Forest Park, Jacksonville, OR

Jacksonville, Oregon is chalk-full of history. It is a small town with brick-buildings from as early as the 1840's. Just outside the town are many miles of old mining trails. These trails are collectively named Forest Park. I have been in this park over a dozen times and have not finished hiking the various marked trails, but I am damn close.

Every time I enter this park, I am immediately overwhelmed with it's diversity of life.

If anyone knows what these beautiful flowers above are, I would like very much to know.

These softies above are commonly called "pussy ears," and mistakenly called "cat's ear," (a common name for a false dandylion,) and in Latin they are called "Calochortus tolmiei." It is important to know the difference between cat's ear's flowers and pussy ears' flowers because cat's ears are edible and pussy ears are not.

This herb above is commonly called "yarrow." In Latin it is named "Achillea millefolium." There is extensive medicinal properties ado with this plant including, but not limited to, the flowers and leaves being used in a tea to relieve flu-like symptoms, and Native Americans rubbing the leaf on burns and wounds, and chewing the leaves and roots to relieve toothaches. There are many more uses. Check it out for yourself. This herb is audacious. But be careful. Plants are dangerous.

The soft, fern-like leaves are a telling characteristic for identifying yarrow.

Moving on...

Common name "manzanita," a variety of the genus "Arctostaphylos," grows abundantly in the southern Oregon hills. I have grown up around it my entire life and never realized the information contained in it's common name.
Apparently manzanita comes from the Spanish word manzana (apple) with the attached ending "ita" to define these apples as small. And sure enough, manzanita berries look like little apples and taste like sour, unripe apples.
Most varieties of manzanitas have edible flowers and berries. I have been enjoying these treats in small amounts for months now with no negative side-effects.
I have not identified any other species of the Archtostaphylos genus, but the mazanita pictured above has smooth red bark, small oval leaves, pink or white bell-shaped flowers that produce cherry-red berries.

I hope you have enjoyed reading about these few species. Keep your eyes peeled for the next article with more species to be identified.
Everyone be careful out there, and don't try eating anything you are not 100% positive won't hurt or kill you.
Thanks very much,
-a