Rattlesnake master

Eastern Deciduous Forest, Tall Grass Prairie

Rattlesnake Master 
Button Snakeroot, Yucca-leaf Eryngo, Corn Snakeroot, Rattlesnake Flag, and Rattlesnake Weed. 

  Eryngium yuccifolium, Apiaceae

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/20/40/67/204067b260af455b3e73d0c534f1fe58.jpg

Habitat: Occurs in upland prairies, glades, savannas, and rocky openings of moist to dry upland forests. Rattlesnake master is one of the signature plants of the tall grass prairie, a habitat that used to cover about half of our state before it was settled and the prairies turned into crop fields or allowed to become forest.Scattered to common nearly statewide, but apparently absent from the Southeast Lowlands.

Seasons: Blooms June-September

Active Chemical Ingredients: Tannin

Uses of Specimen:  

• Treatment of Snakebites (use root as poultice, a tea, or chewed and applied to wound)
• Treatment of Toothaches (use root as poultice)
• Used as an emetic (use as a tea)
• Treatment of fevers (infusion of pounded roots)

Procedure:

• Infusion: use 1 heaping tsp. root to 1 pint boiling water. Take 1 tbsp. 2 to 4 times per day.

• Tincture: a dose is from 10 to 20 drops

Resources: 

• Rattlesnake Master (Button Snakeroot). (n.d.). Retrieved September 6, 2015, from http://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/rattlesnake-master-button-snakeroot
• Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium). (n.d.). Retrieved September 6, 2015, from http://2bnthewild.com/plants/H367.htm
• Asheville Botanical Gardens. (n.d.). Retrieved September 6, 2015, from http://www.ashevillebotanicalgardens.org/Flower/09Rattle.htm
• Water Eryngo. (n.d.). Retrieved September 6, 2015, from http://medicinalherbinfo.org/herbs/WaterEryngo.html