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Eriogonum inflatum

Common name:	American Pipeweed	Family:	Polygonaceae
Author:	Torr.& A.Gray.	Botanical references:	71
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Western N. America.
Habitat:	Washes and mesas below 1800 metres in California[71].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	2	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Indian-pipeweed [B], Native American Pipeweed [P],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	inflatum = swollen
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Polygonales. Buckwheat family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Mexico(Seri)

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.6m. . The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs). We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils, requires well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil. The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Leaves Seed Stem.

Young leaves and stems - raw or cooked[46, 61, 177, 257]. Tender[161]. Eaten before flowering[207].
Seed - pounded into a powder and eaten dry or mixed with water[257].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

The plant is used as a lotion for bear and dog bites[257].

Other Uses

Straw.

The stems can be cut at each end and used as drinking tubes[257].

Cultivation details

We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain. The notes below are based on the needs of other members of this genus.
Requires a loose lean gritty well-drained soil in a very sunny position[200]. Succeeds in dry soils. Tolerates exposed positions[200]. Requires some protection from winter wet[1].
Established plants resent root disturbance[200].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a sandy compost in a greenhouse. Sow stored seed in early spring in a warm greenhouse[1]. As soon as they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant out in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Division in early spring[1]. This has to be done with care because the plant resents root disturbance[200]. Try to obtain divisions from around the edges of the plants without digging up the whole clump. Tease the divisions out with as much root on them as possible and pot them up. Grow them on in light shade in the greenhouse until they are rooting well and plant them out in the summer.
Cuttings of greenwood with a heel in the summer[200].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for eriogonum inflatum (a possible synonym).

[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures
[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures

References for the family Polygonaceae.

[CHINA] Draft Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[71] Munz. A California Flora. University of California Press 1959
An excellent flora but no pictures. Not for the casual reader.

[161] Yanovsky. E. Food Plants of the N. American Indians. Publication no. 237. U.S. Depf of Agriculture.
A comprehensive but very terse guide. Not for the casual reader.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[207] Coffey. T. The History and Folklore of North American Wild Flowers. Facts on File. 1993 ISBN 0-8160-2624-6
A nice read, lots of information on plant uses.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.