Customer Reviews

Edible Wild Plants of the Prairie: An Ethnobotanical Guide

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I think this is an excellent book; well-written, with excellent translations of Indigenous People's names for these plants. (I am both D-/Lakota, speak, read, and write my languages; and forage for plants.) IF I have a criticism, it is (1) that the book should have a sequel with another 130 or so plants including both food and medicinal uses, and (2) I would wish for GOOD, SHARP color photographs of the plants as harvested AND as you would see them if you were looking closely for them where they usually grow. The sketches are extremely well done but there is nothing like color to show the differences between plants that appear similar (at least until your eye is honed). Tinpsila, for example, has a near look-alike that grows in the same area where I hunt, and it is hard to teach novices the difference in person, harder from a book with B/W sketches. I like the facts that (1) she includes the medicinal uses of at least some of the plants in the book; (2) she notes the spiritual/cultural perspectives of us Indigenous People, and (3) she doesn't make any majority-culture or "Christianity Way" comments on our Traditional perspectives when she does this, nor does she refer to our Traditional beliefs in the past tense. Our Traditional Ways and beliefs are still very much alive and being lived; even if the number of us practicing them is not all of our People at the present time. If I could have only one book to take with me if I were to be "lost" somewhere, I think it would be this one.

This is one of the best books written on edible wild plants. The author has researched the plants thoroughly, reporting on known ethnographic uses as well as his own experiences. The text is botanically accurate and pleasant to read. The line drawings are excellent, and while some would prefer photos, these are very good illustrations. This is one of the wild food books I refer to most often. One thing I really like about it is the way Kelly cites his sources so I can investigate further if I want. I also like that he includes a lot of plants like prairie turnip, ground plum, and bush morning glory, which are not widely discussed elsewhere in edible plant books.

If you live in the prairie region this should be your first edible wild plant book. If you live elsewhere it is still an awsome book to have.

Overall rating: 4 stars
Plant identification: 3 stars
Plant uses: 4 stars
Picture type(s): black & white drawings
Who will find it useful: novice to expert foragers who want to know historical usage the wild edible plants of the central plains.

Notes: I love this book and use a lot of its historical information in my plant classes. The drawings are large and detailed but unfortunately lack any scale indicators. The maps of each plant's growing range are very conservative and I've found many of the plants in areas outside the areas shown for them. A lot of its information is duplicated in Medicinal Wild Plants of the Prairie: An Ethnobotanical Guide.

I expected a fairly dry text that I would have to studiously dig through to find any nuggets of useful information for my purposes (drought tolerant edible plants). Boy, was I wrong! This book was a blast to read with vivid descriptions of the uses, growth habits, processing of the foodstuffs, and other ethnobotanical notes. After reading this book I tracked down seed sources for a number of these plants and can't wait to grow them for my own garden in CA!
With all the useful, edible, and well adapted plants for the prarie and other arid lands it makes you wonder why we aren't growing more of the plants this book describes, i.e. purple poppy mallow, thelosperma, leadplant, sunchoke, serviceberry, etc.

I strongly agree with the reviews of "A Customer" and Sam Thayer. I will add that this book is a great starting place to familiarize yourself with grasses because it will guide you to more useful genera and other resources where you can find more information on the group of plants that provide the staple diet for humans. Three major sections "Edible Wild Plants of the Prairie", "The Grasses" and "Other Edible Pairie Plants" which contains what I would consider less useful or poorly known edible plants. All plants are organized alphabetically by genus. Each plant account has "Common Names", "Indian Names", "Scientific Name", "Description", "Habitat", "Parts Used" (includes harvesting season), "Food Use" and "Cultivation" sections. Each plant also has a simple distribution map. Brief glossary but a lengthy and useful Literature Cited. On the downside, the stippled illustrations are well done but still don't provide the needed visuals for identifying plants so there are no color photos. A wealth of information contained in this book covering some common plants that may be found outside the prairie too.

Hard to find info. Could use some photos, but drawings are great. Just needs more of them.

This is the best guide for the region -- the drawings are excellent, as is the text. Grab a copy!