Bloodroot
By zigzagbuddha
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
United States
April 19, 2009 11:21pm CST
I was out walking the other day (yeah, checking 'my' wild asparagus patches) when I noticed a bunch of attractive white flowers growing in the shade by the side of the road. I was standing there wondering intently what the plant was called when the old guy that parks his truck there came down the road and said "Whaddya doin'?" He said it pretty gruffly so I thought that he thought that I was messing around with his truck. As it turns out it was his Bloodroot patch he was protecting!
I told him I was trying to think what that flower was. "It's Bloodroot" he says and proceeds to tell me some story that had him ALL riled up about people coming along and digging it up to sell, and digging up too much of it. I can see why he would be so protective of it... it is beautiful... it is growing in a swatch about 15 or 20 feet wide and sweeps gracefully up the side of the mountain for maybe 20 feet or more. It is very impressive.
He told me about something called a black salve that he himself uses. He is sorta nutty, so I was pretty anxious to be on my way, but he almost physically dragged me back up to his house to give me 3 daffodils... he thought I was wanting to gather wild flowers.
Anyway, I came home planning to look up Bloodroot and familiarize myself with it's properties to see if I wanted to go on a 'secret mission' to 'raid' his Bloodroot patch, hehehehe. I didn't get around to doing it 'til today. And boy, what an interesting tale I found!
It is rumored to be useful in treating certain types of cancer, I suspect skin cancer is one. It apparently kills off fleshy tissue and so has also been used for removing warts and moles. I have a mole that just suddenly appeared on the back of my leg a while back and I have been wondering how to make it disappear as easily as it appeared, so I went "Ah ha!" and snagged a few roots, only a couple of his though, since, thanks to him for identifying the flower for me, I noticed some growing in the woods by the river where I go almost daily.
I found a recipe for a salve that sounds very interesting, but it requires a half a cup of Bloodroot. My 4 little roots will not give me anywhere near that amount, nor will all the plants I found in the woods combined. I think I am going to ask him about that salve he uses and see if he makes it himself. I bet he would be willing to let me dig up enough of 'his' roots to give me such a small amount that I could make some of my own, even if he doesn't make his own.
The guy is pretty amazing actually, in spite of being a little whacked... he is 80 or 90 years old and has INCREDIBLE stamina... he plows his huge garden with a rickety old-fashioned plow that he has to push by hand. He also knows the names of all the trees that grow around here (he used to be a logger) and was helpful to me when I was trying to identify the Black Birch.
I have been wishing I knew somebody who could take me out in the woods and teach me the names of plants and trees. I don't think it'll be him actually, but maybe if I brought him samples he could tell me what it was. And maybe he could even tell me how to find Morels!
Have you ever known anyone like that?
5 people like this
10 responses
@cassandralynn (1084)
• United States
20 Apr 09
I have never met anyone like that, but I think I wouldn't pass up an opportunity to befriend a person like that. Even if he is kinda nutty, elders that have knowledge of herbs,tree's,flowers and various types of plant life are rare now days. Scoop him up as a friend and learn all you can. I bet he has amazing stories to tell.The Bloodroot he has sounds like a fascinating herb.Perhaps this man will give you a few plants so you can grow it in your garden?..
6 people like this
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
21 Apr 09
He is not easy to be around. He rants and raves and issues dire warnings for the most part... god only knows what useful information is hidden down under all the surface turmoil! Last year I was making conversation with him once and mentioned that I was hauling my own logs out of the mountain to burn, and how much trouble it was. He told me I needed a stick of ironwood and some old telephone wire. I found the old telephone wire up at an old abandoned house, and he supplied the ironwood stick, and made me a contraption that made the job SOOOO much easier!
But it would have never occurred to me to deliberately seek him out to tell him about my problem... I was just busy doing the best I could, I hadn't really got to the place yet that I was going 'there has to be a better way'! Well, I was, but my idea of a better way was more along the lines of paying someone to deliver it to my door, hehehe. But this is the 3rd time now that I have accidentally discovered that he is a treasure trove of information!
5 people like this
@liquorice (3887)
•
20 Apr 09
Well, he seems like a useful person to know. Although he sounds as if he could also be a bit of a disturbing person to know - in a (probably) harmless kind of way. I have an older neighbour that sounds a bit like him, in that he's always coming to tell me random facts about things and he can also be quite gruff.
But your guy (well, I know he's not exactly your guy, lol!) reminded me of someone I used to know at university. We were pretty good friends, and he came from the country and knew lots about the different types of trees, birds and other wildlife. He know I liked walking, and so we got in the habit of going on nature rambles together. He would take me walking in parts of the woods near college that I didn't know about, and show me tracks and teach me lots about the countryside. I'd love to know so much myself. Sadly it was a long time ago and I can't remember much of what he told me, but they were happy days!
5 people like this
@liquorice (3887)
•
20 Apr 09
I just wanted to add that the outdoor life must be a good one if this guy is in his 80's or 90's and doing so well. That's something to learn from I'm sure!
4 people like this
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
21 Apr 09
Well, I can't see myself trekking through the peaceful woods with this guy. He is actually very interesting, and certainly he poses no threat to my physical safety, but it is hard work to be around him! I have to have a firm grip on the reins in the conversation or he goes off on some totally personal to himself tangent, ranting and raving about conspiracies and other things in which I have no interest. Still, I think I will seek to engage him in conversation more often, rather than try to get past his house unnoticed, hehehe.
And I am pretty certain that you have not forgotten what your friend told you. We are like the best computers ever invented and data that has been entered is still there for your perusal... it is sort of like my relationship with this old man though - you have to know what you're looking for in order to find it, or somehow trip on it accidentally!
All days are happy days!!! Sometimes we just forget to notice, or have been practicing unhappy days for so long that they seem more normal!
5 people like this
@liquorice (3887)
•
21 Apr 09
Lol @ "I have to have a firm grip on the reins in the conversation.." I've known a few people where I have to do this, and I'm not too good at it!! You can waste potentially hours of your time listening to those conspiracy theories and life tales, and stories of how hard-done by these people are 
I hope I have remembered some of my friends' teachings! Hopefully they're buried deep within my brain somewhere to come out when needed. I hope you do get to talk more with this man, even if you don't go on forest treks together!
Yes you're right, all days are happy days. We just need to stop a while every so often and realise this and appreciate that fact. Enjoy this happy day!
I hope I have remembered some of my friends' teachings! Hopefully they're buried deep within my brain somewhere to come out when needed. I hope you do get to talk more with this man, even if you don't go on forest treks together!
Yes you're right, all days are happy days. We just need to stop a while every so often and realise this and appreciate that fact. Enjoy this happy day!4 people like this
@James72 (26790)
• Australia
20 Apr 09
I can recall reading somehing about "Bloodwort" a while back, but Bloodroot is a new one for me. Are the roots themselves blood red in colour, or does this colour come out when you grind them down? I'd love to stumble across someone like this, but I'm yet to experience anyone like him at all. I used to have these daydreams about finding some ancient and wise old man in a cave somewhere and then being taught the mysteries of life, the universe and everything! Maybe one day this'll actually happen?
5 people like this
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
21 Apr 09
Hehehe, I have to make an effort to ensure that I say 'bloodroot' rather than 'bloodwort'! And for sure that has been a problem for me... 'foraging' for wild plants that have interchangeable names! This is a perfect example... I found that there is a 'Bloodwort species' - and a plant known as 'kangaroo paw' (which could be the plant you are thinking of) is one of them. But the Bloodroot plant has also been called Bloodwort.
At any rate, Bloodroot may be in the poppy family, but still, I would stick to Papaver somniferum for it's dream producing qualities and Sanguinaria canadensis for its tissue-killing ability!
The root is sort of orangish red, but when you cut it it oozes a liquid that looks almost exactly like blood!
Hahahahahaahahahahahaha... I[b][/b] always fantasized about living in a cave somewhere, in close company with the 'mysteries of life'... healing everyone who passed my way. Well, those who asked anyway.
6 people like this
@leenie50 (3992)
• United States
20 Apr 09
Hey Zig,
It sounds like you found a gold mine. The old guy probably can tell you just about anything you want to know about the plants, including how to start your own bloodroot. As for the mole on the back of your leg. Please get it checked. I've read that most women get melanomas on the back of their legs and men tend to get them on the back.
Zig, I wonder if you can get Bloodroot at a health food store? I'd love to get the recipe for the salve. But not living in the Mtns. or whereever it may grow, I'd have to find a source for the ingredients.
Back to the old man. He can probably teach you as much as you want about what grows in the woods around him. He might just enjoy having company for a change. Go for it. Keep us posted please. Hugssss
leenie
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
21 Apr 09
Actually, I feel no call to plant Bloodroot in my own garden, since all I need to do is walk a half mile up the road to collect what I might need!
And no, I will not get the mole 'checked', I have no love for the medical profession, nor would I care to hear somebody say to me 'you have cancer!'.
I believe that the body knows what to do to heal itself, and that it does not need to have it's 'opponents' named. My current objective is 'radiant health', I pursue it along whatever path it leads me. Therefore I trust that whatever I need will come to me, regardless of whether I have assigned words and labels to it.
It's interesting though that Bloodroot would come across my path. A few years ago I had a couple of sores appear on my body that perfectly fit the 'melanoma' description. I drowned them in 'Swedish Bitters' and that was the end of that. Then the mole appeared. But even if this mole is 'cancerous' Bloodroot should take care of that, so I am not going to waste my time worrying about it and I see no reason for you to worry instead!
But even if you can't find Bloodroot in 'health food stores' you can find it online. I would have included the recipe I found for the salve but when I went back to copy it I noticed that the amount of Bloodroot was not mentioned, and I don't feel like re-researching the whole thing when I am not even ready to make use of it yet. I wouldn't mess lightly with Bloodroot though... what is your interest in it?
5 people like this
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
22 Apr 09
The thing about healing the body is that you first have to heal the mind. Otherwise you 'heal' one thing, and something else pops up to take it's place, or no healing takes place at all.
Healing is an energetic thing... it involves the ability to direct energy and move it around. Sickness and pain is just the physical manifestation of long-standing emotion, which in turn has been created by your mental focus... if you think a thought long enough it becomes a belief and often appears to assert itself in your life as 'cold, hard reality'.
You have to change the emotional 'set-point' that underlies the current condition since it is that 'set-point' that has brought about the condition to begin with... it is that emotional energy that has to first be changed in order to effect a healing. Granted, when the body is wracked with pain, and everywhere you look you find just one more reason to feel bad, it can be pretty hard to feel good under those circumstances. But if you want to feel better you have to start right now in this present moment looking for reasons to feel better. You can't say "I'll feel better when this condition is changed or that situation is resolved"... when you do that you are buying into the illusion that you are a victim. You have to find some reason - any reason - right now in the present moment, to feel good.... and you have to practice it on a daily basis!
2 people like this
@leenie50 (3992)
• United States
21 Apr 09
Zig,
Please forgive me if I offended you. I wish I was more knowledgeable of the earthly ways of healing. I do find it very intriguing. I think all the medical issues I've been through all my life have made me dependent on Medical and Phamaceutical ways. But that doesn't close my mind to the knowledge of alternative ways of healing.
As for my interest in Bloodroot, I have many warts and moles that do not respond to the ordinary treatments. I do realize that it is not wise to experiment with things I know little about.
I also admire people like you and the old man who enjoy their solitude. I am a twin and I have spent my whole life needing the company of others. Being alone for too long makes me feel sad and lonely. But at the same time I do appreciate the alone time for a few hours at a time.
I want you to know that I am not a worrier and know that you are perfectly capable of taking care of yourself. I look forward to learning from your experiences and hearing about the stories of the old man.
leenie
5 people like this
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
21 Apr 09
Sounds like you have a pretty interesting family. I am the anomaly in my family as well, but for different reasons. Personally, I do not waste my time 'regretting the past'. I prefer to 'realize' more and more of my power as I get older!
1 person likes this
@venkataganesh (14)
• India
20 Apr 09
hi fnds
this is ganesh i read the above and i felt very great that people are using the herbal medicines
it is not amazing to see a old man of age 80 having incredible stamina
because by using the herbal medicines the body get stiff and get uninfected from all diseases
bloodroot it is a very fantastic medicine and it takes about 90% of the cancers present today especially the skin cancer but usage leads to make the colour of the skin black
4 people like this
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
21 Apr 09
Hi ganesh! I am happy to see you responding to my discussion! And it seems I have got your MyLot 'virginity'!!!! 
Don't worry... I will be gentle with you!
I'm wondering if you have had experience with Bloodroot, or if you are just relating what you've heard or read? I can imagine that it would leave the skin black, or scarred, since it kills tissue, but I think I personally would rather deal with 'disfiguring' scar tissue than 'deadly' cancerous cells!!! I have not had any experience with the plant, other than my first encounter with it on the mountainside... but I would not be surprised to find that such a 'demure' looking plant could be so powerful!
Don't worry... I will be gentle with you!
I'm wondering if you have had experience with Bloodroot, or if you are just relating what you've heard or read? I can imagine that it would leave the skin black, or scarred, since it kills tissue, but I think I personally would rather deal with 'disfiguring' scar tissue than 'deadly' cancerous cells!!! I have not had any experience with the plant, other than my first encounter with it on the mountainside... but I would not be surprised to find that such a 'demure' looking plant could be so powerful!4 people like this
@venkataganesh (14)
• India
21 Apr 09
ha yes i had the real experience with that tree the skin becomes black because of the increase of the harmone which makes the skin look black in heavy doses
1 person likes this
@Darkwing (21583)
•
28 Apr 09
Yes, we have a couple of guys in the village quite like that! One is from a gypsy family, and the other from a country family... his grandfather was a cobbler in years gone and had his own business. This guy is a wild one though... I keep telling him he's a pagan at heart, which he won't agree with but even his hair's long like the Saxons of days gone by! He's a gardener, and he's always out in the words. I reckon if I approached him with a few unidentified plants, he could tell me what they were.
It sounds as though you and your encounter could become quite good friends, and help each other along the way, despite him being older. I'm thinking maybe he got his stamina from either the Bloodroot or some other herbs, for his knowledge sounds very wide. He sounds like a wiseman from the mists of time. Ha ha... there's a story title for ya!
Brightest Blessings my friend.
@Darkwing (21583)
•
28 Apr 09
I forgot to tell you... the gypsy guy is between 70 and 80 years old, and when he was fitter, I used to bump into him almost every day as we both walked around the village. One day, I bumped into him at the bottom of the Street. He was sitting on a sawn off tree stump at the back of the triangular piece of grass by the main road. I started a short conversation with him and he said he was admiring the way the horseradishes were growing. Now, I didn't know they grew in the wild, so I proceeded to ask him about them. They have big leaves like a dock leaf, and their roots were used by the gypsies to make horseradish sauce, as well as balms and things. Needless to say, I learned quite a bit about horseradishes that day and it only served to stimulate my interest in herbs, and pagan life.
1 person likes this
@Darkwing (21583)
•
30 Apr 09
Well, maybe not more interesting, but certainly, they sound more tolerant. He sounds like a grumpy bump your end! Maybe he has a chip on his shoulder but it seems to me that he's very protective of whatever he lays claim to. He may not be quite as insane as you think, my friend. More secretive about what he knows, methinks; wanting to keep things to himself for some unknown reason. With the two this end, I would trust them... they're gentlefolk, living out of time to my way of thinking. lol.
Yes, I like horseradish too. I really must look into its qualities, as even with what I've been told, I don't know whether it's good for certainl ailments. Was his description of it good? You know, even at his age, Fred, as his name is, is a very astute man, and I trust him implicitely. He'd do anything for anybody who values him as a person, which I do.
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Your guys sound more interesting than this guy actually... I really have a hard time with this guys rants! He is very uncomfortable to be around. Plus, even if I took some plants to him and asked if it was queen anne's lace or water hemlock, i still could not be certain that he was sane enough to trust my life to!!!
I have horseradish growing in my backyard! I haven't used any yet, but I will one of these days. I really like horseradish!
1 person likes this
@hellcord (673)
• Romania
22 Apr 09
Well in recent times, since I started growing all sorts of things indoors and am more interested in the process and the plants, yes, more and more people that are knowledgeable in herbal matters seem to find their way into my life :D
He sounds like a good neighbor to have around, not like that other neighbor of yours, the pig :)
cheers,
- hellcord
2 people like this
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
23 Apr 09
Whaddya know... it's the vata rooster twins come to pay me a visit! Been keeping yourself pretty busy I presume, what with the length of your absence!
So what are you growing now?? A third eye? Or a third head?
Yeah, I LOVE when I have my attention focused on an idea, how I will start noticing 'symbols' of it everywhere, people and events 'magically' start materializing into my life that are exactly related to that vibration (of the idea). Like the answer to an asking.
Like I'll be sitting here thinking intently about coffee for awhile, then the next thing I know I am seeing 'coffee signs' all around me! I'll walk into the store and my eyes will land on the the coffee cup sitting in the back corner of the cashiers domain, I'll be driving down the road and be drawn to a neon flashing coffee sign in front of some trashy looking diner, hehehe... and then one glorious day I will find myself in some remote parking lot somewhere, and the guy in the car parked next to mine will out of the blue offer me some pertinent information about coffee beans... or he will drive off and inadvertently leave a bag of coffee beans behind... that turn out to be even better than what I was hoping for! Hehehehe.
The cat who 'belongs' to my neighbor the cop got trapped for a week in the apartment upstairs that my brother stays in when he 'comes to town'. So one day there comes a knocking on my door... it sounds like a cop knock to me, but I go to open the door anyway, thinking it might me somebody I want to see. When will I ever learn.
When I open it and see the cop from next door standing there I start to close the door in his face, but just at the last minute I decide to hear what he has to complain about so I can laugh in his face. I open the door back up just in time to see him doing some professional cop routine geared to prevent somebody from closing the door!!!
He immediately stated that his cat was locked in my upstairs apartment, but he said it as though he had caught me trying to steal and torture the beast! Anyway, that 'rescue mission' turned out to be an almost 'bonding experience' for us! The other day he even said "Hi! How are you doing?" when he saw me walking down the road! I even answered him, but I'm pretty sure I mumbled (I was in shock) so I wonder if he heard.
I know that for the most part when people are 'MyLotting' they are pretty much wanting to 'get in and get out', but oh well, it's my dime, and I'm sure you are familiar with the scroll function.
Yeah, I LOVE when I have my attention focused on an idea, how I will start noticing 'symbols' of it everywhere, people and events 'magically' start materializing into my life that are exactly related to that vibration (of the idea). Like the answer to an asking.
Like I'll be sitting here thinking intently about coffee for awhile, then the next thing I know I am seeing 'coffee signs' all around me! I'll walk into the store and my eyes will land on the the coffee cup sitting in the back corner of the cashiers domain, I'll be driving down the road and be drawn to a neon flashing coffee sign in front of some trashy looking diner, hehehe... and then one glorious day I will find myself in some remote parking lot somewhere, and the guy in the car parked next to mine will out of the blue offer me some pertinent information about coffee beans... or he will drive off and inadvertently leave a bag of coffee beans behind... that turn out to be even better than what I was hoping for! Hehehehe.
The cat who 'belongs' to my neighbor the cop got trapped for a week in the apartment upstairs that my brother stays in when he 'comes to town'. So one day there comes a knocking on my door... it sounds like a cop knock to me, but I go to open the door anyway, thinking it might me somebody I want to see. When will I ever learn.
When I open it and see the cop from next door standing there I start to close the door in his face, but just at the last minute I decide to hear what he has to complain about so I can laugh in his face. I open the door back up just in time to see him doing some professional cop routine geared to prevent somebody from closing the door!!!
He immediately stated that his cat was locked in my upstairs apartment, but he said it as though he had caught me trying to steal and torture the beast! Anyway, that 'rescue mission' turned out to be an almost 'bonding experience' for us! The other day he even said "Hi! How are you doing?" when he saw me walking down the road! I even answered him, but I'm pretty sure I mumbled (I was in shock) so I wonder if he heard.
I know that for the most part when people are 'MyLotting' they are pretty much wanting to 'get in and get out', but oh well, it's my dime, and I'm sure you are familiar with the scroll function.1 person likes this
@hellcord (673)
• Romania
23 Apr 09
yes ma'am, the scrolling function is one of my main ways of working out and staying fit :D
so you can spot pigs by their knock on the door ? pigs have a specific door knocking style that gives them away ? makes you wonder in what other ways that devil job twists their brains inside their heads :D
ya that 'manifesting' stuff tends to work, apparently there's that part of our brain that deals with HIGHLIGHTING things so that they stand out (reticular activator system if my memory starts to serve me right ? look it up, could be interesting)
... and so what happens is that, unknonw to us, that clever and alpowerful slice of our head spots the tiniest coffee trace in our field of view, or in the sound from the neighbor's radio across the street, and so on and so forth, and some time later ideas just pop into our heads, of how to get to more coffee :D
and i'm sure that many other 'freak occurances' happen due to other powerful parts of our brains, like people across the world posting things on the topic right where we'll stumble upon them, and other very sinister things, but in a very very good way :D
well then, glad to be back, as you know gemini and vata ppl are notoriously volatile and ufo-like, and in our case, a bunch of months passed without a hellcord on mylot, and now I'm back as if nothing happened :D
let us be taking even more of this convo, to other comments and PM's
2 people like this
@venkataganesh (14)
• India
21 Apr 09
ha yes i had a very close experience with that plant
the skin turns black because the high production of the hormone that makes the skin black
can u believe this plant is curing nearly 10000 patients yearly
1 person likes this
@thistledown (45)
• United States
30 Apr 09
Some folks use bloodroot on horses to get rid of sarcoids, which are a skin cancer. They would be like us having a skin tag or wart but cancerous.
I just ordered "black salve" which is made with bloodroot and other herbs and mineral salts. My husband has a skin cancer by his ear. He doesn't have an appointment with the dermatologist until June. So, we decided to give this salve a try. The testimonials on the black salve information site were kind of hard to beleave, but if it works, it would save thousands of dollars. My husbands skin cancer appeared like he had nicked himself shaving. But it didn't heal. Then after a few weeks it changed into something obviously ugly.
Has anyone used this type of salve? I would love to hear about the results.
We would always like to use alternatives when possible anyway.
1 person likes this
@zigzagbuddha (4601)
• United States
1 May 09
I've heard good things about Black Salve, but I have never used it. I found an easy recipe for a salve using Bloodroot, but I've got too much stuff on my plate to mess around with it just yet.
But whether you use 'modern treatments' or the more traditional nature cures, the most important thing in healing is that you have confidence in the cure. You could heal your body without medicine even, if that was part of your belief system.
The body has a built in system that knows how to keep itself healthy and balanced. I like to do a periodic juice fast to give it the opportunity to do that, unimpeded by some of my personal habits. Some people are not interested in fasting, and some people shouldn't fast, but if you are interested here is a wonderfully informative link:
http://www.doctoryourself.com/juicefast.html
Many years ago I noticed that the only time I ever got sick or had accidents of any kind, was when I was stressing myself out over this and that and every other little (or big) thing. When I had that eye-opening realization I basically stopped getting sick... I have not had a 'cold' or 'the flu' or any of those 'standard' ailments that people expect to get on a regular basis - and that I used to get too - for more than 20 years.
People are so out of touch with their true nature that they make the mistake of believing that their body is a very fragile thing, susceptible to every germ it comes into contact with. That is just soooo not the case. The mind has the most powerful influence on the body than any other thing.
You should definitely read up on Bloodroot if you plan on experimenting with it. Have you ever seen Bloodroot? It is a very subtle and demure little plant. But it caught my attention in a big way. I mean, I see flowers growing up and down this road every day on my walks, and sometimes I am interested in a plant and set out to identify it, but mostly I just 'casually' admire a pretty flower and keep on walking. But not this plant. It called me to it, and I suspect that that innocent looking little plant can pack quite a punch! I seem to remember reading somewhere where the author was comparing Bloodroot to the guy who goes on a rampage and all his neighbors say "He always seemed so quiet and shy!" Hehehehehe.
