Human-Landscape Relationships in the Native Plants Garden
The Native Plants and Anthropology Teaching Garden offers a quiet place to relax on campus and an opportunity for students to learn how plants and people have interacted throughout history. In The Gardeners of Eden, Samuel Wilson discusses the relationship between people and their landscape, referencing European colonialism and the spread of plants from the New World, indicating, “Many of the New World’s most spectacular contributions to modern gardens were slow to appear in Europe. The conquerors paid more attention to crops that could be profitably sold” (Wilson 64). The coneflower offers a prime example of a plant that has spread and become increasingly relevant and economically viable over time.
The garden houses many plants, including coneflowers, roses, and Rocky Mountain Beeweed. To passersby, these are visually appealing and may prompt inquiry into the plants’ purpose and use, connecting viewers to a landscape extending beyond the St. Louis city line. Plains Indians used the coneflower to treat ailments including the common cold, with archaeological digs finding Echinacea at Sioux sites from the 1600s (Borchers). After the colonists arrived, usage became globalized, a process hastened by European doctors in the late 19th century. Although the plant was briefly popular among homeopaths at the turn of the century, Echinacea remained primarily decorative until 1970, when herbal medicine gained popularity (Hobbs). Today, it remains a popular perennial in gardens, but has become a staple in many health-food stores, with about $80 million worth of Echinacea products being sold annually, demonstrating its new-found economic viability (Richters). The long-standing historical relationship between people and the plants around them continues, as Echinacea is still considered a remedy for the common cold today.
The Native Plants/Anthropology Teaching Garden offers an important historical perspective on the evolving relationship between people and their landscape, with the coneflower offering a striking example.
The garden houses many plants, including coneflowers, roses, and Rocky Mountain Beeweed. To passersby, these are visually appealing and may prompt inquiry into the plants’ purpose and use, connecting viewers to a landscape extending beyond the St. Louis city line. Plains Indians used the coneflower to treat ailments including the common cold, with archaeological digs finding Echinacea at Sioux sites from the 1600s (Borchers). After the colonists arrived, usage became globalized, a process hastened by European doctors in the late 19th century. Although the plant was briefly popular among homeopaths at the turn of the century, Echinacea remained primarily decorative until 1970, when herbal medicine gained popularity (Hobbs). Today, it remains a popular perennial in gardens, but has become a staple in many health-food stores, with about $80 million worth of Echinacea products being sold annually, demonstrating its new-found economic viability (Richters). The long-standing historical relationship between people and the plants around them continues, as Echinacea is still considered a remedy for the common cold today.
The Native Plants/Anthropology Teaching Garden offers an important historical perspective on the evolving relationship between people and their landscape, with the coneflower offering a striking example.
Sources:
Borchers, A. T., Keen, C.L., Stern, J.S., Gershwin, M.E. (2000). Inflammation and Native American Medicine: The Role of Botanicals. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 72(2), 339-347.
Hobbs, C. (1994). Echinacea: A literature review: Botany, history, chemistry, pharmacology, toxicology, and clinical uses. HerbalGram. (30), 33.
Richters. (1998). World Production of Echinacea. Retrieved from https://www.richters.com/show.cgi?page=QandA/Commercial/1 9980331-13.html.
The final three pictures in the slideshow come from the Washington University in St. Louis website, www.wustl.edu.
Borchers, A. T., Keen, C.L., Stern, J.S., Gershwin, M.E. (2000). Inflammation and Native American Medicine: The Role of Botanicals. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 72(2), 339-347.
Hobbs, C. (1994). Echinacea: A literature review: Botany, history, chemistry, pharmacology, toxicology, and clinical uses. HerbalGram. (30), 33.
Richters. (1998). World Production of Echinacea. Retrieved from https://www.richters.com/show.cgi?page=QandA/Commercial/1 9980331-13.html.
The final three pictures in the slideshow come from the Washington University in St. Louis website, www.wustl.edu.