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Hunting For Green Treasure

© Bertha Sutliff

After the ice is gone and the sun starts warming the earth, a miracle happens at various spots around and about the country. Look under fences, around brush piles, places where birds have roosted and you might just find that little green treasure. You'll have to be secretive and not tell where you've found it or someone might steal it from you.

What am I talking about? Why, Poke Salet of course! Some of you probably have heard of Poke Salet and then there are some of you that have eaten it. Yeap, eaten it; a wild green that nature provides for us. And if you are among the few that haven't heard of it I guess I'll have to explain just what Poke Salet is.

It grows natively from Ontario to Florida, and west to Texas and Minnesota. Called by some as Pokeweed, it's a tall, branching perennial herb with greenish-white flowers and a red stem. It can grow from four to ten feet high. In the fall the berries ripen to a deep purple-black. The stems, leaves, seeds and large fleshy roots of the pokeweed are poisonous.

Now why would anyone eat something that is poisonous? Very carefully I might say!

The leafy sprouts are edible if cooked properly. The berries may be used as ink and food coloring. The roots and berries have been used to treat inflammation and skin diseases. Pokeweed is a source of several chemical compounds used in cancer. Later I will tell you the latest discovery about the pokeweed.

The word "poke" is derived from the Algonquian Indian word "pakon" or "puccoon," referring to a dye plant used for staining. It is sometimes spelled polk and the leaves were reportedly worn by enthusiastic supporters during the campaign of James K. Polk, 11th president of the United States. The more scientific name of Poke Weed is Phytolacca Americana. Phytolacca is derived from the Greek word phyton (plant) and the French lac (lake.a dark red pigment), referring to the crimson juice of ripe berries. The United States Constitution was written in Pokeberry ink. In addition to poke salet's economy and taste, it is being studied by researchers for use in treatments of autoimmune diseases including AIDS and rhematoid arthritis. This new discovery shows that the chemicals in poke salet promote cell division in white blood cells that normally would not divide. Poke salet is also being studied as an agent to combat fungal infections.

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