plant id?

[mcginnis6010]

Here are two plants that are abundant around here and not sure what they are or if they are edible or have medicinal value. I have found some wood sorrel and wild garlic so far this year and they are great for flavoring some fresh caught trout.

[mcginnis6010]

The 2nd plant

[YosemiteBen]

to me - keep in mind I am more familiar with California Plants. The first looks like a primrose rosette before the flower stem forms and the second looks like plantain leaves.

[bowtarist]

Are the leaves in the first one real fuzzy?  Looks like mullin to me.I agree w/ Ben on the second one. dp

[mcginnis6010]

Yea the first plant is really fuzzy I thought it might be Mullen but wasnt 100% sure. Same with the second plant thought it might be plantain its been awhile since I've actually went looking for them.

[Dalton Knapper]

The top one is Mullin. I have read the stalks are good for fire starting. I think it has medicinal uses, but not sure. They say settlers and American Indians would use dried leaves in their moccasins for insulation.

The bottom one looks like some sort of plantain. If it sends up little seed heads sort of shaped like tiny cat tails, that's it. I think they might be edible when young, but don't go by that without verification. My memory of the uses isn't so great.

[lake flyer]

Top one looks like curly dock or burdock. The bottom one looks like marestail.

[Eric Krewson]

The first one looks like what we call skunk cabbage, the second one is dandelion. Plantain has almost round leaves that look like a dogwood leaf, only dark green.

Plantain was brought to the US by German immigrants as a food source.  If you crush the leaves and apply the juice to poison ivy rash it will clear it up, at least it works for me. I have some in my yard.

Plantain;

[bowtarist]

Sorry, but that ain't dandelion.  Dandelion has "teeth" on the edges of the leaves, hence the name, means like the teeth of a lion.  It was brought over from Europe too, and so was mullen, so I'm not so sure about the native Americans using mullen for moc liners.  dpg

[mcginnis6010]

Well I know for a fact that the first one is NOT a skunk cabbage. And the second is NOT a dandelion I go and forage for dandelion greens on a weekly basis.

[YosemiteBen]

Ok -
The first is probably mullein - although ours doesn't have the wavy leaves so I will try to find some time to take a picture of a rosette.

@Eric - there are two types of plantain. the broad leaved one you showed and the linear leaved one as posted on this thread. I have heard that both are edible but have tried neither.

Wooly mullein is an exotic import and in Yosemite we spend a lot of time pulling it out of the landscape. It has numerous medical uses and was quickly adopted by many Native folk for those uses. I have never heard of its use as a moc liner. I have heard of grasses being used in the winter for insulation.

[Patches]

I agree that the first is mullein and the second is lance leaf plantain.  One bit of advice on the mullein...even though it looks nice and soft, do not use it as emergency tp in the woods.  That fuzz comes off the leaf and makes life very itchy and miserable after using it!     I learned that the hard way when I was a kid.

[bowtarist]

That's funny Patches. 

I've found mullein w/ real big flower stalks and made walking sticks out of them.  It's not as strong as wood, but strong enough, but what it is is really really light and easy to carry.  It is supposed to be good for lung problems, either smoked  or made into a tea.  The flower head, I've heard, were dipped in wax and used for a torch in the old days, I've never tried that though.

[Christian Soldier]

First one is definitely Mullein and the second looks like some kind of narrow leaf plantain.

I've heard Plantain can be chewed and applied to burns to soothe them but I haven't gotten a chance to try them. Its also edible but, like most leafy wild edibles, its not that good but is better steamed and with some olive oil and pepper. 

And if you just Google Mullein, you'll find it has a lot of medicinal applications.

Good to know about that TP thing. I've even heard it called 'Woodsman's Charmin'. I guess that's an armchair survivalist thing. I'll be sure to keep that in mind.

[Outbackbob48]

Mullien stalks after being cut an dried make good hand drill spindles for primitive firestarting, got my first hand drill coal with a mullien spindle, can't remeber the hearth board.  Bob