All in a days work for Bloodroot
Sanguinaria canadensis (Bloodroot)
Can you find a more apt name for this plant whose roots ooze red or
Bloodroot root
orange sap? I think not. This early bloomer is already in seed in my area, but in the last few weeks, the brilliant white blossoms dotted woodland slopes and stream sides. The single protective leaf that wraps around the blossom continues to grow even after pollination duties are fulfilled.
American Indians used Red Pucoon, as it is also called, for medicinal and practical uses. Here are a few:
*Paint skin and dye cloth and baskets
Bloodroot root cross section
*Repel insects and treat rattlesnake bites
*Treat cramps, induce an abortion, and induce bleeding
Early settlers used it for the same purposes, plus a few more:
*A few drops of the sap on a sugar cube was used as a cough drop
*Treat skin ailments
*Treat sick mules
The efficacy of these medicinal purposes has not proved out. Taking this plant internally is a bad idea as the roots are poisonous. Just as well. It is too fantastic a wildflower to go digging up its roots all the time.