Welcome to DK Preppers: A place to discuss practical ways to get through emergencies, both short term and long. Topics may include skills for growing, storing and sharing food, lost and historical skill sets, sustainability issues, living and leaving safely, and growing community. Everyone is welcome, and the comments are open. We have open threads on Saturday (noon eastern time) and Tuesday evenings (7 eastern time).
What do you call a plant that is found everywhere, city, country and suburbia, takes many forms but is still easily identified, can be used as food, both fresh and cooked, its seeds ground and used like flour, and the whole plant is used medicinally when taken internally or used on the skin? You call it plantain!
If you are interested in herbal remedies or wild food, one plant you really need know is plantain. It has many forms, and at least one type probably grows near you, even if you live in a large city. Plantain is a tough plant, so you’ll see it in the cracks in sidewalks, and on the edges of parking lots.
All the plants in the Plantago family found in the United States are edible, and can pretty much be used interchangeably.
The smaller, tender leaves can be eaten fresh, like a salad green, or as a nibble on a hike. The larger leaves tend to be tougher, so they are better cooked, like a pot herb or chopped and used in omelettes or soups. The seeds, especially of common plantain, can be dried and ground and used as a flour substitute to thicken soups, or added to breads and pancakes.
Medicinally, the whole above ground plant is useful. The leaves act as an antimicrobial and stypic, so for stings and small skin injuries acquired on the go, you can just take a leaf and either rub and mash it with your fingers to make it juicy, or chew it up and apply the pulp directly to the injury.
The leaves can be pulped and mashed with a knife and made into a poultice, and bandaged on a wound, or used in a salve, or infused to make a medicinal oil.
The seeds are a demulcent, which means that when ground up they make a soothing slime. Plantain seeds have been used for digestive issues because of this.
From a prepper standpoint, you’d be hard pressed to find a more diverse and useful plant. This herb is perfect for camping and hiking because it is likely to be right where you are when you get hurt.
For further information on plantain, here are some useful links:
Plantain wiki
Michigan Medicine page from the U of M
I like this blog for the photos of different types of plantain
Basic info here
A commercial site with some good links and info. The green font is mildly annoying.
A slightly woo site with some good information. Have your adblocker on.
Another woo site, this one with extra woo. I’m only including this one because it is interesting from a prepper point of view. If there were nothing but herbal medicines available, you could use try plantain for all the ailments they mention. It wouldn’t kill you, but it probably wouldn’t help a lot either.
Be smart. See a doctor if you have anything but a minor wound or illness.
What have you done, or set aside for your preps? I’d love to hear, and we learn from sharing, so comment below!
In the comments, let us know your plans for being more prepared, and the measures you have taken to get there. Anything about getting yourself to a place where, in an emergency, you can care for yourself, your family, and your community is great to talk about.
If you would like to do a story for DK Preppers, I try to have a discussion on Saturday afternoon and Tuesday evenings. The stories can be about your experiences, or just a topic to discuss. Let me know if you are interested.