chief Flambeau medicine man said that if this root be chewed, it would cause eruptions on the epithelial lining of the mouth. They consider it a very potent remedy. The Pillager Ojibwe call it “gîneˈbîg odjiˈ bîk” [snake root] and make a root tea that is used to cure fevers of various kinds. Eclectic practitioners have accredited it with active aromatic, bitter principles. They have used it in intermittent fevers, sore throat, erysipelas and cutaneous affections. It has been also used for St. Vitus dance and other nervous affections.

URTICACEAE (NETTLE FAMILY)

=Hop= (_Humulus lupulus_ L.), “jiwîˈcgoniˈbûg”. The Pillager Ojibwe use the common hop to make a tea which acts like saleratus on the system, increasing the excresence of urine and reducing its acidity. It is official in the U. S. pharmacopoeia as a tonic, diuretic, sedative and somewhat anaphrodisiac.

=Wood Nettle= (_Laportea canadensis_ [L.] Gaud.), “masaˈnatîk” [forest wood]. The Pillager Ojibwe use the root to make a medicinal tea for its diuretic properties. It is said to cure various urinary ailments. Eclectic practitioners have considered it tonic, astringent and diuretic. They use both roots and leaves. The seeds and flowers are given in wine for the ague.

=Slippery Elm= (_Ulmus fulva_ Michx.), “anib”. The Pillager Ojibwe use the slippery inner bark for sore throat, especially when the throat is apt to be dry. Slippery Elm is official in the U. S. pharmacopoeia as a demulcent, emollient and nutritive. It is considered useful internally for dysentery, diarrhea and bronchitis. Pounded bark for poultices has been used for boils and inflammations, and in compounding suppositories.

=Lyall’s Nettle= (_Urtica lyallii_ Wats.), “masan” [woods]. The Flambeau Ojibwe use only the leaves as medicine. These are soaked in warm water and used as a poultice for heat rashes. It is something like fighting fire with fire. Among the whites, nettles are known for their powerful and peculiar diuretic properties.

VIOLACEAE (VIOLET FAMILY)

=Canada Violet= (_Viola canadensis_ L.) Although a common violet in the territory of the Pillager Ojibwe, they claimed to have no name or use for it. It was formerly used by eclectic practitioners as a blood purifier and as a remedy in chronic affections of the lungs, and in skin diseases, but is no longer used.

=American Dog Violet= (_Viola conspersa_ Reichenb.), “wewaîeˈ bûgûg”. The whole plant is used by the Flambeau Ojibwe to make a tea for heart trouble. The whole plants have been used among the whites as alterative and expectorant remedies. They were said to be useful in skin diseases, scrofula, syphilis and bronchitis.

VITACEAE (VINE FAMILY)

=River-bank Grape= (_Vitis vulpina_ L.), “ciˈwî mînûn” or “ciwî mînaga wûnj”, shown in plate 70, fig. 2. The Pillager Ojibwe used a tea of boiled twigs for women to drink to clear up afterbirth and enable it to pass easily. They use the sap as a medicine for stomach and bowel trouble. Among the whites, the tender branchlets and leaves were sometimes employed for their agreeable acidulous flavor.

OJIBWE VEGETAL FOODS

The Ojibwe have always lived far from the haunts of civilization. They were too far in the back country to participate in the colonial and pre-colonial wars. They have always preferred to live where game is abundant, and even today they are still able to subsist partly on deer and fish. The products of the hunt were very important to them, and they possess a very large number of hunting charms, which are roots, seeds or blossoms that are used as good luck omens or actual lures in trapping and fishing.

They have always made the greatest use of the edible plants of their environment, but did not progress very far in an agricultural way until the last quarter century, when each reservation was furnished with an Indian or white farmer, preferably an Indian. He has used the school children to cultivate demonstration farms, and his example is persisting in some of his former pupils. The older people had a few simple products from prehistoric days and have not allowed them to completely run out. The garden patch was always small, and the caretaker was invariably the woman of the household. Among the cultivated crops were: Cranberry pole beans, maize or Indian corn, potatoes of an early variety, squash and tobacco. The last crop has not been grown by them in fifty years, as they now depend upon the white men for their source of supply. At the present time, they raise any of the crops, that the white men raise. In their gardens, one will find lettuce and onions, radishes, carrots, parsnips, beets, turnips, cabbage, potatoes of standard varieties, beans and peas, and any other crop one will find in an up-to-date garden. Stranger still, one may find garden flowers, and the lady of the house will be quite proud of them, and usually a little jealous, if her neighbor has some flowers that she has not.

Some of the wild crops they gather possess considerable commercial value, such as blueberries and wild rice. The laborious work of preparing wild rice for table use has boosted the price to $1.05 a pound, which those “in the know” gladly pay. Blueberries yield a goodly part of their cash income, for the berries usually sell for about twenty cents a quart, and it is easy for an Indian family to pick eighty quarts in a day. They do not pick them like the white man does, but comb the bushes with their fingers, removing the leaves and twigs later.

The Ojibwe are fond of their native foods, and since they regard all plants as the gift of their deities, and sacred to their uses, they feel that their native foods are medicine to keep them in health as well as foods. While they know nothing about vitamins or chemical constituents, they think that there are some salts or minerals in their native foods that keep them well. We know that they are correct in that. They ascribe many of their present diseases to the abandonment of their native foods and the adoption of white men’s foods. They think that the early failure of their teeth is due to using too much white flour for bread.

From the middle of July to the middle of September, one will find the women busily caring for the various food harvests. Maize will be drying on cloth screens, and blueberries will be drying to tough, inky pellets. Raspberries and dewberries are cooked into jams, cranberries are cooked with maple sugar into a jelly, and circles of squash are strung on a basswood bark string. Men and women are busy at the shallow lake harvesting wild rice, and all are very active. Sundays they will stop for a pow-wow or dream dance, but not if it is the wild rice harvest time. The food plants are listed alphabetically by families.

OJIBWE FOOD PLANTS

ACERACEAE (MAPLE FAMILY)

=Box Elder= (_Acer negundo_ L.), “adjagobiˈ mûk”. The Pillager Ojibwe collect the sap of the Box Elder and mix it with the sap of the regular Sugar Maple to drink as a beverage.

=Sugar Maple= (_Acer saccharum_ Marsh.), “înenaˈ tîg” [Indian tree] and “adjagobiˈ mîn”. Both names came from the Pillager Ojibwe,[127] and although the trees were scarce on the Flambeau Reservation, they also call it “înenaˈ tîg”, and gather quantities of the sap somewhere south of the reservation. Maple sugar is one of their most important foods and is used in almost every kind of cookery. Maple sap is saved to drink as it comes from the tree, sometimes with the added sap of the Box Elder or Yellow Birch. Again it is allowed to become sour to make a vinegar “cîwaˈbo” used in their cookery of venison, which, when afterwards sweetened with maple sugar, corresponds to the German fashion of sweet-sour meat. Before they had the salt of the white man, maple sugar took its place and still does when they can get it. All kinds of meats were seasoned with it. There are many interesting legends about the tree, its discovery and sugar making, as related in Mr. Alanson Skinner’s “Material Culture of the Menomini”.[128] The Ojibwe garner their sugar crop much the same way as they did years ago, except that they have used large iron kettles since the coming of the white man. The sugar camps are rather permanent affairs, and the framework of the boiling house with its upright poles around the fire place to hold the kettles is left intact. A bark-covered wigwam is used to store the tools of sugar sap gathering, and granulation. Most of the sap vessels and storage vessels are made of birch bark, sewed with boiled basswood fiber or the core of the Jack Pine root. The vessels are rendered waterproof by the application of pitch secured by boiling Jack Pine cones.

In early April, the Ojibwe visit their camps, the men to repair the camps and the storage vats of hollowed logs, and to cut fire wood, the women to see that the sap buckets and mokoks are scrupulously clean and watertight. If some can not be repaired, rolls of birchbark are there to make new ones. The whole family then move to the camp and live in the large wigwam, while they make sugar for a month. During the sap flow, a man can chop holes and set taps into from two to three hundred trees in a day. The first flow of sap is the best, and it gets to be of a rather poor quality by the end of the flow. The Ojibwe will not use the night flow of the sap, which they say is bitter, so they cease collecting an hour before dark. Gathered sap is stored in hollowed basswood log vats, and covered over with birch bark to keep it clean. Boiling in the iron kettles is done much as the white man does it, except that foam is dissipated by stirring with a fresh brush of a spruce branch. The syrup is strained through a cloth and recooked in two or three quart quantities until it is ready to sugar. Then, while still warm, it is poured into a wooden trough, where it is pounded and crushed with a heavy wooden paddle as it hardens. It is stored in covered birch bark baskets called mokoks, of from twenty-five to seventy-five pounds capacity. The sugar is graded according to its whiteness and stored away. Sap is often added to the dregs in the kettles and a second grade sugar is secured. To waste or spill any of the sap is considered an affront to their deities, who punish such an act by causing the sugar to shrink after it is made.

ALISMACEAE (WATER-PLANTAIN FAMILY)

=Arum-leaved Arrowhead= (_Sagittaria arifolia_ Nutt.) “wabasiˈ pîn” [white potato].[129] Both the Flambeau and the Pillager Ojibwe call this by the same name and use it exactly alike as far as its food value is concerned. The Pillager Ojibwe also use it as a medicine for man and horse. The Flambeau Ojibwe recognize that it is also a favorite food of ducks and geese. A similar species found in California is used by the Indians there as a potato under the name “wappate” or “wapatoo”, and is called by the whites there “Tule root.”[130] The corms are a most valued food source to the Ojibwe. They will dig them if they cannot get them more easily. Muskrat and beavers store them in large caches, which the Indians have learned to recognize and appropriate. It is difficult to dig them out still attached to the plant, because the connection between the roots and the corm is so fragile and small. The round corms are attached by a tiny rootlet to the main mass of fibrous roots, and are capable of reproducing the plant in a vegetative manner, just as the Irish Potato does. They are from one-half to an inch and a half in diameter and about three-quarters to two inches long. They are pure white inside, sweet and quite starchy. The Indian does not differentiate between this species and the Broad-leaved Arrowhead. For winter use, the potato is boiled, then sliced and strung on a piece of basswood bark fiber and hung up overhead for storage. They also use the fresh corms, cooking them with deer meat, and maple sugar. Some of the potatoes are kept over after cooking and the maple sugar is thickened until they might almost be called candied sweet potatoes.

ANACARDIACEAE (SUMAC FAMILY)

=Smooth Sumac= (_Rhus glabra_ L.), “bakwaˈ nak” [binding tree]. The Flambeau Ojibwe gather the berries to make a pleasant beverage much like lemonade. The berries are tart and are sweetened with maple sugar, soaked in water until required for use. They also gather and dry them for winter use. The dried berries are cooked in water with maple sugar, and form a hot drink, instead of a cooling one, as used in the summer and fall.

=Staghorn Sumac= (_Rhus typhina_ L.), “bakwaˈ natîg” [binding tree].[131] The Pillager Ojibwe use the berries in the same way as the Flambeau Ojibwe use this species, and under the same name. They also store up the dried seed heads for winter use.

ARISTOLOCHIACEAE (BIRTHWORT FAMILY)

=Wild Ginger= (_Asarum canadense_ L. var. _acuminatum_ Ashe), “nameˈ pîn”, [sturgeon potato].[132] The Pillager Ojibwe often use this root in cookery to season the food. They claim it takes away any muddy taste from fish, and will render any meat dish digestible by anyone, even if they are sick. The roots are processed in lye water for cookery on a large scale.

ASCLEPIADACEAE (MILKWEED FAMILY)

=Common Milkweed= (_Asclepias syriaca_ L.), “caboˈ sîkûn” [milk], “înîniwûnj” [indian plant] Flambeau name.[133] The Pillager Ojibwe eat the fresh flowers and tips of the shoots in soups. They are usually cooked with some kind of meat and become somewhat mucilaginous like okra, when cooked. They also gather and dry the flowers for refreshening in the winter time, to make into soup.

BETULACEAE (BIRCH FAMILY)

=Yellow Birch= (_Betula lutea_ Michx. f.), “wiˈnîsîk”. The Flambeau and Couderay Ojibwe tap the Yellow Birch for sap to add to maple sap for a pleasant beverage drink.

=Hazelnut= (_Corylus americana_ Walt.), “mûkwobagaˈ nak” [bear nut].[134] The Flambeau Indians use the hazel nut as a food and are especially fond of the newly gathered nuts before the kernel has hardened. The name is often shortened to “bagaˈ nak”.

=Beaked Hazelnut= (_Corylus rostrata_ Ait.), “baˈ ganaˈ mîc” [nut tree]. The Pillager Ojibwe also use the Beaked Hazelnut. The Flambeau Ojibwe also recognize it as “bagaˈ nak” [nut] and use it as a food.

CAPRIFOLIACEAE (HONEYSUCKLE FAMILY)

=Nannyberry= (_Viburnum lentago_ L.), “atîteˈ tamîn”.[135] The berries are eaten when ripe, fresh from the bush, and are also used in jam with wild grapes.

CELASTRACEAE (STAFF TREE FAMILY)

=Climbing Bittersweet= (_Celastrus scandens_ L.), “manîdobîmaˈ kwît” [spirit twisted].[136] The Pillager Ojibwe story of this plant is practically the same as that of the Menomini, as given in Museum bulletin Vol. IV, No. 1, pp. 63-64. Bittersweet is fairly abundant around Leech Lake, and is found in dense hardwood forests climbing to tops of trees thirty feet or more in height. When food is unobtainable in the winter, because the snow is too deep and game is scarce, the Ojibwe gather this bark and separate the inner bark to make a thick soup for a meal. While it is not so very palatable, it is sustaining and they may subsist on it for a considerable time, until they are able to get some game, or to go to some relatives and get other foodstuffs. The Ojibwe name refers as does the Menomini name, to the twisted intestines of their cultural hero, Winabojo.

COMPOSITAE (COMPOSITE FAMILY)

=Large-leaved Aster= (_Aster macrophyllus_ L.), “mêgêsiˈ bûg”, [eagle leaf]. The leaves of this aster are eaten when young and tender. The Flambeau Ojibwe declare that they are fine-flavored and good to eat, because they act as medicine at the same time that they are food. Among the Pillager Ojibwe they use the root of this same aster as a soup material, but call it “nêmêgosiˈ bûg” [trout leaf].

=Philadelphia Fleabane= (_Erigeron philadelphicus_ L.), “micao gacan” [odor of split hoof of doe]. The Pillager Ojibwe say that deer and cows eat this plant and that they use it in their smoking tobacco or kinnikinnik mixture.

=Dandelion= (_Taraxacum officinale_ Weber) “wecaˈ waskwûneˈ k” [yellow light]. The Flambeau Ojibwe gather the young leaves in the spring and cook them with pork or venison for greens, using vinegar made from soured maple sap.

CORNACEAE (DOGWOOD FAMILY)

=Panicled Dogwood= (_Cornus paniculata_ L’Her.) “meskwabiˈ mîc” [red bush]. The Flambeau Ojibwe use this bark in their kinnikinnik or native smoking tobacco. Sometimes real tobacco is mixed with it and sometimes not, as real tobacco is expensive. The twig bark is peeled and toasted over coals on a crude drying fork, then further shredded to carry in their tobacco pouches and smoke in their pipes.

CRUCIFERAE (MUSTARD FAMILY)

=Large Toothwort= (_Dentaria maxima_ Nutt.), “mûkwopîniˈk” [bear potato]. The rootstocks of this cress are very abundant in wet, springy ground in the forest. The white man can only identify this plant in the spring of the year when the flower and leaf are found, but the Ojibwe knows the root and where it grows so gathers it when it has matured. It is a favored wild potato, but has a very pungent acrid taste when freshly dug. They heap the mass of cleaned roots upon a blanket and cover it closely to exclude the air for four or five days. During this time the roots ferment and lose the acrid taste, becoming sweet and palatable. The Ojibwe cook them with corn and deer meat, or with beans and deer meat, and say that, besides being a fine food, they are a good medicine for the stomach.

CUCURBITACEAE (GOURD FAMILY)

=Cucumber= (_Cucumis sativus_ L.), “eckaˈdamîn” [its name]. The Ojibwe use their cucumbers raw, but sometimes flavor them with a vinegar “cîwaˈbo” made from souring maple sap. They are further flavored with powdered maple sugar.

=Ojibwe Squash= (_Cucurbita maxima_ Duchesne), “ogwîˈssi maun owaso kwoneˈk” [pumpkin, yellow light]. Their word “ogwissimaun” literally means “tangled hairs”, and refers to the strings inside upon which the seeds are borne. The Flambeau Ojibwe cultivate their own variety of squash, although they say that they got it originally from the Iroquois. They dry rings of squash for winter use.

=Large Pie Pumpkin= (_Cucurbita pepo_ L.), “missaˈ bîgon” [little giant plant]. They have cultivated this original Ojibwe dark yellow pie pumpkin since long before the advent of the white man. They cut it into rings and sun dry it for winter use.

=Gourds= (_Lagenaria vulgaris_ Ser.), “jicaˈwîgan” [hollow like]. The Ojibwe cultivate the gourds, which they eat when young, before the rind has hardened. They also make use of them for drinking and dipping cups, and for rattles in the medicine lodge. The medicine man, “mîdewag”, keeps the rhythm of his songs by shaking them. They are pierced, kernels of corn or shells inserted, and then corked again for use.

EQUISETACEAE (HORSETAIL FAMILY)

=Field Horsetail= (_Equisetum arvense_ L.), “gîjiˈ bînûsk” [duck food].[137] The Pillager Ojibwe gather this for their domesticated ducks to eat and also to feed their ponies, to make their coats glossy.

ERICACEAE (HEATH FAMILY)

=Bog Rosemary= (_Andromeda glaucophylla_ Link.), “bîneˈ mîkci” [swamp]. Young, tender leaves and tips of this plant are used by the Flambeau Ojibwe to boil for a beverage tea. While they often pick and use it fresh on the hunting trail, they also gather and dry it for later use. It is not a bad substitute for “store tea.”

=Leather Leaf= (_Chamaedaphne calyculata_ [L.] Moench.), “wabackîkiˈ bûg” [rabbit leaf]. This is another beverage tea leaf, prized by the Flambeau Ojibwe. It is used on the trail or dried and saved for future use. The Pillager Ojibwe also use it in the same manner, under the name,—“mackiˈ gobûgons” [little swamp leaf].

=Wintergreen= (_Gaultheria procumbens_ L.), “wînîsiˈ bûgûd” [dirty leaf], shown in plate 75, fig. 2. While the Flambeau Ojibwe use this as a rheumatic medicine, they also use the leaf tea from the youngest, tenderest leaves as a beverage tea, and especially favor it because it “makes them feel good”. They also eat the wintergreen berry which they call “owînîsiˈ mîn”.

=Labrador Tea= (_Ledum groenlandicum_ Oeder.), “waboskîkiˈ bûg” [rabbit leaf], shown in plate 76, fig. 2. The Flambeau Ojibwe use the tender leaves of this plant for a beverage tea, and will even eat the leaves in the tea. It is a well known tea to many northern and Canadian Indians.

=Cranberry= (_Vaccinium oxycoccos_ L.), “mûckiˈ mîn” [swamp berry] shown in plate 67, fig. 2. This is an important wild food of the Flambeau Indians and also of the Pillager Ojibwe, who use a slightly different pronunciation, “mûckîtciˈ mîn” [swamp berry]. The train men that go through that reservation never seem to tire of getting Johnnie Frog to say “cranberry pie” for them in Ojibwe. It sounds so complicated because they really have no word for pie in their language but must say, “swamp berries made into sauce rolled between bread”,—“mûckiˈ gimînûn backiˈ mînasîgûn wiwegidaˈsîgûn”.

=Blueberry= (_Vaccinium pennsylvanicum_ Lam.), “mînûn” [berries]. The Flambeau and the Pillager Ojibwe harvest quantities of blueberries both for themselves and to sell. They dry them in large quantities on raised scaffolds of rush mats, like currants, or raisins, which they somewhat resemble. In the winter, they like to cook them with dried sweet corn, sweetened with maple sugar. They also cook them with wild rice, and venison and make a sweet bread with them. They have different names for different varieties of blueberries. The Low Blueberry (_V. vacillans_ Kalm.) is called “gimîneˈsît” while the low Black Blueberry (_V. nigrum_ [Wood] Britton) is called “makateˈ mîn” [black blueberry]. No specimens of the last two were secured, but the names were common among the Ojibwe.

FAGACEAE (BEECH FAMILY)

=Beech= (_Fagus grandifolia_ Ehrh.) “gaweˈmîc”. All the Ojibwe know and appreciate the sweet nuts of the beech tree. They are never plentiful enough to store for winter, but the Indians like them fresh.

=White Oak= (_Quercus alba_ L.), “mîciˈ mîn” [oak berry]. All Ojibwe encountered told of their former dependence upon acorns for their soup stock. It seems that at least every Algonkian tribe knew and used all species of acorns. They got rid of the bitter tannin taste by soaking the acorns in hot lye. Wood ashes in water, when boiled gave them the lye. A regular woven bark bag held a quantity of acorns and the lye was leached out by washing the whole bagful in several changes of warm water. The acorns were then dried for storage, and when wanted, pounded and ground to a coarse flour which was used to thicken soups or form a sort of mush. Blueberries were often cooked with this mush to give it a good flavor and it was seasoned with maple sugar. White Oak acorns needed no lye treatment.

=Bur Oak= (_Quercus macrocarpa_ Michx.), “mîtîgoˈ mîc” [wooden tree]. Bur Oak acorns are bitter, but yield to the lye treatment to become as edible as the acorns of the White Oak.

=Red Oak= (_Quercus rubra_ L.), “mîtîgoˈ mîc” [wooden tree]. Because Red Oak was so abundant in the Ojibwe territory and so large in size, the acorns were one of their most important starchy foods. They leached the tannic acid flavor with lye and brought them to a par with the sweet acorns of White Oak.

=Black Oak= (_Quercus velutina_ Lam.) “têˈ komîn”. The name is evidently an abbreviation of “mêtîgoˈ mîn”, but probably an intentional one for this tree was always referred to by the abbreviation. Its acorns were equally good as others when the tannin was extracted.

FUNGI

The writer found that none of the Ojibwe eat any of the mushrooms although they have two names for them,—“pîkwaˈ djîc” and “wajackweˈ do” [muskrat]. Probably some remote ancestor had a fatal experience with mushrooms and the news has been handed down. Although the Ojibwe have fanciful stories explaining why they use certain plants, no doubt their knowledge came by a process of trial and error through the centuries and the errors have been duly buried but not entirely forgotten.

GRAMINAE (GRASS FAMILY)

=Corn= (_Zea mays_ L.), “mandaˈ mîn”. Corn is a traditional heritage of the Ojibwe, although none knew a time when they did not have it. Their origin myth is that it was a pinch of flesh taken from the side of their culture hero, Winabojo, by himself and cast upon the ground, to grow and become corn for them. This is the same as acknowledging that they do not know how it came to be here. When mandamin matures, they say that only horses can eat it raw in that condition. They have to soak it in lye water, wash out the lye and then parboil it to prepare it for the table. This is the same as our hominy. Scientists think now that corn originated in Mexico from an accidental crossing of teosinte and gama grass. While the Ojibwe cultivate and grow the approved strains of corn for Wisconsin, they also cling to their own “calico” corn, with all sorts of colors of grains on different cobs. They have two names for sweet corn,—“wîckobiˈ mandaˈmîn” [sweet maize], and “wîckobiˈ sîˈganûg” [turns sweet in cooking]. Their sweet or soft corns are different from those used by the white man. They roast the ears in the husk and make it into hominy as the white man does. They cut the kernels from their sweet corn and dry them for winter use. It is also boiled in a kettle, and when half-cooked, is cut from the cob and dried for winter use.

They had a name for popcorn, but the writer saw none of it while around them.

=Wild Rice= (_Zizania palustris_ L.), “manoˈ mîn” [good berry]. The Ojibwe word is their pronunciation of the Menomini term for wild rice. Most Algonkians have the same word for wild rice and it forms a very important part of their food. The writer has often been present at the Ojibwe rice harvests. The largest operation seen was that of the Ojibwe at Mole Lake in Forest County, Wisconsin. There about twenty families were working at one time and the writer worked at each operation to become familiar with it. Wild rice preparation is the hardest kind of labor, and they earn all they get for it when they sell it. It sells in Milwaukee for $1.05 a pound, but one can buy it from the Indians at $.25 to $.35 a pound. One man reaped 1325 pounds of rice in the harvest time. The Menomini Rice Harvest group in the Public Museum exhibition halls, shows very well most features of the operation.

Various families have definite parts of the lake for their share, while others travel to small lakes and stay there until the harvest is complete. They set up a family camp, while the grain is still in the milk stage and wait for it to ripen. When this time arrives, having made experimental collections to determine it, they make a ceremonial gathering. Three to a canoe, two women and a man go to the rice beds and gather sufficient rice for a preliminary feast. With a hooked stick, held in a crescent by a string, the women pull the rice over the canoe and beat off the kernels with a stick, into the canoe bed. Sometimes, when the Indians do not want to waste any of the rice, they will go into the beds before it is ripe and tie several heads together to ripen in that manner. The first collection is prepared complete, with songs to their deities and a ceremonial feast is observed. After that all hands fall to in earnest and gather unremittingly until all the rice is harvested.

When the canoe is partly loaded, they pole back to camp, to prepare it. Wild rice grows in a mucky soil which may be quite deep. Ten foot poles, with a wide fork to secure a hold on the grass, are used to propel the canoe through the rice. On the return trip when loaded, the women trample the rice to break off the spiny beards or awns. The next step is roasting or parching. A wash tub is tilted against a large back log and a fire maintained under it. To keep the rice from burning, one must use a forty inch paddle and stir constantly for about three hours. The roasting destroys any weevils that might be present, gives the rice a pleasant flavor, loosens the husks or glumes and hardens the rice so it may be kept indefinitely.

In earlier times, a hole was dug into the ground and carefully lined with buckskin. Nowadays a candy bucket is sunk into the hole. This is the threshing floor. A man with new moccasins steps in to trample and thresh it.[138] He has a couple of poles, slanting near the hole, and supported on a tree with which he balances, while trampling the rice. He gives a circular, twisting pressure to the rice with his feet to grind off the husks. Then the chaff is winnowed away by a woman as shown in the present series, Vol. IV, plate 29, fig. 2. A large shallow birchbark tray is shaken up and down by the woman as she stands in a breeze. If there is no wind, the chaff accumulates on top and is pushed over the edge from time to time. After the winnowing, the rice is washed to clean it of foreign matter and of the smoky flavor of parching. It is then dried and ready to use or store. Wild rice swells more than cultivated rice in cooking. It is often moistened with six times its bulk in water. The kernels are about six times as long as thick and in cooking the ends curl backward to meet in the center, thus differing from _Oryza sativa_, the white man’s rice. The proper way to cook it Indian fashion is with deer broth and season with maple sugar. Wild rice cooked with wild fowl takes away the muddy or wild taste and is highly prized by those whites who know its qualities.

HYDROPHYLLACEAE (WATERLEAF FAMILY)

=Virginia Waterleaf= (_Hydrophyllum virginianum_ L.), “nebîneˈnanikweˈîag”[139] [having hair on only one side]. The Pillager Ojibwe use the root as a feed for ponies to make them fatten rapidly.

JUGLANDACEAE (WALNUT FAMILY)

=Shell-bark Hickory= (_Carya ovata_ [Mill.] K. Koch.), “bagaˈ nakoˈ bagan”. Hickory trees are scarce in the north, but the Ojibwe appreciate the edible nuts.

=Butternut= (_Juglans cinerea_ L.), “bagaˈ nag”. Butternut is plentiful in the north and in most Ojibwe territory, while the Black Walnut is not to be found. They use the nuts for food and the hulls for dye.

LABIATAE (MINT FAMILY)

=Wild Mint= (_Mentha arvensis_ L. var. _canadensis_ [L.] Briquet.) “andegoˈ bîgons” [little crow leaf].[140] The Pillager Ojibwe use the foliage to make a beverage tea.

=Catnip= (_Nepeta cataria_ L.), “tciˈ nameˈwûck” [big sturgeon leaf]. Catnip leaves are used by the Flambeau Ojibwe in making a beverage tea.

LEGUMINOSAE (PULSE FAMILY)

=Hog Peanut= (_Amphicarpa pitcheri_ T. & G.), “bûgwaˈ dj mîskodiˈ sîmîn” [unusual red bean]. The Pillager Ojibwe cook the beans and are very fond of the unusual flavor imparted to their cooking in this way. They also cook the roots, although they are really too small to be considered of much importance.

=Creamy Vetchling= (_Lathyrus ochroleucus_ Hook.), “bûgwaˈdj pînik” [unusual potato]. The Pillager Ojibwe use the root of this plant as a sort of Indian potato, and store it in deep pits in the garden, as they do their regular potatoes.

=Navy Bean= (_Phaseolus vulgaris_ L.), “wabeniˈmînesa” [little white berry]. The Ojibwe claim to have always had the sort of beans that the white man uses and while their original Navy Bean is not exactly like that of the white man, still it is near enough to be confused with it.

=Lima Bean= (_Phaseolus lunatus macrocarpus_),“wabeniˈ mîna” [big white berry]. The Ojibwe also claim to have originally had the Lima Bean, but that is doubtful.

=Cranberry Pole Bean= (_Phaseolus vulgaris_ L.), “mêskodiˈ mînûn” [red heart berry]. The Red Cranberry Pole Bean is the original source of all our best commercial pole beans. The Indians cultivated it in aboriginal times. They use it alone or in many peculiar combinations.

LICHENS

Tree Lichen (_Sticta glomulifera_), “jîngwakons wakun” [little white pine and row of eggs] or “jîngwaˈkwak” [pine egg]. On the bark at the base of an old White Pine, will be found lichens growing from the ground to a height of perhaps three feet. The Ojibwe gather these and boil them until they coagulate or “come together” like scrambled eggs. They say that they taste like eggs “wawîn”, but they call them “wakûn”, which is a term applied to the roe or eggs of a fish. It is a favorite dish and a very ancient one.

LILIACEAE (LILY FAMILY)

=Wild Onion= (_Allium cernuum_ Roth.), “cîgagaˈ wûnj” [skunk plant]. Both Pillager and Flambeau Ojibwe like the Wild Onion and Wild Leek in the spring as an article of food.

=Wild Leek= (_Allium tricoccum_ Ait.), “bûgwaˈ djijîcaˈ gowûnj” [unusual onion] “jîcago” really means skunk, and from this word Chicago was named. This is the larger wild onion and is known as Winabojo’s onion, or the one he pointed out for food. It is gathered in the spring when it is round and plumper than in the fall. It is also gathered and dried for future use. The Wild Leek is somewhat bitter, while the smaller wild onion is sweet.

=False Spikenard= (_Smilacina racemosa_ [L.] Desf.), “agoñgosiˈ wîdjiˈ bîk” [chipmunk root]. The Pillager Ojibwe use this root added to oats to make a pony grow fat. The Flambeau Ojibwe also prepare and eat the False Spikenard root. It is soaked in lye water and parboiled to get rid of the lye, then cooked like potatoes.

NYMPHAEACEAE (WATER LILY FAMILY)

=Sweet White Water Lily= (_Castalia odorata_ [Ait.] Woodville & Wood), “odîteˈabûg wabîˈgwûn” [flat heart-shaped leaf, white flowered]. The Flambeau Ojibwe eat the buds of this water lily before they open.