3 

 INTRODUCTION 



It is my hope that this small volume may prove to be of use to 

 many who are interested in a short history, in non-technical lan- 

 guage, of some western plants, and of their uses by the Indians and 

 others as food as well as medicine. To describe all the useful and 

 edible plants of the west would take a volume many times this size, 

 but described here are those I consider most important or interest- 

 ing and certainly these would be those, in most cases, most often 

 encountered. 



Since some plants of the west are poisonous, it is necessary 

 to be sure of your identification before using a plant for food and 

 several plants must be carefully processed (such as by leaching) 

 before they are edible. The following rules are suggested: 



lo Study carefully the descriptions and pictures of the plants 

 in this book to make sure of your identification of each species. 



2. Poisonous plants are marked POISONOUS in capitals. A- 

 void eating these plants. The most dangerous are described on 

 pages 47 and 54. Others less poisonous are on pages 14, 31, 35, 

 38-9, 40-1, 43, 44, 50, 54, 56, 57, and 58. 



3. If any plant has to be specially prepared before eating, fol- 

 low the directions for preparation very carefully, omitting no de- 

 tails, and being overly careful if anything. 



4. A plant with an acrid, bitter or pungent taste may be poi - 

 sonous and should be left alone unless full details are given as to 

 how to use it. Avoid all mushrooms unless you are an expert. 



To aid you in identification the plants are split into easily un- 

 derstood divisions. Water plants, ferns and their allies are lumped 

 together in one group, trees in another, shrubs in a third, herbs 

 in a fourth, and vines in a fifth. At the start of the larger sections 

 plants are also divided by color of flower. To conserve space the 

 habitats or living places of plants are given the following easily 

 recognized abbreviations which are placed along the margins, as 

 are also the names of states where they are found. 



Des, - desert scrub; Pin-Jun, - pinyon-juniper woodland; Oak- 

 oak woodland; Sage- sagebrush scrub; Chap. = chaparral or heavy 

 brush; CCF= coastal coniferous forest; MCF -mountain conifer- 

 ous forest; Sub-alp. = sub-alpine forest; Alp. = alpine fell fields; 

 Str. Wd. = streamside woodlands; Grass = grasslands; Mead.=mead- 

 ow; Marsh = marshlands; Water = ponds, streams, etc, ; Cult. = 

 cultivated or otherwise disturbed areas. 



