Practical
Plants

Cleome serrulata

Rocky Mountain Beeplant

an annual member of the Cleome genus in the family Capparidaceae.

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Taxonomy and growth

Genus
Cleome
Life cycle
annual
Height
1 m
Fertility
Bees
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Bees

Uses

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Young shoots, leaves and flowers are cooked and used as potherbs[10][1][2][4]. The plants were gathered and, after removing an alkaline taste[10], were eaten with cornmeal porridge[12][4]. The plant smells like a skunk, but it was an important potherb for the native North American Indians and the early European settlers in America[6]. Seed - raw or cooked[9]. It can be dried and ground into a meal then used as a mush or mixed with flour to make bread etc[13][4][6][9]. Seedpods - cooked[4]. The hardened cakes of dyestuff (see note on the plants other uses) can be soaked in hot water and then eaten fried[6].

Plant part
Flowers
Plant part
Leaves
Plant part
Seed
Plant part
Seedpod

Medicinal uses

Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

An infusion of the plant is drunk in the treatment of fevers and stomach disorders[7][9]. A poultice made from the pounded, soaked leaves has been applied to sore eyes[9].

Product or use
Febrifuge

Material uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

A black dye is obtained[10][12][13] by boiling down the whole plant[14]. It is used as a paint for decorating pottery[6]. The young plants are harvested in mid-summer, boiled well in water, the woody parts of the plant are removed and the decoction is boiled again until it becomes thick and turns black. This thick liquid is then poured onto a board to dry in cakes and can be kept for an indefinite period. When needed it is soaked in hot water until the correct consistency for paint is achieved[6]. A decoction of the leaves has been used as a body and shoe deodorant[9].

Product or use
Deodorant
Product or use
Dye

Environment

Range
Western N. America - Washington to Saskatchewan and south to California..
Habitat
Waste land, plains and lower mountains[11], often on sandy soils[13].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
light shade
Water
moderate
Soil textures
sandy, loamy
Soil pH
acid, neutral, alkaline
Drainage
well drained
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
intolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - surface sow or only lightly cover the seed in spring in a greenhouse[3]. The seed usually germinates in 5 - 14 days at 25°c[3]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in late spring. Day time temperatures below 20°c depress germination but a night time fall to 20° is necessary[3].

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Prefers a light fertile soil in a warm dry sunny position with plenty of room to spread[5]. A frost tender plant, it can be grown as a summer annual in Britain[5]. A very good bee plant, it is often planted by apiarists in America[6]. This plant was probably cultivated by the N. American Indians[13]. The Indians would allow the plant to produce seed when it was growing wild in the cornfields in order to ensure a supply the following year[8].

References

  1. Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976-00-00

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  2. Yanovsky. E. Food Plants of the N. American Indians. Publication no. 237. U.S. Depf of Agriculture.

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  3. Bird. R. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 4. Thompson and Morgan. 1990-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3

  4. Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990-00-00 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

  5. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

    ↩1↩2

  6. Coffey. T. The History and Folklore of North American Wild Flowers. Facts on File. 1993-00-00 ISBN 0-8160-2624-6

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5↩6

  7. Weiner. M. A. Earth Medicine, Earth Food. Ballantine Books 1980-00-00 ISBN 0-449-90589-6

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  8. Whiting. A. F. Ethnobotany of the Hopi North Arizona Society of Science and Art 1939-00-00

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  9. Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998-00-00 ISBN 0-88192-453-9

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5

  10. Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3

  11. Hitchcock. C. L. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press 1955-00-00

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  12. Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974-00-00 ISBN 0094579202

    ↩1↩2

  13. Harrington. H. D. Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. University of New Mexico Press 1967-00-00 ISBN 0-8623-0343-9

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

  14. Saunders. C. F. Edible and Useful Wild Plants of the United States and Canada. Dover Publications 1976-00-00 ISBN 0-486-23310-3

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