DON'T RAIN ON OUR PARADE
ST. JOHN'S-WORT
CANADA THISTLESaturday, 6:15 AM. 69 degrees, wind WSW, light. The sky is becoming increasingly overcast and the barometer again predicts rain, but I am hoping it holds off until after the Fourth of July activities.
There are twenty-five species of St. John’s-wort (“wort” simply being an Old English word meaning “plant”) native to or naturalized in eastern North America and I won’t even try to identify them individually, although I suspect this one might be Hypericum Kalmianum, native to the Great Lakes region (named for Peter Kalm, 18th Century naturalist and explorer). The genus has a long history in both European and Native American herbal medicine for a variety of uses, but in recent times has gained popularity as a remedy for depression and is extensively used for that purpose in Europe. I have no experience with it personally.
The Canada thistle, Cirsium arvense, is a very aggressive weed that gives Canada a bad reputation as it is actually naturalized from Europe. There are a number of native thistles that are not very weedy, but my advice is to stay away from the genus entirely.
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