May 21: Yellow Wood Sorrel and Pussytoes: It's about PR

Familiarity breeds contempt -- and even though this next entry is listed in the Wildflowers of Michigan Field Guide, it's still regarded with contempt by some wildflower experts because it's just too common for its own good! It's Yellow Wood Sorrel.

Yellow Wood Sorrel

Other names for it are Oxalis stricta, Sourgrass (because it tastes sour), Lemon Clover, and Pickle Plant. It  tends to invade gardens and spreads quickly. According to this Wiki site, all parts of the plant are edible and you can use the leaves to make a drink that tastes like lemonade. It contains a lot of vitamin C. You can also make an orange dye by boiling the whole plant. And it supposed to be useful on swellings as a poultice.

However, this plant can be harmful to sheep and livestock, even causing death when eaten in large amounts. So if you see it in livestock pastures, pick it up and bring it home for your own use! Probably shouldn't have TOO much of it yourself though.

I found this next flower being tended by a wildflower enthusiast in the Wild Ones garden at Fenner Nature Center. It's Pussytoes.

Pussytoes

Normally Pussytoes grow in dry places, in open woods and in rocky outcroppings. They grow in sun or shade. As you might be able to tell here, this plant varies widely in appearance in its stages. It is also allelopathic,  meaning it gives off chemicals that poison the soil for nearby plants. The pussy has a bite!

Historically, this plant has been used for medicinal purposes, but the Earthnotes Herb Library points out that some of these plants are extremely toxic, and "many of the historical uses have proven to be ineffective for the problem to which they were applied."

So here we have two plants: One is beautiful, grows in abundance and has many good uses. This one is picked and tossed out. The other is novel-looking but kind of ugly, poisons the soil for other plants and hasn't been proven to be good for much. It has a cool name though. This one is given a special place in a wildflower garden. I think there's a life lesson here.