This time of year, the prairie landscape is awash in color. Two of the more commonly known wildflowers, prairie coneflower and purple coneflower, will soon be flowering across the state.
Prairie coneflower (Ratibida columnifera), also known as upright prairie coneflower, blooms in North Dakota from roughly June through August. This member of the aster family grows 1-3 feet tall and produces a flower head that is a little different from what the casual observer would identify as a member of the aster family.
Many members of the aster family, such as sunflowers, produce a flower head with inconspicuous disk flowers in the center, and petal-like ray flowers on the margins. The disk flowers of prairie coneflower, however, form a cylinder around an 1.5” long, with 4-10 yellow ray flowers drooping from the base.
Native American tribes used prairie coneflower for a variety of medical conditions such as treating stomach aches, snake bites, or exposure to poison ivy. The leaves were used to make a tea.
Purple coneflower, also called Echinacea (Echinacea angustifolia) flowers in the state from June into August, as well. It is also a member of the aster family that grows from 1-3 feet tall. It produces a single flower head which has a large, rounded orange-brown disk with 15-20 pinkish to light purple rays on the margin about 1.5” long, which grow outward before drooping down. The stem and leaves are hairy and rough, with the leaves being mostly at the base of the plant.
Purple coneflower was perhaps the most widely used medicinal plant by the Plains Indians. Principally used as an anesthetic, the roots, immature heads, and seeds were chewed to treat toothache, stomach ache, sore throat, and various bites. I have chewed the root, and although it isn’t like a shot of Novocain, it definitely has a numbing effect.
A common demonstration of this medicinal use is to chew a bit of the root, perhaps a quarter inch in length, in the front of the mouth just inside the front teeth. While chewing, try to expose the tip of the tongue to the juices produced. After a few minutes, a definite tingling sensation will develop. Although assumed to be safe, some people have had allergic reactions to the plant.
