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January 15, 2016January 25, 2016 4 Comments Economic Botany Ethnobotany Nature Solomon Islands

The secret of Solomon Islands: exploring medicinal plant knowledge in the south Pacific

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March 8, 2015January 24, 2016 Leave a comment citizens scientists Nature project Noah

Project Noah: YOU can make the difference!

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Pansies are a favoured bedding plant that almost all of us are aware of. We’ve all seen them growing in gardens (maybe you planted them!), seen them in media (Alice in wonderland, anyone?), or heard the word being used in a derogatory manner (this one we don’t approve of so much. Sometimes it’s used to say someone is a bit of a baby, while others it’s a slur for gay men... we still like the flower even if it’s name has been used poorly). A member of the Violaceae (violet family), pansies are a cross of different plants, usually members of the genus Viola. Those of you familiar with violas as garden plants will know they have similar patterns and colours to pansies, but much smaller blooms. Violas are also self-seeding even in USDA zone 3, while pansies are not. This flower was long associated with piety as well as love. They also had some interesting Ethnobotanical uses. In the Victorian language of flowers, a pansy left to a lover was said to mean “I am thinking of our forbidden love” (I guess that means we all need to grow pansies near our Netflix watching areas during exam season...). Our cultivated pansies also lack aroma, and a german fairy tale claims that pansies once smelled so good that people would run all through the fields and destroy them collecting pansies; as a result, the cattle all began to go hungry. The pansy then wished to lose its scent, and its prayer was answered, leaving us with the scentless flower we see today. That being said, the main use for pansies is in gardening. We’re used to seeing them in North America and Europe, but this bed of pansies was found today in South Africa! I guess beautiful flowers are a thing that can unify people all around the globe. #pansy #violet #botany #ethnobotany #ethnobiology #economicbotany #garden #gardening #violaceae #viola #southafrica #flowers #flowerpower #gardenplants #annuals

Today’s Monday reminder is that ethnobotany isn’t only for scientists! Last week the popular science blog/website @iflscience published a story based on the work of one of our society’s student members! Recently published in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology, this article presented the case for the famous berserker warriors of the vikings using Hyoscyamus niger (pictured here in an illustration from the Wikipedia commons) as an intoxicant to reach their rage-fuelled battle state. Though the post leaves out much of the detail from the academic article, it presents it in a much more accessible manner (both in terms of content and the platform itself), which is great for getting people interested in ethnobotany! Have you seen any other great articles lately geared towards a more general public? What can we as ethnobotanists and academics do to make our work more accessible? The IFLS article can be read here: https://www.iflscience.com/brain/this-mindaltering-drug-likely-fueled-the-psychotically-fierce-berserker-warriors/ The original article can be found here: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Karsten_fatur #ethnobotany #academia #economicbotany #hyoscyamus #henbane #hyoscyamusniger #viking #berserk #berserker #berserkers #intoxicant #science #historicalbotany #ethnobiology #plants #hallucinogen #psychoactiveplants #nordichistory

Despite the somewhat sinister sounding genus name, Malus is the genus responsible for bringing us apples! Just in time for fall harvesting season, let’s take a look at these yummy treats! Despite what you may think, an apple isn’t a true fruit! Like other sneaky members of the Rosaceae family, apples are a pome. The inner part of the apple (the part you likely don’t eat) is the true fruit as it is composed of the developed tissues of the female reproductive organs. The part we eat is actually just the swollen version of the receptacle! Despite this, they’re still tasty foods, though not a super food on the nutrition front by any means. Eaten raw, candied, used in baking, and made into alcohol, the list of ways to consume them is truly endless! And as you likely know from urban legends, the seeds contain a cyanide compound. Unlike the stories though, you don’t get poisoned by eating a couple. It would take a whole lot of seeds to make you sick. Still, best avoided! Apples have also played important symbolic/mythological roles through the ages. In Norse mythology, apples are said to be the sources of immortality of the gods, while various other Germanic peoples link them with fertility. In Greek mythology, an apple was the cause of the Trojan war as well as being linked to a few other stories. And, of course, perhaps the best known example in the Judeo-Christian world is that of the apple as the forbidden fruit of the garden of Eden that led to humanity’s removal from paradise. No matter which we we look at them though, these fruits have had (and still do have) immense ehnobotanical importance in many parts of the world. So get out for some apple picking at your local orchard before these sweet treats are all gone! Picture by: thismomentmark on Flickr. #ethnobotany #malus #apple #botany #economicbotany #ethnobiology #fruit #autumn #fruittree

"Confronting the cognitive biases of economic botany requires the examination of human-non-human relationships that exist outside of conventional use-value frameworks. Though typically unseen, dismissed, or relegated to the back of books, lichens offer their observers a glimpse into imprinted life histories, hidden diversity, and imperceptible complexities of adaptation and evolution, therein offering new understandings of life itself." @moselle.singh MSc ethnobotany graduate talks to us about lichens (and she snagged this great photos too)! Did you know these fun little friends are symbiotic relationships between fungi and algae? Moselle also tells us that the big fluffy ones you see in forests are great indicators of air quality! But even in the most polluted cities lichens abound (though here they’re often mistaken for gum on the ground, diseases on trees, and other assorted icky things). She also says they can survive pretty much all over the planet and even up to 1.5 years in space! Anyone have some fun ethnobotanical information on lichens? #lichen #lichens #lichenology #ethnobotany #ethnobiology #botany #biology #economicbotany

For those of us in the northern hemisphere, autumn is beginning to rear its head. Though I’m sure we all feel differently about winter approaching (Mandatory Game of Thrones meme not included), we can probably all agree that pretty autumn blooms are a great thing. Aconitum spp. (Ranunculaceae) are one of those great flowers that offers some beautiful autumn colour. With their great winter hardiness, these plants are quite popular as ornamentals. But gardeners beware! The aconitine in these plants acts as a sodium ion channel inhibitor that leads to the shut down of our core survival systems and eventually death. This can happen even just through physical contact. The ancient Greeks had the right idea, with their story of the origin of Aconitum stating that it arose from where the saliva of Cerberus, demonic three-headed guardian dog of the underworld, fell to the ground. So this one falls into the “pretty, but best appreciated from afar” category. Besides its use in many of the long-standing traditional medicine systems of Asia, some medicinal use of Aconitum continues in Europe! A great 2017 article by Povšnar et al. writes of the folk use of Aconitum tinctures that survives in some parts of Slovenija. Used for fever, cough, as a body stimulant, and for many ailments, it’s a great example of a toxic plant finding use as a medicine. As well all know, the difference between a poison and a healing drug is dose! Check it out for more information: DOI: 10.1186/s13002-017-0171-x Here’s a picture of an Aconitum from the Oslo botanical garden a couple months ago, blooming in the summer due to the colder climate. Any guesses on the species? #ethnobotany #aconitum #medicinalplants #autumnblooms #ranunculaceae #economicbotany #poisonousplants #oslobotanicalgarden #studyethnobotany

A trilingual book of plant knowledge developed through collaboration. Matthew Bond, Society for Economic Botany student member, worked with people from 4 villages in the #SolomonIslands where he lived for a year to interview people about #medicinalplants they know while on fieldwork. The book includes names & uses of 35 species in 3 languages: English, Baegu, & Baelelea (#Indigenous #languages of #SolomonIslands). Plant uses include wild foods, construction, dye firewood, fiber, & medicine. The book was given to every family in the 4 villages, where even many adults have forgotten the plant names & uses. This is the first book ever written in Baegu, & Baelelea (except the bible, which was only translated a few years ago)! To ensure that the books were written as accurately as possible, Matthew worked with villagers to verify the translation and use information. Local schools rely on English books that are mostly eurocentric, so Matthew also gave books to #schools in each language region. Languages are critical to support experience & perspectives that help maintain cultural identity & #EcologicalKnowledge Many adults & children were excited to see their languages written for the 1st time, and to read the names and uses of plants that they had forgotten but which were critical for their ancestors! Collaborative research projects can be difficult (e.g. can be hard to find shared goals, funding, & adviser/committee support), but the results can be very rewarding- like seeing elders teaching kids about plants/words/ceremonies that are no longer commonly used. Matthew is working on his PhD at #UHManoa #TraditionalEcologicalKnowledge #plantmedicine #ethnobotany #phytomedicine #ethnopharmacology #sebstudents #StudyEthnobotany #biogeography #bioculturaldiversity #TraditionalKnowledge #wildfood

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Pansies are a favoured bedding plant that almost all of us are aware of. We’ve all seen them growing in gardens (maybe you planted them!), seen them in media (Alice in wonderland, anyone?), or heard the word being used in a derogatory manner (this one we don’t approve of so much. Sometimes it’s used to say someone is a bit of a baby, while others it’s a slur for gay men... we still like the flower even if it’s name has been used poorly). A member of the Violaceae (violet family), pansies are a cross of different plants, usually members of the genus Viola. Those of you familiar with violas as garden plants will know they have similar patterns and colours to pansies, but much smaller blooms. Violas are also self-seeding even in USDA zone 3, while pansies are not. This flower was long associated with piety as well as love. They also had some interesting Ethnobotanical uses. In the Victorian language of flowers, a pansy left to a lover was said to mean “I am thinking of our forbidden love” (I guess that means we all need to grow pansies near our Netflix watching areas during exam season...). Our cultivated pansies also lack aroma, and a german fairy tale claims that pansies once smelled so good that people would run all through the fields and destroy them collecting pansies; as a result, the cattle all began to go hungry. The pansy then wished to lose its scent, and its prayer was answered, leaving us with the scentless flower we see today. That being said, the main use for pansies is in gardening. We’re used to seeing them in North America and Europe, but this bed of pansies was found today in South Africa! I guess beautiful flowers are a thing that can unify people all around the globe. #pansy #violet #botany #ethnobotany #ethnobiology #economicbotany #garden #gardening #violaceae #viola #southafrica #flowers #flowerpower #gardenplants #annuals

Today’s Monday reminder is that ethnobotany isn’t only for scientists! Last week the popular science blog/website @iflscience published a story based on the work of one of our society’s student members! Recently published in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology, this article presented the case for the famous berserker warriors of the vikings using Hyoscyamus niger (pictured here in an illustration from the Wikipedia commons) as an intoxicant to reach their rage-fuelled battle state. Though the post leaves out much of the detail from the academic article, it presents it in a much more accessible manner (both in terms of content and the platform itself), which is great for getting people interested in ethnobotany! Have you seen any other great articles lately geared towards a more general public? What can we as ethnobotanists and academics do to make our work more accessible? The IFLS article can be read here: https://www.iflscience.com/brain/this-mindaltering-drug-likely-fueled-the-psychotically-fierce-berserker-warriors/ The original article can be found here: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Karsten_fatur #ethnobotany #academia #economicbotany #hyoscyamus #henbane #hyoscyamusniger #viking #berserk #berserker #berserkers #intoxicant #science #historicalbotany #ethnobiology #plants #hallucinogen #psychoactiveplants #nordichistory

Despite the somewhat sinister sounding genus name, Malus is the genus responsible for bringing us apples! Just in time for fall harvesting season, let’s take a look at these yummy treats! Despite what you may think, an apple isn’t a true fruit! Like other sneaky members of the Rosaceae family, apples are a pome. The inner part of the apple (the part you likely don’t eat) is the true fruit as it is composed of the developed tissues of the female reproductive organs. The part we eat is actually just the swollen version of the receptacle! Despite this, they’re still tasty foods, though not a super food on the nutrition front by any means. Eaten raw, candied, used in baking, and made into alcohol, the list of ways to consume them is truly endless! And as you likely know from urban legends, the seeds contain a cyanide compound. Unlike the stories though, you don’t get poisoned by eating a couple. It would take a whole lot of seeds to make you sick. Still, best avoided! Apples have also played important symbolic/mythological roles through the ages. In Norse mythology, apples are said to be the sources of immortality of the gods, while various other Germanic peoples link them with fertility. In Greek mythology, an apple was the cause of the Trojan war as well as being linked to a few other stories. And, of course, perhaps the best known example in the Judeo-Christian world is that of the apple as the forbidden fruit of the garden of Eden that led to humanity’s removal from paradise. No matter which we we look at them though, these fruits have had (and still do have) immense ehnobotanical importance in many parts of the world. So get out for some apple picking at your local orchard before these sweet treats are all gone! Picture by: thismomentmark on Flickr. #ethnobotany #malus #apple #botany #economicbotany #ethnobiology #fruit #autumn #fruittree

"Confronting the cognitive biases of economic botany requires the examination of human-non-human relationships that exist outside of conventional use-value frameworks. Though typically unseen, dismissed, or relegated to the back of books, lichens offer their observers a glimpse into imprinted life histories, hidden diversity, and imperceptible complexities of adaptation and evolution, therein offering new understandings of life itself." @moselle.singh MSc ethnobotany graduate talks to us about lichens (and she snagged this great photos too)! Did you know these fun little friends are symbiotic relationships between fungi and algae? Moselle also tells us that the big fluffy ones you see in forests are great indicators of air quality! But even in the most polluted cities lichens abound (though here they’re often mistaken for gum on the ground, diseases on trees, and other assorted icky things). She also says they can survive pretty much all over the planet and even up to 1.5 years in space! Anyone have some fun ethnobotanical information on lichens? #lichen #lichens #lichenology #ethnobotany #ethnobiology #botany #biology #economicbotany

For those of us in the northern hemisphere, autumn is beginning to rear its head. Though I’m sure we all feel differently about winter approaching (Mandatory Game of Thrones meme not included), we can probably all agree that pretty autumn blooms are a great thing. Aconitum spp. (Ranunculaceae) are one of those great flowers that offers some beautiful autumn colour. With their great winter hardiness, these plants are quite popular as ornamentals. But gardeners beware! The aconitine in these plants acts as a sodium ion channel inhibitor that leads to the shut down of our core survival systems and eventually death. This can happen even just through physical contact. The ancient Greeks had the right idea, with their story of the origin of Aconitum stating that it arose from where the saliva of Cerberus, demonic three-headed guardian dog of the underworld, fell to the ground. So this one falls into the “pretty, but best appreciated from afar” category. Besides its use in many of the long-standing traditional medicine systems of Asia, some medicinal use of Aconitum continues in Europe! A great 2017 article by Povšnar et al. writes of the folk use of Aconitum tinctures that survives in some parts of Slovenija. Used for fever, cough, as a body stimulant, and for many ailments, it’s a great example of a toxic plant finding use as a medicine. As well all know, the difference between a poison and a healing drug is dose! Check it out for more information: DOI: 10.1186/s13002-017-0171-x Here’s a picture of an Aconitum from the Oslo botanical garden a couple months ago, blooming in the summer due to the colder climate. Any guesses on the species? #ethnobotany #aconitum #medicinalplants #autumnblooms #ranunculaceae #economicbotany #poisonousplants #oslobotanicalgarden #studyethnobotany

A trilingual book of plant knowledge developed through collaboration. Matthew Bond, Society for Economic Botany student member, worked with people from 4 villages in the #SolomonIslands where he lived for a year to interview people about #medicinalplants they know while on fieldwork. The book includes names & uses of 35 species in 3 languages: English, Baegu, & Baelelea (#Indigenous #languages of #SolomonIslands). Plant uses include wild foods, construction, dye firewood, fiber, & medicine. The book was given to every family in the 4 villages, where even many adults have forgotten the plant names & uses. This is the first book ever written in Baegu, & Baelelea (except the bible, which was only translated a few years ago)! To ensure that the books were written as accurately as possible, Matthew worked with villagers to verify the translation and use information. Local schools rely on English books that are mostly eurocentric, so Matthew also gave books to #schools in each language region. Languages are critical to support experience & perspectives that help maintain cultural identity & #EcologicalKnowledge Many adults & children were excited to see their languages written for the 1st time, and to read the names and uses of plants that they had forgotten but which were critical for their ancestors! Collaborative research projects can be difficult (e.g. can be hard to find shared goals, funding, & adviser/committee support), but the results can be very rewarding- like seeing elders teaching kids about plants/words/ceremonies that are no longer commonly used. Matthew is working on his PhD at #UHManoa #TraditionalEcologicalKnowledge #plantmedicine #ethnobotany #phytomedicine #ethnopharmacology #sebstudents #StudyEthnobotany #biogeography #bioculturaldiversity #TraditionalKnowledge #wildfood

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