I. A. Definition: Study of how people use plants.
I. B. Plant Use Categories: 1. Structure & wood 2. Medicine 3. Food from seeds, fruit, flowers, stems & buds
I. B. Plant Use Categories: 4. Fiber 5. Beverages 6. Gums, resins, and glues 7. Dyes
A. Mesquite 1. Indigenous peoples referred to the mesquite as the tree of: LIFE
A. Mesquite 1. Uses for this plant include Structure & wood: Ramadas Corrals Carvings
A. Mesquite 1. Uses for this plant include Food from seeds & fruit Blossoms Honey
A. Mesquite 1. Uses for this plant include Food from seeds & fruit Blossoms Honey Green pods
A. Mesquite 1. Uses for this plant include Food from seeds & fruit Ripe pods (flour)
A. Mesquite 1. Uses for this plant include Fiber from the inner bark: baskets rope
A. Mesquite 1. Uses for this plant include Gums, resins, and glues: Mesquite sap
A. Mesquite 1. Uses for this plant include Dyes: Mesquite sap Mesquite pitch paint
A. Mesquite 1. Uses for this plant include Firewood: high quality, burns slowly and is smokeless
A. Mesquite 1. Uses for this plant include Medicine: leaves, flowers, pods, and bark Internal: inhibit diarrhea & other G.I. inflammations External: pods made into eyewash
B. Ironwood 1. Structure & wood a. A cubic foot of iron wood weighs 60 65 lbs., and would sink in your swimming pool.
B. Ironwood 1. Structure & wood b. Natives used thoroughly dried wood for: 1) High quality firewood 2) Carvings 3) Arrow heads/ spear tips 4) Tool handles
B. Ironwood 1. Structure & wood c. Seeds: high in protein, taste like peanuts when roasted
C. Saguaro cactus 1. The saguaro cactus is considered a Keystone species in the Sonoran Desert.
C. Saguaro cactus 2. Uses of this plant include: Structure & wood Lath on Ramada Harvesting poles Saguaro Rib Fence
C. Saguaro cactus 2. Uses of this plant include: Food (a reliable source) Fruit
C. Saguaro cactus 2. Uses of this plant include: Food (a reliable source) Seeds
C. Saguaro cactus 2. Uses of this plant include: Food (a reliable source) Syrup
C. Saguaro cactus 2. Uses of this plant include: Beverages Ceremonial wine, non-alcoholic punch ( from the fruit)
D. Agave 1. The ability to distinguish flowering agaves from non-flowering agaves & bitter species from non-bitter species was (and still is) difficult and requires great skills on the part of the harvester. 2. Of the approximately 300 species of agave that exist, 50 are in the Sonoran Desert region. There are over 125 species in Mexico, and a mere 12 species in Arizona.
D. Agave 3. Uses of this plant include: Food: Roasted hearts called cabeza or corazon
D. Agave 3. Uses of this plant include: Beverages: alcoholic & non-alcoholic Tequila & Mezcal Tequila Blanco
D. Agave 3. Uses of this plant include: Syrup: Blue agave nectar
D. Agave 3. Uses of this plant include: Fiber: Cordage (rope) Brooms Sandals
D. Agave 3. Uses of this plant include: Fiber: Clothing Nets Blankets Baskets
D. Agave 3. Uses of this plant include: Instruments: Didgeridoo, From the flowering Stalk.
D. Agave 3. Uses of this plant include: Other: Soap Ceremonial purposes
D. Agave 3. Uses of this plant include: Medicine: leaf tincture: Good for indigestion & as a diuretic.
E. Jojoba 1. Oil (liquid wax) molecularly similar to sperm whale oil. 2. Used for : hydrogenated wax, pharmaceuticals, lubricants, cosmetics, hair restoration.
E. Jojoba 3. Medicine: tea from leaves is a remedy for asthma & emphysema. 4. At one time during the 1970 s, Arizona had 40,000 acres of Jojoba in commercial production. 5. Political changes in the early 1980 s removed the tax incentives for growing the plant and the industry collapsed.
F. Prickly Pear Cactus 1. Fruits: jams, jellies, syrup, candy and rich in calcium.
F. Prickly Pear Cactus 2. Young pads napolitos: Used as food in soups, salads, and stews. Daily meals of pads fed to healthy, obese & diabetic individuals significantly lowers total cholesterol and glycemia in all groups studied, stabilizing blood sugar and insulin.
G. Chiles Active ingredient is: capsaicin 1. Among the 23 species of wild growing chilies, the chiltipines provide a genetic base for the 2000-3000 species of milder domestic varieties. 2. Harvesters pick an estimated 30 tons of chiltipines a year for salsa, insect and bear sprays and medicines for the treatment of indigestion, arthritis and mouth cancer.
G. Chiles Active ingredient is: capsaicin 4. Chiltipines are 75 to 1000 times hotter than the jalapeno, ranking them the 3 rd hottest chile behind the habanera and the Bahamian pepper. 5. Chiltipines have been used for 8000 years. Incas, Aztecs and Mayans cherished chiles, using them to spice food. Their women rubbed Chiltipine powder on their nipples to wean babies, and the Incas burned chiles to create a noxious smoke to try to deter European invaders.
H. Creosote 1. Extracts from the leaves are removed by alcohol i.e. vodka, filtered and made into a tincture. 2. This tincture is used to relieve arthritis and rheumatism. It is also a good antifungal agent.
I. Brittlebush 1. At selective times of the year the brittlebush secretes a sticky gum/resin that was used to patch pottery, chewed as gum, and used by the early Spanish padres as incense.
I. Brittlebush 2. A tea from the leaves was used in Northern Mexico to relieve arthritis while the gum was applied to the throat and neck to loosen up thick mucus that lingers from bronchitis.
J. Desert Spoon 1. Fiber for baskets.
J. Desert Spoon 1. Fiber for baskets. 2. Edible buds swollen stems.
J. Desert Spoon (Sotol) 1. Fiber for baskets. 2. Edible buds swollen stems. 3. Alcoholic beverage Sotol.
K. Yucca 1. Fiber for baskets & brushes
K. Yucca 1. Fiber for baskets & brushes. 2. Edible flowers and buds.
K. Yucca 1. Fiber for baskets & brushes. 2. Edible flowers and buds. 3. Soap-like extractions from the roots.
K. Yucca 1. Fiber for baskets & brushes. 2. Edible flowers and buds. 3. Soap-like extractions from the roots. 4. A tea from the roots is used for joint inflammation.
L. Bear Grass 1. Fiber for baskets.