Eagan, TN: Digging wild herbs in the Appalachian mountains

America's Most Endangered Mountains - Eagan, TN

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- - - COMMUNITY STORY - - -

In the Cumberland mountains of Tennessee, near Eagan, Carol Judy makes her living off the land.

Far from being a traditional farmer, Judy digs for and harvests medicinal roots-- many of which are highly coveted--in the hardwood forests near her home.

This way of life, practiced by Appalachian families for generations, is threatened by the mountaintop removal mining occurring near her harvesting grounds.

According to Judy, the 10-mile mine site near her harvesting grounds in Clairborne County, Tenn., has not only changed the landscape directly at the mining site, but has also "disturbed the foundation of the forest." As the forest floor changes, due to blasting or flooding, the roots she harvests have begun to disappear from the places they have been growing for years.

Judy harvests a number of roots including sasafrass root, wild yam, black cohash, yellowroot, goldenseal and bloodroot. Wildcrafting and herbal medicine have a long history in the Appalachian mountains and their sale has become a lucrative industry as herbal medicine becomes more and more mainstream.

In addition to being a source of income for wildcrafters like Judy, the forest is also a source of ecological, historical, cultural and spiritual value.

Judy laughingly refers to her home in the hills as "Daniel Boone's backyard." Indeed, the legendary frontiersman explored and charted for the forests of the Cumberland Plateau for the first time in the late 18th century. Since Daniel Boone forged the Cumberland pass, people have settled in the hills and hollers, learning intimately the benefits given to them by the woods.

A healthy forest ecosystem provides medicine in the form of medicinal plants, but also food, water purification, oxygen, and a carbon sink-- a service that has gained relevance as concerns about global climate change grow. Though it may be the least tangible of the forest's benefits, the "peace" and "understanding" that people like Judy find in the woods is no less valuable.

To support Carol and her community contact:
Save Our Cumberland Mountains
(865) 426-9455 • info@socm.org • www.socm.org

SOCM's mission is to work toward environmental, economic and social justice for all Tennessee residents.

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

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[ruapraia]

This lady knows roots, Now do you think we can as humans afford to loos a person like that? Root = medicine. My God what are we doing?

[41143115]

They striped the woods before my house, the woods I grow up in, its so sad.

[forestgranny]

@MrSimonGirty blood root is a caustic and as such, burns away the skin that has the sap on it. a nurse friend of mine just breaks the root, dabs the orange/red sap on her pre-cancer.

[ghostman3331]

why are your people working there if you dont like what they are doing strike the job replant the mountain

[hc606]

I live 20 minutes away and roam this country damn near every weekend. The strip reclamation work done in Tackett Creek, Roses Creek, Rock Creek, and now starting in Valley Creek is all top notch. If you want to see how beautiful reclamation is done Tackett Creek is a perfect example. So is Mountain Drive just 20 minutues west or so in Bell County, KY. I know it looks bad when theyre mining it but after its reclaimed it looks nothing like what they show in this video.

[aodhfinn]

great video ,out of the next generation will come the beginning of repair of the damage our ways have wrought on the earth , your a good OAK !! :)

[Rykenson]

Check out the reclaimation part of the mines. I think they do a wonderful job, and the best part is we have golf course, the mt.motor speedway is coming, more jobs. I think this is wonderful.

[MrSimonGirty]

I used to dig roots for money as a kid and know what blood root is. I always find a lot of it each spring when mushroom hunting. I know when the shrooms are coming on by how far along the blood root, trillium , yellow bacoon, may apple, red buds, paw paw, dog wood, Sweet Williams, Indian Turnip, and other plants are grown. About three years ago I had some skin cancer cut off my neck. The Doctor told me I have to watch my skin for more to show. How is blood root used to treat skin cancer? Thanks.

[ufozminnesota]

Very sad to see this. I am happy to see your connection to the land, and your caring. Greater changes are coming. Great video. A+++++.

[waypasthadenough]

The electricity that runs the computer I just watched this with was created by the burning of coal.

The Eastern deciduous forests grow back over time. In the hills where I live in central Kentucky there were many farms years ago. They plowed just about anything the mule could stand up on. That way of subsisting went away for most and the woods have grown back for the most part. We do need to bring back the American Chestnut trees.

[714joyce]

Carol can you please tell me where Guys Branch cemetery is in Eagan.my grandpa is buried there and my mom grew up there in Eagan. I remember her saying she thought he was "up on buffalo". He died in a mine accident in 1938.Thank-You. willo54us2002@yahoo.com.

[henryb2003]

most mines are always filmed during the production phase of the job.After reclamation the muntains are replanted and made even more useful and pretty.one of these so called tree huggers came to our hometown once,and was pointing out how great a section of mountain looked and she would hate for it to be distroyed by mining,took a while to get the egg off her face when we showed her it had been mined in the 1970's, and this was what the jobs actualy looked like after the mining industry finished