Wild Ginger

Asarum canadense

Aristolochiaceae - Birthwort Family

Common names: Indian Ginger, Wild Canada Ginger, Canada Snake Root, Vermont Snake Root

In the deciduous forests of the eastern part of North America grows an inconspicuous plant known as Wild Ginger. Its heart-shaped leaves, spread as a ground cover six to twelve inches tall, hide solitary, brownish purple flowers. If disturbed, the fragrance of ginger will be noticed.

Range: It covers an area from New Brunswick southward to North Carolina and west to Wisconsin.

Habitat: Wild Ginger requires shady conditions and rich, moist soil supplied with lots of humus from leaf mold which the forest supplies.

Historical Uses: Indian groups, including the Chippewa and the Iroquois, as well as the early settlers in the area used Wild Ginger as a spring tonic to treat sore throats, coughs, fevers, asthma, and stomach ailments. Chewing on the root relieved indigestion. It was also cooked with foods as a preservative and for flavor.

Medicinal Properties: stimulant, carminative, tonic, diuretic, and diaphoretic.

Similar Species: Asarum cadatum is part of the old-growth cedar forest and is native to the West Coast from Canada, south through Washington, Oregon, northern California, and parts of Idaho.

Asarum european is a European plant, also known as Asarabacca or Hazelwort.