Plants Provide Food, Medicine

At the Tiger Meadows Training Area 30 miles east of Colville, Wash., there are more than 1,000 plant species. Forest botanist Kathy Ahlenslager says most are edible. Many exist worldwide.

Yarrow is not only edible but also is medicinal. It’s a topical analgesic than can numb the mouth for a toothache or reduce itching from mosquito bites. It even makes a decent cup of tea.

Other common edibles are wild strawberry, dogwood, plantain, dandelion, willow bark (which doubles as acetaminophen tea for the occasional headache) and cow-parsnip.

Cow-parsnip often is confused with the toxic water hemlock, but to the discerning eye, it is a succulent treat. It tastes good and is a favorite meal for bears.

Queen-cup bead lily also is quite a find. It tastes like cucumber and has a juicy bluish berry. Mullein not only is edible but also is soft enough for other uses.

“It feels like Charmin,” Airman 1st Class Keith Garrison, a Survival School field instructor, says. “Makes good toilet paper.”

Marooned soldiers who are really hard up can eat a tree. The tender cambium layer in softwoods and hardwoods - the layer between the bark and the heartwood - is a little chewy but digestible.

, DataTimes