A New Find!

  I have been living on this bayou for many years.  So long that I seem to be as much of a part of it as it is of me.   I know its curves, bends, marshes and denizens.  I know when it is hurting and when it is healthy.  I know the nesting times of the nutria rats, gators, herons and egrets.  I know the stench of cottonmouths when they musk and the aroma of the sweetspire when it blooms.  It has given me sustenance and I try to return the favor by keeping it healthy.  It gives me peace.  All of this but, then again, I know nothing.  There is so much still unseen.  There is so much to learn and, yet, so little time left for me to soak it all in and no one to teach what I have learned.  In a sense, all of that will die when I do.

  Today, the learning continued.  It has been a long time since my hikes have extended down as far into the Bayou as it did today.  Careful not to tread where the moccasins hide or the gators sleep, I eased into the marsh to find a certain plant.  It is one that I have heard about through tales but have never seen myself.  When I spied what I thought was the herb, I dared to make my way through the palmettos and marsh to photograph the bloom.  I wanted to research the plant a bit so what better way than to have an actual picture on hand.  It was not my desire to yank up the plant and kill it just to find out it was something best left to grow. Wildcrafting demands that you never "overuse" and always leave a "seed plant" behind.  Until I had a definite identity, it would be unwise to harvest.  So, I photographed.

  The identity has been made and this is the elusive wood sage that I have been seeking for years.  American Germander is a member of the mint family but is unsafe to use in herbal remedies.  It is quite the common plant being found just about every where in North America so it seems strange that this is my first sighting.  Of course, this is in an area where I just recently cut a new path so perhaps in my struggles to climb through underbrush, I had merely overlooked the plant.  Now, however, I can say that I know where to look.  Keep in mind with this one, however, that it is not advisable to use as a medicinal herb to be ingested.  It is best to enjoy it for the beauty it brings to the area.  Once again, I will say that just because something is "herbal" does not mean it is safe.  It is rather pretty, though!


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