This week's wild edible is Self-Heal, also known as Heal All!
-The leaves and flowers on this plant are edible raw but have a mild bitter flavor. The taste can be improve by cooking, but you lose a lot of the nutrients that way.
-This plant can usually be found along river, streams, forest edges, pastures and abandoned fields. They thrive particularly well in moist soils.
-Growing roughly 4-18" tall, this plant can be identified easily by its tubular flower shape with whorled florets. Each of these tiny "flowers" consists of two parts: a "hood" (upper) that is usually light purple, and an "apron" (lower) that is usually white.
-This plant is especially valuable due to its medicinal qualities that help to treat (but not limited to) headaches, sore throat, ulcers, and is also an astringent, a styptic, and a general tonic.
Be sure to avoid any plants growing near roads, around chemicals, other poisonous plants, or polluted/contaminated water.
As always, be sure to use the Universal Edibility Test to ensure the plant is the correct plant and to help identify any unknown allergies you may have.
