May 01 2008
Pokeweed
I do believe I have talked about pokeweed before on the blog but since I was literally walking through it yesterday I felt the need to write about it again and show it to you.
I remember many times out hunting this plant with my grandma, both of them actually. Personally I have only ever been fond of one type of greens and that is spinach. Although poke greens are said to taste like spinach. I know quite a few people are quite fond of them.
Like a lot of wild plants - poke contains a toxin and has to be prepared a specific way in order to remove it. If you want to know a lot more about poke greens you can check out - Wikipedia - Pokeweed.
Also like a lot of plants this one has many uses. Even more than most. Did you know - the Declaration of Independence was written using fermented pokeberry juice? I sure didn’t. The plant grows to a height of from 5 to 10 feet and has purple berries on it once it matures.
Anyway, if you plan to cook it, definitely read up on it some before you do because the toxin can do nasty stuff to you.
I haven’t really found any particular one area to find the pokeweed. It seems to just grow anywhere. Once you know what it looks like - it is hard to miss.
Adding these photos of the mature pokeberry bush . Thanks Matthew.
4 Responses to “Pokeweed”
Its unmistakable once it gets its berries on.
There is no doubt about that but it is better for consumption about the size of the plants in the photos - long before the berries arrive.
I love poke. I’ve always heard that once it gets over knee high, it becomes poisonous. My granny used to use poke root to help heal sprains. she’s cut up the root and wrap it in a piece of cheesecloth at stick it on the sprain. It did help some.
Also, old folks where I grew up used to say that by eating one poke berry per year would keep you from getting arthritis. I don’t know about that, and I’m not gonna be the guinea pig that tries it.
You can also use poke berries as dye for fabrics and leather. My granny used to make her own muslin fabric out of flax and she’d use pokeberry juice to dye it. It was beautiful and she used the dyed fabric to make tablecloths and curtains.
I recall from my college wildflower class that there are some researchers who say that pokeberries may contain a compound that might be useful in treating HIV. You’d have to research that if you want to know more, I just recall learning that in my wildflower class, but don’t remember any of the particulars.
There’s always something interesting to be found on The Backwoods Drifter blog!!!
My uncle, who had Alzheimer s really bad, used to drink pokeberry wine… hmmm wonder if theres a connection?