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Creeping Snowberry
Gaultheria hispidula
Ezekiel 47:12 "And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine."
Nicknames: Creeping snowberry;[1] Moxie-plum;[1] The Micmaq tribes of Newfoundland calls it "Manna Teaberry";[1]
Endangered: Because of deforestation and competition with invasive ornamentals, Creeping Snowberry (Gaultheria hispidula) is in danger. I have a project in the works to combat this sort of nightnare. Stay tuned. "It is listed as endangered in Maryland and New Jersey, as threatened in Rhode Island, as sensitive in Washington, as rare in Pennsylvania, as presumed extirpated in Ohio, and as a species of special concern in Connecticut."[1]
Classification: Perennial;[1]
Plant Family: Ericaceae;[1] Genus: Gaultheria;[1] Species: G. hispidula;[1]
Ethnobotany: The Algonquin people (an Indigenous people who now live in Eastern Canada), make use of an infusion made from the leaves of Gaultheria hispidula(Creeping Snowberry) as a tonic for overeating.[1] They also eat the fruit as food.[1] The Anticosti use it as a sedative[1] The Micmac boil the leaves, and or the whole plant for medicine[1] The Ojibwa people use the leaves to brew a special beverage.[1] The leaves can be cooked and eaten as a vegetable.[1] The fruits can be eaten raw, baked, or used to make delicious diy jam.[1] It's mostly used to cure rheumatism and relieve pain.[2]
Natural Habitat: North America;
OG Observations: There seems to be hundreds of thousands of plants that were used by the Native Americans and other cultures that are not known to the mainstream. In America today, most of the herbal products that are sold online are predictable. There are more plant drugs out there (narcotics and psychedelics) that people don't even know about in the west yet. Look how long it took people to figure out about Kratom in the US. Scientist are all the time finding new sources for popular phytochemicals, like psilocybin, and THC-alternatives like the PET found in Radula.
What is Phytochemistry? What are Phytochemicals?
Phytochemistry is a branch of science that studies the pharmacology of plants by examining their phytochemical makeup, and testing those chemicals for their medicinal value. Fields of study such as this, are closely related to others(all tie in to medicine and its origins), including Ethnobotany, Ethnopharmacology, Pharmacognosy, and Pharmacology. Most phytochemicals, even though they are legal, never make it onto the open market for the average person to buy. This is sad. In Germany, they embrace phytomedicine. According to a great book that I purchased on Pharmacognosy, it states: "At the same time that critics are decrying the lack of plant drug development in the US, and expressing pessimism about its future for all of the reasons just reviewed, research and development in the field continues to flourish in another nation that is quite similar to ours from the point of view of technological advancement. That nation is the German Federal Republic ( West Germany ) There, new plant drug preparations (phytopharmaceuticals) and even new plant constituents are continually being introduced into the market by a relatively large number of manufacturers"[3]Phytochemicals:
Creeping Snowberry(Gaultheria hispidula) produces: methyl salicylate derivatives, C6-C3 constituents, organic acids, terpenoids, steroids, and other compounds.[2] It also produces Methyl salicylate glycoside, which is considered anti-rheumatic.[2] Creeping Snowberry produces: methyl salicylate derivatives, C6-C3 constituents, terpenoids, and steroids. In particular methyl salicylate, and three methyl salicylate glycosides, methyl salicylate 2-O-β-d-glucopyranoside, gaultherin, and methyl benzoate-2-O-β-d-xylopyranosyl(1-2)[O-β-d-xylopyranosyl(1-6)]-O-β-d-glucopyranoside."[2] Other strains from this Genus and family have also been investigated. It's not uncommon for them to share constituents, or for one to have higher or lower levels than another. "Scientist have studied 34 species in the genus Gaultheria, which has led to the positive identification of 110 compounds, mostly assigned to five structural types, including methyl salicylate derivatives, C6-C3 constituents, terpenoids, steroids and other compounds. From an overall perspective, a majority of these compounds were found in two plants, G. yunnanensis and G. nummularioides."[2]Pharmacological / Medicinal Properties:
According to one of the academic sources used to cite this professional write-up, "Modern research has demonstrated that these plants exhibit anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative, antibacterial and analgesic activities"[2] Scientific research into this plant and its phytochemicals, and pharmacology, have revealed that about 109 compounds were reported from this genus![2] Studies also prove that it has analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities, specifically extracts of the flowering parts.[2] Here is some more scientific proof of its medicinal qualities. The findings on Methyl salicylate and its glycoside derivatives 2–6 ALONE, (namely the methyl salicylate derivatives obtained from Gautheria species), possess remarkable analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities[2]Related Ethnobotanicals: Snakeroot (Erygium aquaticum) | Monarda fistulosa | Gaultheria hispidula (Creeping snowberry) | Dogbane (Apocynum androsaemifolium) | Eyebright (Euphrasia officinalis) | | Myrrh(Comminphora myrrha) acts as a non-narcotic subtle opioid. | Is Galanga maraba psychoactive? From Which Island? | Scopolia carniolica scopolamine carrier.
Buy (Gaultheria hispidula) Below
Academic citations:
[2] Liu, Wei-Rui, et al. "Gaultheria: Phytochemical and pharmacological characteristics." Molecules 18.10 (2013): 12071-12108.
[3] Robbers, James E, et al. Pharmacognosy and Pharmacobiotechnology. Baltimore, Williams & Wilkins, 1996.
Encyclopedia Sources:
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaultheria_hispidula
Other resources:
M.A.P.S. Ethnobotanical Studies By Scholars
PubChem - pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov