Ethnobotany Database

The development of the Prairie Ethnobotany Database is an essential part of our work and allows us to build on the leads provided by Native Americans in their use of native plants of the region. This database over 1600 unique species in it and allows us to determine the most important groups of plants that were used. It should not be surprising that the greatest numbers of plants used were for medicine and for food (Table 1).

There were many species with large numbers of uses (Table 3). Those species that had larger numbers of uses not only were more popular but also more likely to be efficacious. It is not surprising that white sage (Artemisia ludoviciana) and yarrow (Achillea millefolium) had the largest numbers of uses, as both of these species are well known as medicinal plants. Specific health problems most frequently encountered in the data included gastrointestinal problems and pain relief (Table 4).This data was assembled from ethnobotanical and historical accounts of 338 tribes, with more data on plants whose ranges extend into Kansas and our region coming from the Navajo and Iroquois than Great Plains tribes (Table 2). This occurred because of the historical conflicts between tribes and the U.S. government.

Table 2. Ten tribes having the largest number of plants for which ethnobotanical use has been recorded.

Tribe, count

Iroquois, 757

Cherokee, 731

Navajo (Ramah), 712

Meswaki, 292

Thompson, 287

Paiute, 274

Shoshoni, 262

Blackfoot, 257

Cheyenne, 249

Navajo (Kayenta)

Table 3. Ten plant species with the largest number of medicinal uses.

Plant, count

Artemisia ludoviciana (White sage), 242

Achillea millefolium (Yarrow), 257

Acorus calamus (Calamus), 259

Rumex crispus (Curly dock), 150

Artemisia tridentata (Sagebrush), 250

Mentha arvensis (Wild mint), 234

Sambucus nigra (Black elderberry), 303

Cornus sericea (Red osier dogwood), 200

Plantago major (Common plantain), 117

Maianthemum racemosum (False lily of the valley), 88

Table 4. Specific number of species that were used for the following health problems.

Treatment, count

Gastrointestinal pain, 268

Relieve pain/anodyne/analgesic, 246

Gynecological aid, 199

Ceremonial medicine, 170

Pediatric aid, 164

Emetic, 159

Fever/febrifuge/antipyretic, 156

Sores/external inflammations, 150

Cough, 137

Wounds/cuts/scabs, 137

Eye problems, 132

Colds, 131

Panacea, 124

Venereal diseases, 122

Antidiarrheal, 118

Tonic, 114

Orthopedic aid, 103

Blood medicine, 94

Stimulant, 93

Antirheumatic (external), 89

Kidney problems, 89

Toothache, 89

Misc. disease remedy, 88

Disinfectant, 85

Urinary aid, 85

Pulmonary aid, 82

Swellings, 82