Introduction:
Digitalis purpurea, commonly known as the foxglove is one of the deadliest but at the same time most medicinal plants in our world. This flowering plant is very widespread being found in much of temperate Europe and parts of North America. While, the leaves, flowers, and seeds are all poisonous to us and other animals, compounds have been extracted from the species and are used in heart medicines and other medicinal products that we still use today. The foxglove can grow in very little soil and can often be found in many cracks and crevices making it a very common and recognizable plant species (Royal Botanic Gardens, 2011).
Description:
Digitalis purpurea is a biennial plant meaning that it only lives for two years and after that it dies, and reproduces (Cornell, 2014). It has soft, pubescent, ovate to lanceolate shaped leaves forming a basal rosette. During the first year of growth the plant forms a basal-rosette and does not mature until the next years grow cycle (Cornell, 2014). During the second year of growth the foxglove begins to grow a flowering stem that can reach 3-6 feet high (Cornell, 2014). The flowers form a spike growing off of the stem and can bear up to 20 flowers on each stem. Each flower is about 2” and bilaterally symmetric coming in a wide variety of colors such as; purple, lavender, pink, yellow, and white (Brun, 2014). Each flower has five petals that are fused into a coronal tube. The flowers hang down in a droop-like fashion and only come off of one side of the stalk, and last about four weeks. The foxglove is extremely poisonous and is lethal if ingested; all parts of the plant are toxic including; roots, stems, flowers, leaves, and so on. While, every part of this plant is toxic it i...
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Rabbit tobacco is also known as lasting, everlasting, sweet balsam, white balsam, feather-weed, and sweet cudweed. Its scientific name is Gaphalium obtusifolium. These annual herbs reach a height of 1 to 3 feet and have erect stems with brown, shriveled leaves persisting into winter and stems covered with felt-like hairs in summer. The leaves are 1 to 3 inches long, and alternate. The flowers, minute in whitish heads, appear in late summer to fall. Fields, pastures, and disturbed areas are the sites of this common native plant of the eastern United States. The Cherokee named it rabbit tobacco because they believe it was the rabbit who took attended the plant.
Sclauser Pessoa, I. B., Costa, D., Velloso, M., Mancuzo, E., Reis, M. S., & Parreira, V.F.
Forsyth, K., Taylor, R., Kramer, J., Prior, S., Richie, L., Whitehead, J., Owen, C., & Melton, M.
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Moore, Michael. "Mistletoe." Medicinal Plants of the Mountain West. Santa Fe: Museum of New Mexico, 2003. 164-65. Print.
Wade, T. D., Tiggemann, M., Bulik, C. M., Fairburn, C. G., FMedSci, Wray, N. R., Martin, N.
St. John's Wort scientifically known as Hypericum Perforatum, an herbal remedy generally used to treat depression, is making a rise throughout Europe and the United States. St. John's Wort is a perennial plant that produces abundant yellow flowers and grows naturally throughout much of the world, including specifically in northern California, southern Oregon, and Colorado. It usually flowers on “sunlight hills and forest edges” during the summer, between June and August. It was named after St. John the Baptist and is often harvested and in full bloom around St. John's Day, June 24.
This very poisonous plant acquired its name from Theophrastus back in the third century B.C. It has been termed "the Mandragora of Theophrastus." It's English name, Dwaule, is derived from a Dutch word dwaul, meaning to wander or to be delirious.(1) It is a perennial herb, and one of the more important species of the nightshade family. Because it is so poisonous it was given the name Atropos, which is the Greek word for inflexible. Another meaning is that it refers to "one of three Fates who cut the thread of life."(2)
McCart, M. R., Smith, D. W., Saunders, B. E., Kilpatrick, D. G., Resnick, H., & Ruggiero, K. J.
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The opium poppy has been used as a medicinal plant for centuries all over the world. The opium poppy plant belongs to the Papaveraceae family. The scientific name of the opium poppy is Papaver somniferum L., and it is native to Turkey. The plant has lobed leaves, milky sap and four to six petaled flowers with several stamens surrounding the ovary. The two sepals drop off when the petals unfold. The ovary then develops into a short, many seeded capsule that opens in dry weather. The small seeds of the opium poppy plant are dispersed by wind. The plant has five inch purple or white flowers on plants three to sixteen feet tall. It is and annual plant which needs to be planted only once for several years of harvest. There are many varieties of poppy plants grown other then the opium poppy, mostly for seasonings, oil, birdseed and attractive flowers.
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Ulbricht, C., Conquer, J., Costa, D., Hollands, W., Iannuzi, C., Isaac, R., Jordan, J.K., Ledesma,
Dandelions grow in our backyards every year, but all we see are small yellow weeds that take control of the grass and cause a nuisance. What many are unaware of is their actual uses and how helpful they were throughout history. Dandelion is grown in Europe, Asia, North America, and South America. It grows in many places such as in gardens, on mountains, and it is sometimes found in some health food markets, or as a freeze-dried herb. Part of the reason they grow in many places is because they aren’t very picky. They grow in sunlight or shade, and will accept most climates even though they prefer to be grown in warmer climates. However, they will not tolerate a hot-dry wind, meaning that they need protection in harsh, hot climates, or they can grow poorly which can affect its taste. Dandelions are harvested for best results in the middle of spring and sometimes the summer. What is unique about dandelions is that they have a very deep root which stay alive and spread during the winter. We wouldn’t know as much about the weed without knowing its history.
A considerable amount of literature has been published on cannabis specifically marijuana. These studies classify marijuana into three species: Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and cannabis ruderalis. In fact, Cannabis sativa is the most widely used and recognized among the other species due to its ability to produce more fiber and oil. For many years, the plant has been used for making clothes as well as lighting and soap. Nevertheless, cannabis is widely used at the present time for intoxication and medical treatments. Marijuana is usually extracted from the flowers of the female plant (Grinspoon & Bakalar, 1993). According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, marijuana is well-defined as the “dried leaves, flowers, stems, and seeds from the hemp plant Cannabis sativa, which contains the psychoactive (mind-altering) chemical delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), as well as other related compounds. This plant material can also be concentrated in a resin called hashish” (NIDA, 2014).