The Black Eyed Susan

(image found at www.flickr.com/
photos/
docksidepress/
194647482/ this picture is under creative commons found doing a creative commons search)


I walk my dog late in the evening when the cicadas seem to hum their loudest, he just happily gallops along on his leash. I noticed below where my donkeys reside, there was a huge muscadine vine along with some wild black-eyed susans.
I was thinking to myself, don't people buy these at Walmart? Yeah of course they do, but they grow in Alabama's wild and along roadsides like everything else you see on this blog.
If you are interested in Wildflowers of Alabama, this blog is good, but I found more information on Blackeyed Susan at the University Of Auburn's Digital Library.
The Black-Eyed Susan is a variation of the Cone flower. It has a coarsely brown center kind of like a small sweet gum fruit, but thicker. You mostly find it in dry soil and it has a scruffy stem and long green leaves on it. one or more blossoms can grow on each stem. They can bloom from May to December if the weather is warm enough.
Echinacia comes from the coneflower family, it's the purple coneflower. I am wondering if the Black-Susan has any medicinal properties, let's investigate! According to this website called Medicinal Garden The Native American people used to use black-eyed susans to cure from worms, colds, and like diseases with a root tea. Minor skin abrasions, sores, cuts as a wash. Then they used to use the root juice for earaches. This has somewhat the same qualities as it's cousin?

Whenever you take a walk along Alabama's roadsides, don't forget each small plant whether it be a tiny flower or a huge tree. There is some value to that plant that you haven't known about before. Just as I am talking to you about the Black Eyed Susan, I learn new properties about this plant besides it's a fast seller at Wal-mart. Have a great day