Bloodroot – Sanguinaria canadensis-The rhizome — a small part of the stem — and the roots contain a red fluid that gives the plant its name.
This plant is also called : bloodwort, redroot, red puccoon, to name a few.
I found this beauty in the woods behind my house. I found three different patches, but I went back to find the other two with my camera and couldn’t. The flowers are very delicate and only last a few days. The aerial parts of the plant are the flower, the single leaf and in late summer a seed pod.
Native Americans used bloodroot to treat various ailments, including sore throats, congestion, respiratory conditions, hemorrhoids, irregular menstruation, and wound infections.
Bloodroot’s red liquid, which is concentrated in the rhizome, contains numerous alkaloids. These compounds are responsible for the plant’s medicinal properties. Sanguinarine is the most extensively researched of bloodroot’s alkaloids.
As I did my research, I found scary stories of skin disfigurement and arrests of people using this herb to treat cancer. I’m going to admire it with my camera for now.
