Tag Archives: Ethnobotany

The Mighty Chia Seed, Cuyama Badlands

Posted on October 3, 2016 by Jack Elliott

The Cuyama Badlands can be a wicked and terrible place for a human on foot with minimal supplies. Heaved aloft, scorched and desiccated, it’s a land clawed open and washed away by spotty cloudbursts that quench a sparse growth of piñon pine, juniper and sagebrush. … Continue reading →

Posted in Reference | Tagged Backpacking, Badlands, Chia, Chumash, Ethnobotany, Flora, Hiking, Native Americans, Nature, Non-fiction, Travel | 7 Comments

Datura Bloom

Posted on August 9, 2012 by Jack Elliott

Datura in bloom on the Carrizo Plain, San Luis Obispo County, California. “In their quest for visions and for supernatural power, the Chumash of the Santa Barbara region were one of many tribes throughout North and South America that resorted … Continue reading →

Posted in San Luis Obispo County, Santa Barbara County, Ventura County | Tagged Chumash, Datura, Ethnobotany, Flora, Indians, Nature, Photos, Pics, Plants, Toloache | 12 Comments

Eating Poison Oak

Posted on March 3, 2011 by Jack Elliott

The Blistery Beginning I remember sitting in seventh grade math class at La Colina Jr. High one afternoon and itching the hell out of some poison oak on my upper thigh. I managed to scratch it into a puffy, red … Continue reading →

Posted in Flora | Tagged Chumash, Costanoan, Ethnobotany, Jan Timbrook, Karok, Mahuna, Poison oak, San Luis Obispo, Tolowa, Toxicodendron diversilobum | 60 Comments

Mugwort: A Natural Poison Oak Preventive

Posted on March 3, 2011 by Jack Elliott

Plant Profile Mugwort (Artemisia douglasiana) is a perennial herb commonly found in areas of riparian habitat. It likes sunny, moist locations around creeks and rivers, but can also be found in areas of bright shade and the dappled light of … Continue reading →