Valley Oak (Querus lobata):
The acorns were a staple food, which was leached (rinsed with water) to remove the bitterness, and ground into flour with mortar and pestles. The ground acorns were used in stews/soups, pancakes/tortillas, mush, or layered into pits and cooked with other plants and meats. Oak galls were squeezed to make a blue-black ink for tattoos and tannins were used to make dyes and decorate animal skins.
Deer Grass (Muhlenbergia rigens):
A major grass for creating beautiful, sometimes water-tight baskets to cook food, to carry and store food and other items. Stalks were generally harvested in the spring when easy to pick, then wrapped to keep straight and allowed to cure for a year. They were often soaked prior to weaving into basket. About 1600 stalks would be needed to make one basket.
One of the most beautiful California grasses, this easy-to-grow plant attracts butterflies in the spring with its cream-colored flowers and seed-eating birds in the summer.
Santa Barbara Sedge (Carex barbarae):
The rhizomes (underground stems which generally grow horizontally) provided the strongest threads for basket making. The people would manage the rhizome growth by cleaning the soil of anything that might obstruct the growth (i.e., rocks) to allow the rhizomes to grow long and straight. An evergreen grass, the summer flowers range from cream, red and purple colors, which attract butterflies.
Toyon, aka California Holly (Heteromeles arbutifolia):
The wood from this sturdy shrub had many uses including tools, games/toys, fuel for smoking fish, and religious ceremonies. The red berries produced in the fall which were eaten after roasting over coals or dried in the sun.
An evergreen shrub, the summer white flowers attract bees and butterflies. Birds love the berries.
Blue Elderberry (Sambucus cerulea):
This tough, easy-to-grow shrub or tree is dormant in the winter. The spring and summer blooming cream or yellow flowers attract bees and butterflies, with their berries being an important food source to many birds.
Manzanita (Arctostaphylos manzanita):
Its distinctive red wood which was sometimes used to dry and smoke fish. The fruit was gathered in summer, then dried and ground to make coarse meal which would be mixed with a little water during winter months or made biscuits. They would make tea with the berries and tips of the branches, which apparently was a pleasant drink.
Sticky Monkey Flower (Mimulus aurantiacus):
The seeds were used as a food source. They were gathered, parched, ground, and added to foods or eaten by the handful. Flowers were used as décor after drying, made into wreaths, and used in religious ceremonies. The roots and leaves were used for medicinal purposes.
This drought-tolerant, evergreen shrub blooms in the spring, summer, and fall. The bright yellow tubular flowers attract hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies. Autumn seeds attract small birds.
Whenever I see any of these California native plants, I think of how the indigenous people of California used these plants over thousands of years. By growing them in our gardens, we honor that history, help the survival of these plants which provide food sources for so many birds, bees, and butterflies, reduce water usage, bring variety to our gardens, and joy to our spirits with their beauty.
Learn more at the Library - Take a free class!
This September, our UC Master Gardeners will present on the topic, "CA Native Plants" at 9 Stanislaus County Library locations. Visit our Calendar at https://ucanr.edu/sites/stancountymg/Calendar/ for dates, times, and locations.
Upcoming Workshop
On Saturday, October 7, 2023, we are offering our "The New Front Yard" workshop. Topics include drip irrigation, converting your yard to native plants, and how to garden for year-round bloom! Stay tuned for the registration announcement.
Resources:
- Enough For All: Foods of My Dry Creek Pomo and Bodega Miwuk People by Kathleen Rose Smith
- The Real California Cuisine: A Treatise on California Native-Plant Foods by Judith Larner Lowry
- Tending the Wild: Native American Knowledge and the Management of California's Natural Resources by M. Kat Anderson
- Indian Summer: A True Account of Traditional Life Among the Choinumni Indians of California's San Joaquin Valley
- Great Valley Museum of Natural History at Modesto Junior College's exhibit on Yokuts
- California Native Plant Society: https://www.calscape.org/
Acknowledgment: Lillian Vallee, English professor emeritus, Modesto Junior College, who has shared her passion and knowledge with me over the years of California native plants and their historical uses by the California native people.
Denise Godbout-Avant has been a UC Cooperative Extension Master Gardener in Stanislaus County since 2020.
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- Author: Lisa M. Rawleigh
The results were consistent with research conducted by Pew in 2008. Hispanics have the same motivators and attitudes in how they receive healthcare information, and they can still be reached the same way, too—whether it's through clinics, doctors or TV. Here are some of the findings.
Trust Multiple Sources
Doctors are the most trusted source of healthcare information for both Hispanics and non-Hispanics. However, Hispanics seem to trust significantly more. In fact, Hispanics are much more likely to say doctors (66% vs. 58% for non-Hispanics), clinics (54% vs. 31% for non-Hispanics) and hospitals (56% vs. 37% for non-Hispanics) are extremely trustworthy.
Pharmacists, however, have a lower trust score – only 38% say they find pharmacists extremely trustworthy vs. 50 percent of non-Hispanics. This may be because the role of the pharmacist is very different in the U.S. than in many Hispanic countries of origin. In Latin America, pharmacists develop relationships with their customers and spend time listening to their needs. They are considered true partners in the Latino healthcare universe. U.S. pharmacies stand to gain a lot with Hispanic patients if they work on building those relationships, too.
More Likely to Take Action
TV, radio and digital play a strong role in how Hispanics receive health information. And, across the board, Hispanics are more likely to take action from the information they receive vs. non-Hispanics. For example, Hispanics are at least 23 percent more likely than non-Hispanics to say that online, TV or radio healthcare messages “led me to see a doctor or medical professional about a specific drug.” When you dig deeper, Hispanic women are even more likely to take action than their male counterparts. This suggests that healthcare marketers may see better results if they target their campaigns toward these Chief Medical Officers of the household.
Hispanics are listening to, trusting and reacting to healthcare messages from many sources. They also tend to worry more about the health and wellness of their families (78 percent say they worry a “great deal” vs. 59 percent of non-Hispanics).
Source: Published originally on Univision Hispanic Insights Weekly Digest as New Findings Show Hispanics' Sources for Healthcare Information byEric Talbot, August 6, 2014.
- Author: Myriam Grajales-Hall
The same trend was seen on the total number of first year enrollees to U.S. medical schools. Among Latinos, the number of first year enrolled students in 2011 was reported at 1,633 - a three percent increase compared to the 1,539 Latino students enrolled in 2010. Eight percent of enrolled students into U.S. medical schools in 2011 were Latino.
To see the report, visit https://www.aamc.org/.
Source: Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), More Hispanics Pursuing a Degree in Medicine School, January 26, 2012.