Paleo Foraging

Cirsium spp.

Thistle

= Cnicus

Flathead: ćeqćiq – “prickly” (edible kind) / sqéltemxwa – “it’s a kind of man” (inedible kind) (Hart 1979:279)

Loc.: all TX; very common in Travis Co.; 10 spp. in TX

Form: herb; annual, biennial, perennial.

Food

Flowers –the pedicel / flower stalk was eaten raw by the Blackfeet (Hellson and Gadd 1974:102).

Stems – when young, were peeled and eaten raw by the Flathead (Hart 1979:279).

Roots – peeled and baked in an earth oven for two to three hours (Hart 1979:279).

Material

Fruits – the fluffy seed down was used to fletch blowgun darts of the Choctaw (Swanton 2001:52), Chitimachas (Mayhall 1939:119), and Cherokee (Banks 1953:127).

Cirsium altissimum (L.) Hill

Tall thistle, roadside thistle, plumed thistle

Cherokee: ^dgi·^dgí / ^dzi·^dzí – “thistle” / tgitgí ^djunstí yustí – “thistle, little” (Banks 1953:127)

Loc.: sparse E, C, & S TX; not in Travis Co.

Form: herb, up to 12 ft. tall; biennial.

Flowers: July-Oct (pink).

Medicine

Roots – an infusion was drunk for overeating by the Cherokee (Banks 1953:127).

Material

Fruits – the fluffy seed down was used to fletch blowgun darts by the Cherokee (Banks 1953:127).

Cirsium discolor Spreng.

Field thistle

Meskwaki: kaa’waki̥ʰ – “to stick one / kaa’wusk – “sharp” (Smith 1928:213)

Loc.: E & C TX; not in Travis Co.

Form: herb; biennial, perennial.

Medicine

Roots – an infusion or decoction was drunk by the Meskwaki to treat stomachache (Smith 1928:213).

Cirsium horridulum Michx.

Yellow thistle, chardron

Loc.: E, S & sparse C TX; uncommon in Travis Co.

Form: herb; annual, biennial.

Food

Stem – the tender white heart of the plant was eaten raw by the Houma (Speck 1941:57).

Medicine

Leaves & roots – an alcohol tincture was drunk by the Houma as an expectorant (Speck 1941:57).

Cirsium ochrocentrum A. Gray

= Carduus ochrocentrus

Yellowspine thistle

Zuñi: ko’wakätsi (Stevenson 1909:44)

Loc.: N, W, C, & sparse SE TX; not in Travis Co.

Form: herb; biennial, perennial.

Medicine

Whole plant – soaked overnight in cold water by the Zuñi, then the infusion drunk each morning, noon, and sunset to treat syphilis (Stevenson 1909:44). Immediately after drinking it, the patient would run rapidly to perspire and increase the metabolism of the kidneys, then would be wrapped in blankets (Stevenson 1909:44). It often caused vomiting (Stevenson 1909:45).

Cirsium texanum Buckley

Texas thistle

Loc.: all TX except far N; common in Travis Co.

Form: herb; biennial, perennial.

Food

Flower stalk, roots, & leaves – edible raw or cooked (Tull 1987:50).

Cirsium undulatum (Nutt.) Spreng.

= Cnicus undulatus

Wavyleaf thistle

Comanche: tsɜn (Carlson and Jones 1939:521), Gosiute: pa‘-bo-go (Chamberlin 1911:366)

Loc.: W, C, N, & E TX; very rare in Travis Co.

Form: herb; biennial, perennial.

Food

Stems – eaten by the Gosiute (Chamberlin 1911:366).

Roots – eaten by the Comanche (Carlson and Jones 1939:520).

Medicine

Roots – a decoction was used by the Comanche to treat gonorrhea (Carlson and Jones 1939:521,533).

Notes – Cirsium drummondii Torr. & A. Gray [range ends in WY, SD] was called tsĭ’na-bo-gûp by the Gosiute (Chamberlin 1911:366).

Cirsium vulgare (Savi) Ten.

= Carduus lanceolatus, C. vulgaris, Cirsium lanceolatum

Black thistle, bull thistle

Meskwaki: ketchimasāna – “big stinging” (Smith 1928:213), Navajo: mą’įitąa‘ – “coyote food” (Elmore 1944:85), Ojibwe: ji’masa’nûk (Smith 1932:364), Potawatomi: gîtci’masan – “big thistle” (Smith 1933:47)

Loc.: C & SE TX; not in Travis Co.; introduced.

Form: herb; biennial.

Medicine

Flowers – the centers of the fresh flowers were chewed by the Potawatomi in combination with bitter and unpleasant-tasting medicines to mask the taste (Smith 1933:47).

Roots – used by the Ojibwe to alleviate stomach cramps (Smith 1932:364). They were used by the Meskwaki as a “seasoner for other medicines” (Smith 1928:213).

[unspecified parts] – a decoction was cooled then drunk as an emetic by the Navajo (Elmore 1944:85).

Uses of Cirsium spp. not in Texas:

Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop. [NM, AR]

Canada thistle

Potawatomi: masanes – “itching or little thistle” (Smith 1933:46)

Medicine

[unspecified parts] – used as a bowel tonic by the Ojibwe (Smith 1932:364).

Cirsium drummondii Torr. & A. Gray [WY, SD]

Dwarf thistle

Gosiute: tsĭ’na-bo-gûp (Chamberlin 1911:366)

Food

Stems – eaten by the Gosiute (Chamberlin 1911:366).

Buds – the “bud at the base of the thistle” was eaten by the Cahuilla (Bean and Saubel 1972:55). This may be referring to the pedicels or flower stalks, which were eaten by the Blackfeet and Flathead (Hellson and Gadd 1974:102).

Cirsium eatonii (A. Gray) B.L. Rob. [CO, UT]

= Cnicus eatonii

Eaton’s thistle

Snake Indians: tsinah (Carlson and Jones 1939:531)

Food

Stems – eaten by the Gosiute (Chamberlin 1911:338,366).

Roots – eaten by the Snake Indians (Carlson and Jones 1939:531).

Medicine

[unspecified part, possibly root] – used by the Gosiute to treat wounds, cuts, and sores (Chamberlin 1911:349).

Cirsium edule Nutt. [ID, OR]

Edible thistle

Northern Cheyenne: heshko-voʔėstse – “thorny plant” (Hart 1981:20), Natives on the Lower Columbia River: shanataque (Havard 1895:110).

Food

Stems – when young, they were cut off, peeled, and eaten raw by the Northern Cheyenne (Hart 1981:20).

Roots – the root, which was a foot long and the diameter of a thumb, was baked as a sweet vegetable by the Natives on the Lower Columbia River (Havard 1895:110).

Notes – the root eaten was possibly from a different species of Cirsium (Havard 1895:110).

Cirsium parryi (A.Gray) Petr. [NM, CO]

= C pallidum

Cloudcroft thistle, Parry’s thistle

Apache: tłobindadatłidje – “plant with blue seeds” (Castetter and Opler 1936:62),

Food

Seeds – plant tops were gathered in sacks by the Chiricahua and Mescalero Apache and shaken to collect the seeds, which were winnowed and ground into a meal, made into a dough, and baked (Castetter and Opler 1936:49). Instead of grinding them, they were sometimes simply boiled to eat (Castetter and Opler 1936:49).

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