Wayside Treasure
by Connie Handscomb
Title
Wayside Treasure
Artist
Connie Handscomb
Medium
Photograph - Photography - Fine Art
Description
Those who take for their standard anything but Nature, the mistress of all masters, weary themselves in vain.
~ Leonardo da Vinci {fr. Notebooks]
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Oregon grape
Mahonia nervosa (formerly Berberis nervosa)
Mahonia aquifolium (Berberis aquifolium)
Family : Berberidaceae (Barberry)
This evergreen shrub, the leaves which resemble those of a holly with its sharp spines, is native to the Pacific Northwest and North America. It will be found in the open woodlands. In autumn, it turns shades of orange.
The Oregon Grape is really not a grape at all, but its fragrant yellow flowers, like berry bunches, do hang like miniature bunches of grapes, and it is a favourite with pollinators. The flowers turn to midnight blue berries. The bitter berries can be eaten raw, but since they are very acidic, so they are best used in jellies and jams,as well as a meat seasoning. Oregon grape juice can be fermented to make wine.
The shrub is prized for its medicinal qualities: for liver and kidney troubles, rheumatism, arthritis, hepatitis, jaundice, syphilis, anemia, and urinary ailments. It is a blood purifer, and it is also used for skin diseases.
The indigenous people used the yellow pigment of the inner bark & roots to dye baskets bright yellow.
The genus name Mahonia is a tribute to an Irish horticulturist named Bernard McMahon who moved to the United States in 1796 to start a nursery. The species name Nervosa means there are distinct veins (nerves) on the plant leaves.
Berberis nervosa is the tall forest species that grows in southern British Columbia from the Cascades through to the coast.
Berberis aquifolium is the stout evergreen shrub with holly-like leaflets which turn red or bronze after several years, and grows in southern British Columbia to Oregon and northern Idaho.
Oregon grape has a reputation as being a talisman, guarding against negative influences.
Sources:
Fr. Food For Free (Richard Mabey)
Fragrance In Bloom [A.Lovejoy]
The Herbalist Almanac [C. & D. Meyer]
The Carefree Garden, Letting Nature Play Her Part [Bill Terry]
Wayside Wildflowers Of The Pacific Northwest [D.Strickler]
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These plants are so much in abundance here that I must admit I often don't look closely enough - instead, take them for granted. Researching their goodness, I have a better appreciation of them.
Captured in coastal Lighthouse Park, West Vancouver ; uncropped; unedited ... nature in all its glory :)
Uploaded
March 29th, 2017
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