Poke root (Phytolacca americana)

[lmmerle]

I was raised in Western Pennsylvania (northern Appalachia). We eat it every spring. We were taught to change the water 2 times. Really delicious. My mother used to freeze it. I still have a lot of it growing in my yard. I'll dig some roots later this fall.

[EgoSumLamia]

As a resident of the Appalachian Mtns, I was told by an elder herbalist in the community, the rumor of poison was started by mothers who told their children it was poisonous to keep them from throwing them at each other and staining their clothes. (more to follow)

[EgoSumLamia]

He ate the berries for "health" and said a friend of his froze the berries and ate 1, 3 times a day. He wont say it cured his cancer, but he will tell you he had cancer when he started eating it and when he went back for a check-up it was gone. As with anything you read on the internet, do your own research. Wildcrafting is an art. I find these videos interesting and helpful. Thank you for posting them.

[goodbro]

I HAVE THIS GROWING IN MY YARD I BELIEVE. THE PLANT IS 8 FEET TALL NOW AND 8 FEET IN DIAMETER. IT SPREAD FROM LAST YEAR, THERE ARE 2 SMALLER PLANTS GROWING ABOUT 50 YARDS AWAY FROM THE BIG ONE. HOW DO I IDENTIFY UNKNOWN PLANTS IN MY YARD? SUSUN...WILL YOU COME OVER FOR A VISIT ;~) MUCH LOVE!!!!! AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR VIDEOS SUSUN!

[rickster1957]

I made a tea out of this and Stallinga root. I had a 3 hour nap!

[EmilineTDD]

This plant is everywhere in oklahoma and alot of people I know eat it and I use the berries as ink, and the root as well

[gettinready100]

i live in oklahoma and every spring we go looking for poke (here we call it poke salad ) and we gather the leaves and take home ,clean and boil for about 30 minutes then fry in a little amount of grease and eat with cornbread. very good stuff

[Farfromhere001]

i don't understand how pokeweed would do that...

[Jefferdaughter]

Common name origin: probably the same as 'buying a pig in a poke'. A poke being a sack, (if you can't see the pig, it could be ill, unthrifty, or... it could be a cat: ('he let the cat out of the bag'). 'Poke weed' was worth gathering into the 'poke' you brought with you on when foraging for food and useful plants.

Thanks for the videos. Very interesting.

[KMTROCK]

do you have to wait until the winter to dig up the root?

[wisewomantradition]

@KMTROCK - after the first frost for digging roots in cold weather climate

[walkinthewoodsllc]

"Poison" ... "medicine" ... I'm ever amused (and irritated) and how quickly so many malign our powerful green friends.

if only we were as critical and quick to judge the pharmaceutically manufactured creations.

[Jefferdaughter]

@walkinthewoodsllc - Good point! Especially since one of the top causes of death in the US is due to side effects of 'properly prescribed and administered' drugs. Yup, FDA approved and considered 'standard medical practice'. (Source: Dr Mercola werbsite)

[Seyahhsod]

@walkinthewoodsllc

you said it sister!!

[krncharms]

i have cystic acne and am thinking of purchasing poke root tincture from ebay. do you think this would be a safe choice?

[nurse388]

I used this poke root to cure the worse case of eczema ever seen. ON ME !!

I was totally unable to my hands or even walk. I made a tea from the root nd applied it to my skin every day and within 2 weeks it was completely gone. I had spent hundreds of dollars on medicines with no relief. it has been 2 years and still no eczema!!!

[ytfp]

WARNING***!!!!

I am very surprised there is no caveat or a deadly warning on this video! Now Susan is a very highly respected woman in this field and this is a highly advanced and experimental process shown here. This plant unless harvested and prepared correctly,( as DancingRabbit has pointed out) is poisonous! The root being of the most poisonous part of this plant and you will need immediate medical attention. I enjoy Susan's work but this vid should have come with a warning.

[wisewomantradition]

Yes, as mentioned several times in the video, poke is a poisonous plant, and the dose of tincture is "one drop"...for further info on poke read the link in the video description. However, this is certainly not a "highly advanced and experimental process shown here", its only a short video introducing the plant sister poke.

[HerbWyfe]

I have used the fresh root tincture many times and have NEVER needed any medical attention. This root has helped me (among other plants) to combat a large tumor that is shrinking away...away...awaaayyyy. ......

As Susun states, 1 drop is plenty. Some people are fine with 15 or more drops per day, but as with any substance, plant based or not, dosage tolerances will vary.

[kermitdfrogz]

it is poisonous, but it isn't if you stay within tolerance. From what I know, you take one drop per day no more than 30 days; poke builds up in the body, and can damage the kidneys.

Again, that's from what I know; versus much more knowledgeable people.

[DancingRabbit52]

Didn't know about the root but I've used the beeries for ink and the young leaves as greens. You parboil the young leaves twice, pouring out the water. Then you mix the cooked greens with raw egg and stir fry it. What you get looks like green scrambled eggs and tastes a little like fried okra.