Samhain

The very soul of the Pacific Northwest...

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.

Harvest Moon

What's it mean for you?



or

Salad from the Sea!

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).