Yule Lore (December 21st) 
The ceremonial Yule log was the highlight of the festival. In accordance to tradition, the log must either have been harvested from the householder's land, or given as a gift... it must never have been bought. Once dragged into the house and placed in the fireplace it was decorated in seasonal greenery, doused with cider or ale, and dusted with flour before set ablaze be a piece of last years log, (held onto for just this purpose). The log would burn throughout the night, then smolder for 12 days after before being ceremonially put out. Ash is the traditional wood of the Yule log. It is the sacred world tree of the Teutons, known as Yggdrasil. An herb of the Sun, Ash brings light into the hearth at the Solstice.
Candles in the craft are used to help to increase a spells
power, or to influence a particular power. I have provided
a list of colors, which I use. This is what my coven uses,
and is offered to help you in your journey into the craft.
White:
A balance of all colors; Spiritual enlightenment, cleansing,
clairvouance, healing, truth seeking; Rituals involving
lunar energy' May be substituted for any color candle.
Yellow:
Activity, Creativity, unity; brings power of concentration
and imagination to a ritual; use in rituals where you wish
to gain anothers confidence or persuade someone, or in
rituals that require solar energy.
Gold:
Fosters understanding and attracts the powers of cosmic
influences; beneficial in rituals intended to bring about
fast luck or money, or in rituals needing solar energy.
Pink:
Promotes romance, friendship; standard color for rituals to
draw effections; a color of femininity, honor, service,
brings friendly, lively conversation to the dinner table.
Red:
Health, passion, love, fertility, strength, courage, will
power; increases magnetism in rituals; draws Aries and
Scorpio energy.
Silver:
Removes negativity and encourages stability; helps develop
psychic abilities; attracts the influence of the Mother
Goddess.
Purple:
Power, success, idealism, psychic manifestations; ideals for
rituals to secure ambitions, independence, financial
rewards, or to make contact with the spiritual other world;
increases Neptune energy.
Magenta:
Combination of red and violet that occillates on a high
frequency; energizes rituals where immediate action and high
levels of power or spirtual healing are required.
Brown:
Earthly, balanced color; for rituals of meterial increase;
eleminates indecisiveness; improves powers of concentration,
study, telepathy; increases financial success; locates
objects that have been lost.
Indigo:
Color of inertia; stops situations or people; use in rituals
that require a deep meditational state; or in rituals that
demand Saturn energy.
Royal Blue:
Promotes laughter and joviality; color or loyalty; use to
attract Jupiter energy, or whenever an influence needs to be
increased.
Light Blue:
Spirtual color; helpful in devotional or inspirational
meditations; brings peace and tranquility to the home;
raditates Aquarius energy; employ where a situation must be
synthesized.
Blue:
Primary spiritual color; for rituals to obtain wisdom,
harmony, inner light, or peace; confers truth and guidance.
Emerald Green:
Important component in Venusian rituals; attracts love,
social delights, and fertility.
Dark Green:
Color of ambition, greed, and jealousy; counteracts these
influences in a ritual.
Green:
Promotes prosperity, fertility, success; stimulates rituals
for good luck, money, harmony, and rejuvenation.
Grey:
Neutral color useful when pondering complex issues during
meditation; in magic, this color often sparks confusion; it
also negates or neutralizes a negative influence.
Black:
Opens up the deeper levels of the unconscious; use in
rituals to induce a deep meditational state, or to banish
evil or negativity as in uncrossing rituals; attracts Saturn
energy.
Article Source: http://www.spells4free.com
In an attempt to move away from mushrooms (perhaps only briefly), and from edibles (though there is such a bounty out there), this week's focus is on clubmoss! 
Though mushroom season appears to be winding down, it is hard to let go, and there are still many around to appreciate- none more so than boletes! The bolete family, which comprises hundreds of species . . . is easily recognizable because the underside has a spongy pore layer rather than gills. And there are many boletes out there worth getting to know.
November 5, 2009
There is a special place in the hearts of west coast residents for the arbutus tree (Arbutus menziesii). Its crooked demeanor, peeling limbs, and manner of taking root in rocky bluffs while reaching twisted branches to the sea . . . seem to capture the spirit of this place and provoke the creative impulse. Countless paintings, poems, and photographs, as well as books, plays, and theses have been inspired by the arbutus. "It's not just a tree” says broadcaster Ketzel Levine, one of many who wax eloquent, “it's a sentient creature with curative powers that are drawn from the very soul of the Pacific Northwest".
Arbutus is the only broadleaf evergreen tree native to Canada, and its next of kin include other cherished locals salal and huckleberry. It is particular about where it grows- rarely more than 8 km away from, or 300 m above, the sea. In Canada the arbutus is limited to extreme southwestern British Columbia but its range stretches down the Pacific coast to California, where it is called the madrone. It is claimed that one of the biggest arbutus trees alive, boasting a spread of 23.8 m, grows close by on Esquimalt Lagoon.
While gardeners may bestow them with love and attention only to lament their vulnerability to various fungal ailments, in the wild these trees prefer harsh conditions- dry rocky sites with full exposure to sun and wind are characteristic. Unfortunately humans desire these same areas for homes and businesses, and many are concerned over the arbutus tree's fate in the face of habitat loss.
Bees and hummingbirds are attracted to the clusters of fragrant white flowers, and its orange-red berries are a favourite food of songbirds, mice and deer. Though astringent, they have been eaten by First Nations People after roasting or steaming, and have been made into jellies and sweet cider, which was said to create an appetite.
Medicinal uses of arbutus have included making an infusion of the bark and leaves to treat bladder infections, stomachaches, or cramps; this was also given to horses with sore backs. Traditionally, fresh leaves were chewed to treat colds and sore throats; these days, pharmaceutical companies are churning out studies on the antibacterial properties of these same leaves. An infusion of the bark has been used to soften skin and enhance its luster. Fresh leaves were applied to burns, while dried ones were smoked as tobacco. The berries continue to be used in jewelry and decorations, and beautiful artisan crafts are created out of the hard wood, which has an impressive range of colours and textures. Many comment on the wood's superior burning- hot and slow- but such a commonplace use of this iconic tree does not sit well with most.
Not surprisingly, the arbutus has a prominent place in Pacific Northwest myths and lore. A Straights Salish story recounts how an arbutus atop Mount Newton (near Sidney) was used by survivors of the Great Flood to anchor their canoe. Another traditional belief held that it was best for people to avoid touching the tree, otherwise their luck might "peel off" like the bark. Yet another Aboriginal account holds that should the arbutus ever disappear, the planet will fly apart and be utterly destroyed.
In lieu of a recipe for this week's non-timber species (though some do make jam from a European variety of the tree), an offering from local poet Richard Olafson, from the book In Arbutus Light (Ekstasis, 1989)
In Arbutus Light- An Arbutus Triptych
O ARBUTUS!
Arbutus in autumn,
Sacred boughs wet with rain
Whose webbed roots hold
The splintered earth together,
Stone cracks open
When wooded muscles
Stretch to the sea.
Arbutus by the shore
Rise and sing tonight,
In light shining
Off the sea
Rant in silence at the water
Of the world.
Yes, the forests are still busy popping up mushrooms these days, making people such as ourselves driven and giddy, but let's pause for a moment and expand our horizons to consider the wonderful resources present in the sea. What better excuse to head out in a kayak (as if one is needed!) than to harvest some of the many local seaweeds that enhance our meals, medicines, body care and general joie-de-vivre?
I did just that recently, and came home with some sea lettuce (Ulva latuca), a beautiful emerald-green seaweed with thin translucent leaves that span 20-40 cm across and have ruffed edges. It can be free-floating or grow attached to substrates, but does not have a true rooting system. Sea lettuce is often found in shallow water, near exposed rocks and stagnant tide pools. It is quite tolerant of high levels of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus, so large volumes of it could be indicative of potentially polluted waters (thus making it incumbent on harvesters to only harvest in areas that known to be relatively clean and well away from contaminant outflows).
Sea lettuce has been enjoyed throughout the world for many centuries- raw, dried, or roasted; in salads, soups, or stews. It can be stored in the refrigerator for a couple of days, or frozen for up to 6 months without losing flavour. It is said to be high in protein, vitamins, minerals (notably iron), and fibre, and the term "super-food" has been associated with it more than once. After his first bite of sea lettuce-pesto, my harvesting companion, who had been yawning and ready for a post-kayak nap, declared rather uncharacteristically that his body felt abnormally full of energy and vitality.
Due perhaps to its antibacterial properties sea lettuce has been used to treat burns and as a base for body cleansers; it has been fed to livestock in many countries; has been gathered to use as packing material for "more precious" edible seaweeds and fish; and it makes a nice (and aromatic!) garden mulch.
Sea lettuce is not always associated with all-things-good however; in areas with wastewater or high nutrient loading there are instances where the algae has grown out of control, depleting oxygen and forming mats that choke out other aquatic organisms. If very large amounts wash up on the beach the rotting process can be not only smelly but dangerous- hydrogen sulphide gases build up under a crust of algae. There have been cases of people losing consciousness from these fumes, as happened this summer along a French beach plagued by high levels of agricultural run-off.
Such problems are not specific to this species of algae, and they are certainly a dire warning against over-taxing our aquatic and marine systems with pollutants. They are not, however, any reason to avoid digging into a lovely roasted sea lettuce salad (harvested from clean waters of-course):
Recipe: Roasted sea lettuce salad
6 tomatoes
1 avocado
10 gr dried sea lettuce
1 lemon
4 Tbsp olive oil
salt (to taste)
Roast the dried sea lettuce in a hot oven for 30 seconds or so, just until it becomes crispy (careful, it burns easily!). Chop the tomato and mix it with the avacado and sea lettuce, and stir in the lemon juice, olive oil and salt. Itadakimasu!
Caution: Sea lettuce is tolerant of high levels of nitrogen and phosphates, and can thus grow in areas that are polluted; make sure that your source is coming from water that is relatively clean. Luckily for sea vegetable harvesters, there are no poisonous look-alikes to popular edible species (though if you're in the tropics, avoid blue-green algae finer than a human hair).
How exciting is one mushroom that's been parasitized by another mushroom, which makes it turn orange and lumpy and smell mildly of seafood?! Pretty special, I'd say. Welcome to the wonderful world of lobster mushrooms. (Hypomyces lactifluorum).
Lobster mushrooms grow by completely covering their host fungus, which include a variety of species, most commonly the short-stemmed Russula (a white, gilled mushroom that has little to offer in terms of flavour until the Hypomyces has its way with it). While some have wondered whether the lobster can be poisonous if it has a poisonous host (which it usually does not), they have been eaten for centuries and commercialized more recently, without known ill effects.
Lobster mushrooms grow on the ground in coniferous forests (and are particularly abundant at Royal Roads these days!); hemlock is a tree with which it is often associated. Even for a fungus this species is rather odd-looking. It is medium-sized, bright orange like a cooked lobster (making it nice and visible when you're wandering through the woods), and takes on a distorted version of the shape of its host. It tends to develop into an inverted pyramid with a concave cap and indistinct gills on the underside, though it can continue growing into a shape that is knobby, deformed, bizarre, yet quite unique. The lobster's texture has been described as "smoothly pimpled", and it has inner flesh which is white and firm until it starts to decay, which seems to happen relatively quickly with this species once water and dirt get trapped in the cracks of the flesh. Not to worry though, if it has lost its culinary appeal, it can always be used as a dye!
Lobsters will keep for about a week in the refrigerator. They should be washed (a toothbrush works well to get the dirt off), be trimmed of any brown bits, and are nice sauteed or cooked into a frittata:
Lobster Mushroom Frittata
1 oz. dried Lobster mushrooms or a handful of fresh ones
3 Tbs. butter
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
6 eggs
4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
In bowl, pour heated milk over coarsely chopped Lobster mushrooms and let sit for one hour. In saucepan, lightly saute onion in 2 Tbs. butter. Beat eggs into milk and mushrooms. Add onions and the remaining ingredients. Heat the remaining butter in a large, ovenproof skillet over medium high heat. When quite hot add the egg mixture and cook until bottom is set. Place under preheated broiler to finish cooking and brown the top.
Caution: While lobster mushrooms have been enjoyed for hundreds of years, it is always best to try just a small amount of any new mushroom at first. This species it quite distinct-looking, making it a good one for people less familiar with edible mushrooms to try harvesting, never eat or serve a wild musrhoom if you aren't sure of it's edibility!
"If one mushroom can steer the world on the path to greater sustainability, fighting hunger, increasing nutrient return pathways in ecosystems, destroying toxic wastes, forestalling disease, and helping communities . . . rebalance waste streams that currently overload our ecosystems, oysters stand out" (Paul Stamets, Mycelium Running). Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus) are heralded for both their tastiness and for their ability to remediate degraded landscapes. They grow on dead hardwood trees (rarely on live trees or on conifers) such as poplars, alders, or willows; are white, grey, tan, or brown; and grow to 25 cm broad. There is often no stalk, but if present it will be short, thick, and off-centre. The gills are white (sometimes grayish with age), fairly deep, and run down the stalk, should one be present to run down. Their name relates to the shape of the cap, which has an oysterish resemblance to it, and some claim the flavour is reminiscent of this seafood as well.
Spore-colour is a characteristic feature of mushrooms which, unlike so many other characteristics, remains constant over time and space. Spores (which are like seeds) can be observed by laying the mushroom cap, gills-down, on a piece of paper (half dark-half white paper is good to ensure a contrasting spore colour), and leaving it covered for a few hours to allow the spores to fall out, leaving a lovely "spore print". Those of oyster mushrooms are white, a characteristic which recently saved me from feasting on a similar looking brown-spored mushroom growing nearby, likely a Crepidotus.
Oyster mushrooms are well known for their ability to break-down contaminants including petroleum, mill wastewater , PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), industrial dyes, and certain pesticides; they are used as "mycoremediators" to clean up areas polluted with these toxins. They also contain medicinal properties which show promise for reducing blood cholesterol, tumour inhibition, and improving liver function in AIDS patients.
While it's hard to beat the fun of wild-foraging, oysters are also one of the easiest mushrooms in the world to cultivate. Wood, straw, coffee grounds, moist cardboard and many other substrates can be inoculated with mushroom spores or mycelium, and sometimes harvested for years. They are said to be tastiest when young, and best picked before the caps flatten. Oysters are a good source of many nutrients, notably protein, B & C vitamins, and have a mild nutty flavour. Non-humans that enjoy oysters include gnats, beetles, deer, squirrels, and even some turtles; if you'd prefer avoiding some extra protein with your oysters though, soaking them in water briefly should get rid of the little critters.
To prepare oyster mushrooms for food, it is recommended not to wash them until you are ready to cook with them, to never peel them, and to always use lemon juice or another acid in their preparation (along with butter, salt, and perhaps a little white wine). As with all wild foods there is no limit to the creative recipe ideas out there; this week's offering is for Marinated, grilled oyster mushrooms, courtesy of 'Sustainable Table'.
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 lb fresh oyster mushrooms
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp peanut oil
1 Tsp chopped garlic
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1 Tbsp Mongolian fire oil
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
Mix all ingredients together and marinate mushrooms for a half-hour. Shake off excess marinade from the mushrooms and grill with coarse salt and fresh pepper for 4-5 minutes on each side on a medium-hot grill with the lid down. This technique should leave grill marks and lightly brown the mushrooms. These mushrooms may also be used as a topping for pizza, crostini, or chop up and mix with grilled onions and sour cream for a dip. Almost any marinade will be good with oyster mushrooms- you can also use beer, red wine and garlic in a pinch!
Caution: About 10% of people are allergic to oyster mushroom spores, and experience reactions such as fever, headache, congestion, coughing, or malaise. As with all mushrooms, *never** harvest, eat or serve any unless you are confident that about the species and its edibility.
You don’t have to be a patchouli-wearing hippy to gain the many benefits of essential oils. Pure essential oils not only have a wide range of therapeutic and healths benefits, but are easier on the environment and save you money when it comes to household cleaning, laundry, and filtering your tap water.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) claims that 80% of chemical exposure occurs in your home. They also state that cleaning and personal care products are three times more likely to cause cancer than outdoor air pollution (www.epa.gov).
Since you only have to use a small amount, creating your own cleaning and personal care products is easy and relatively inexpensive, especially when compared to the cost of the chemical based, store bought products.
Here are a variety of ways to use the benefits of pure essential oils in and around the house:
Water Filters
Essential oils can be added to the post-filter side of water purifiers to help purify the water. Use peppermint, lemon, clove, or cinnamon.
Cleaning
Essential oils can be used to create many effective non-toxic (and wonderfully fragrant) cleansers and disinfectants. The oils that are excellent for cleaning include:
Here's a recipe for a good, basic household disinfectant:
Floor cleaner:
Hard Floor
To clean hard floors, add 1/4 cup of white vinegar to a bucket of water. Then add 5-10 drops of lemon, pine, spruce, melaleuca, Purification, or any other suitable oil. If the floor is especially dirty, add several drops of dishwashing soap. This will clean even the dirtiest floor.
1/4 cup white vinegar to a bucket of water
5-10 drops lemon, pine, spruce, melaleuca, Purification, or other oil
Dishwashing soap if needed
To freshen a vacuum cleaner:
Sprinkle several drops of lemon or Purification onto half a tissue. Let the vacuum cleaner suck it up or place it into the collecting bag. If your vacuum cleaner has a water reservoir, add a few drops of oil into it before cleaning.
Fighting dust mites
Recent research has shown that eucalyptus oil kills dust mites that live in bedding. 25 drops of eucalyptus essential oil added to each load of laundry or 1/2 ounce to a jug of laundry detergent is all you need.
Hot tubs and saunas:
Use 3 drops per person of lavender, cinnamon, clove, eucalyptus, thyme, lemon, or grapefruit to disinfect and fragrance the water.
For saunas, add several drops rosemary, thyme, pine, or lavender to a spray bottle with water and spray surfaces. This water can also be used to splash onto hot sauna stones.
Kitchens and bathrooms:
The kitchen and bathroom are often a source of odors and bacteria. Use the following mixtures to freshen, deodorize, and disinfect the air, work areas, cupboards, bathroom fixtures, sinks, tiles, woodwork, carpets, etc. These blends are safe for the family and for the environment.
Since the oils separate easily from water, always shake well and keep on shaking the bottle as you use these mixtures. They will deodorize and clean the air instead of covering the odors.
Single oils: Rosemary with lemon, Eucalyptus globulus, and lavender.
Blends: Lavender with Purification
The following recipes are excellent cleansers for work areas, cupboards, bathroom fixtures, sinks, tiles, woodwork, carpets and more. They clean bacteria and odors; freshen, deodorize and disinfect the air.
Mix into 1 quart water:
Shake well and put into a spray bottle. Shake again before using.
Another recipe for cleaning:
Mix into 1 quart water:
Shake well and put into a spray bottle. Shake again before using.
Another all-purpose cleaner:
Add Borax to a 1 quart spray bottle.
Fill with warm water.
Add Castile soap and Essential Oils.
Shake and use.
Can also be made with Purification
Window cleaner
Mix in 1 quart spray bottle:
Mix vinegar and water in spray bottle.
Add essential oil.
Shake and use.
Laundry
Stain Remover
Use a drop or two of Lemon oil on a stain. Let it sit a few minutes and rub off with a clean cloth or throw into laundry cycle.
In the Dryer
Instead of using toxic and irritating softening sheets in the dryer, toss in a dampened washcloth with 10 drops of lavender, lemon, melaleuca, bergamot, or other oils added. While the oils will not reduce static cling, they will impart a lovely fragrance to the clothes.
Painting
Adding essential oil to paint will counteract the unpleasant smell. And because essential oils are not fatty oils, they will leave no oil spots on the walls. Add a 5 ml. bottle of your favorite essential oil, such as White Angelica, Abundance, or Sacred Mountain, to 1 gallon of paint. Mix well.
I know that I'm not the only one that's been foraging these prize 'shrooms from Royal Road's grounds lately- chanterelles are back, and are well-sought after! With a feature article in this month's Vogue magazine . . . the allure of this favoured edible mushroom has clearly gone beyond the typical wild forager cohort (whatever that may be) to the more glamorous mainstream. The most common species, the golden or yellow chanterelle (Cantharellus cibarius), is yellow-orange to bright orange, with a concave cap (some say 'trumpet shaped') when mature and with well-spaced, thick gills running down the stalk (which itself is solid rather than hollow). The flesh is white, the mushroom is medium-sized (up to about 15 cm tall and wide), and it does not have a veil, ring, or volva. If this all comes together with a nice apricot or pumpkin odour, then you've got the right mushroom! (But, of-course, *always* check with an expert and/or multiple field guides before eating or serving them if you're just learning!!). Chanterelles grow on the ground, often under conifers and oak trees in young to mature (30-80 year old) coniferous forests (look for Douglas fir, spruce, or hemlock stands with mossy floors). A couple look-alikes that are probably best avoided include the western jack-o'-lantern (which have thinner and more crowded gills and do not have white flesh) and the false chanterelle (which have thinner, more orange gills, a less solid stalk, and often a browner cap).
To harvest chanterelles cut the base with a sharp knife rather than pulling it to avoid damaging the mycelium, and collect them in shallow baskets rather than buckets or plastic bags to avoid having them rot. It's best to harvest in dry weather for the same reason. They can be stored for a week or so in the refrigerator, or for longer periods by drying, freezing, or pickling. Most harvesters recommend not washing them (which causes them to absorb water) but rather brushing off dirt and plant material while still out in the woods.
Before freezing, pickling, or preparing chanterelles it is recommended to dry-sautee them. This involves slicing them and cooking at maximum heat in a skillet without butter (but a bit of salt is okay to draw out moisture). They will start to give off water in which they can be cooked for a few minutes, and save some liquid for later use as stock. After this feel free to add all the butter and garlic that you like, or use the chanterelles in soups, omelettes, dips, bread (really!), salads, meat dishes, or perhaps some golden chanterelle puffs.
It was hard to choose a recipe for this week's non-timber forest product, but the CNTR's Tim Brigham is awfully proud of his mom's recipe for "Delicious Chanterelles" that go well with pasta, meat, or on toast as an appetizer, so we thought that it deserved a wider audience:
1 onion or 2-3 shallots, finely chopped
1 lb fresh chanterelles, sliced
butter
½ cup (or more) of port or Madeira wine
1 cup (or more) whipping cream
salt and pepper to taste
(all amounts approximate)
Slice the Chanterelles. Sauté onions or shallots in butter until slightly brown; remove from pan. Dry sautee mushrooms in the pan until almost all of the liquid has evaporated. Add onions and port. Turn temperature down, add the cream and heat gently (do not boil after adding the cream). Add salt and pepper to taste.
And, just in case you're not a regular Vogue reader but are interested in their scrumptious-sounding recipe for chanterelle salad with frisee, poached eggs, and black truffle vinaigrette, you can access it here: http://www.style.com/vogue/feature/2009/07/the-mushroom-forager/
At 04:46 UT (Universal Time), on Monday, September 7th, 2009, Mercury the cosmic trickster turns retrograde at 6°13' Libra, in the sign of the Scales, sending communications, travel, appointments, mail and the www into a general snarlup! The retro period begins some days before the actual turning point (as Mercury slows) and lasts for three weeks or so, until Sep. 29, when the Winged Messenger reaches his direct station. At this time he halts and begins his return to direct motion through the zodiac.
Everything finally straightens out on October 18, as he passes the point where he first turned retrograde. Mercury normally turns retrograde three times a year, but this year he turns tail four times, which is unusual. The effects of each period differ, according to the sign in which it happens (see box for Retrograde Periods in 2009).
Salal (Gaultheria shallon) is one of the most abundant shrubs that we're blessed with in coastal B.C., and you may have noticed that they're becoming chock-full of tasty purple berries these days. It grows from low to medium elevations in wet or dry forests, rocky bluffs, or near wetlands or other openings; but seems to do best in moist, well-drained areas. The branches are recognizable by their interesting pattern of angling slightly between successive leaves, which are themselves thick, evergreen, and 5-10 cm long. Flowers are white (sometimes pinkish) little urns, and fruits are bluish-purple and, while tasty, feel hairy or sticky to the touch. Both grow in a line of 5-15 along the branch tips.
Historically and currently the berries have been eaten fresh, dried, or in preserves. In most parts of the Pacific Northwest coast salal was the most plentiful and important fruit. The Kwakwaka'wakw ate them dipped in eulechon grease, the Haida used them to thicken salmon eggs, and the Ditidaht chewed young leaves to suppress hunger. Branches have been used in pit-cooking and added as flavouring in fish soup.
Traditionally the leaves were used as a stomach tonic for diarrhea and to treat coughs and tuberculosis; modern medicine points to their antioxidant properties; and a poultice made from the leaves can be used to ease insect stings, cuts or burns.
Salal is a now a major commercial species: it comprises about 90% of the province's floral green exports and brings in millions of dollars annually, making it the second most important non-timber forest product (after mushrooms) in B.C. Salal harvested for floral arrangements is most highly prized when it consists of dark green leaves free of blemishes, usually from plants growing deeper in the forest.
This article only scratches the surface of this phenomenal plant; if you're interested in delving deeper, first make up a batch of wild salal-cranberry relish (recipe below), and then pick up a copy of the book "Salal- Listening for the Northwest Understory" by Laurie Ricou (NeWest Press).
Recipe: wild salal-cranberry relish (courtesy Seattle Times)
Rind of 1 orange (coarsely grated)
3/4 cup sugar
3 cups salal berries (tiny berry stems are okay)
3 cups cranberries (raw, whole)
Cook all ingredients on low heat until the berries are tender, and feel free to add a pinch of cinnamon or ginger. Tastes great served with salmon!
The deciduous shrub, a few metres high, can be recognized by its paired flowers which look like little yellow bells growing in fused bracts. They produce shiny black berries that are about 1 cm across. While it may not make for a nice snack, the plant still offers an eclectic assortment of other values (beyond, of course, its immeasurable integral worth). People with hair have rubbed crushed berries on it to counter dandruff or greying, while people without hair have rubbed the same on their scalp to counter baldness. Some whalers drank a tea made with twinberry bark to ease the afflictions of enforced sexual abstinence, and new mothers have rubbed this same tea onto their breasts to stimulate milk flow.
Leaves and sticks can be boiled and applied to swellings, sores, scabs, and broken bones; chewed leaves were applied externally to itchy skin, boils, and gonorrheal scars; and a decoction of leaves or inner bark was used as an eyewash. A tea from the berries is said to cleanse the stomach and purify the body, and the crushed berries themselves produce a black dye. The stems have been used as building and crafting material (sometimes adorned with the aforementioned black dye) and the hollow stem makes for a nice drinking straw. Perhaps the most common human use associated with black twinberry is as an ornamental plant, due not only to its aesthetic appeal but to its resistance to air pollution.
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