The Station – Day One

The Station – Day One

Raymond McClure

I would like to tell you about some of the plants you can find at the Field Station.

The first to talk about is St. John’s Wort. It’s a perianal flower that has medicinal qualities. You pick the plant when it’s flowering and put the flowers and stems into a jar of oil (olive oil) and place the jar in the sun as if you were making sun tea. The plant will turn the oil a reddish color. The oil can be used to rub onto sore muscles and for minor abrasions.  

Juniper bush or Red Cedar (the same plant with two different names) berries have a medicinal quality as well, the berry can be made into a tea which is good for you if you have a sore throat, it’s also a cure for dysentery.

 I’ll write about fish and other things next time.  Next week we’ll begin exploring the fresh water pond.