Hierba mansa, Yerba del manso: Healing Medicine Bag Herb in Bless Me, Ultima

Summary: Hierba mansa (Anemopsis californica), known in New Mexico as yerba del manso, is a healing medicine bag herb in Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya.

field of Yerba del manso (Anemopsis californica), San Dieguito River Park, Escondido, southern California; Friday, June 15, 2012, 16:23: Downtowngal, CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication, via Wikimedia Commonse

Lizard’s tail, swamp root: fair by any name

The herb called lizard’s tail and swamp root in English appears as yerba del manso within the Land of Enchantment and as hierba mansa outside the 47th state.

The herb belongs to the Saururaceae family whose flower-clustered cones droop like lizard (sauros) tails (oura). It communicates musty spiciness through beige, camphor- and eucalyptus-scented, woody rhizomes (below-ground stems) and stolons (above-ground runners) with nodes mass-producing sponge-like roots, dense cones flowering in tiny white clusters from May to August and growing 8 inches (20.32 centimeters) upward, five to 10 petal-like, white bracts, green elliptic to oblong leaves, each growing 3 to 6 inches (7.62 to 15.24 centimeters) from the root crown in early spring, pepper-like seeds, single, tough fruits and 12-plus-inch (30.48-plus-centimeter) stalks.

Multi-tasking medicinal and non-medicinal uses: hard-working anytime, anywhere

Taxonomists describe Ultima’s herb scientifically as Anemopsis (anemone-like) californica (Californian). Morphological (form- and function-related) studies expose anemone-like forms and coneflower-like functions. Plant-lovers find prescient all above-ground parts turning purple and silver-red in autumn. Thanks to the active ingredient methyleugenol, Ultima’s herb gives circulation and immunity a boost through treatments of arthritis and rheumatism; athlete’s foot and diaper rash; bleeding, bruises, inflammations, strains and swellings; burns; colds, coughs, sinus infections, sore throats and toothaches; cuts, hemorrhoids, sores and ulcers; diabetes; gout and kidney stones; pleurisy and tuberculosis; and stomach disorders.

Ultima's herb has additionally helpful non-medicinal uses. It is useful in agriculture as organic-grown cash crops, in crafts as Apache bead necklaces carved from dried root-stock, dried flowers and potpourri and in horticulture as garden ground covers and public park turfs.

Pretty in alkaline seeps, full sun, heavy clay

Agro-economists judge Ultima's herb a native plant of interest. They know of Ultima’s herbs as drought-tolerant water-lovers. Experts and non-specialists like the common name swamp root because of the perennial forb’s relishing clay soils and sodden, sun-scorched alkaline seeps. They mention as conducive to successful cultivation application of organic mulches during winters, establishment of soil pH between neutral 6.5 and alkaline 8 and maintenance of temperatures no lower than 10 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 12.22 degrees Celsius) or higher than 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.78 degrees Celsius).

Ultima’s herb needs to be germinated as seeds in flats in three months, or four weeks with bottom heat, in summer greenhouses, to get planted as seedlings, 12 weeks after germination, spaced 6 inches (15.24 centimeters) apart and to grow roots two to three weeks after cutting.

Resistant to all but salt-marsh and woolly-bear caterpillars

Cultivated or wild, Ultima's herb operates in pest-resistant ways even in pest-stressed environments. One pest prevents Ultima's root from completing life cycles and natural histories. Scientists quibble over another pest's predatory yet preventive roles.

Salt-marsh (Estigmene acrea) and woolly-bear (Pyrrharctia isabella) caterpillars equally relish Ultima’s herb's scrumptious shoots. Ultima's herb suffers more from woolly-bear infestations than from salt-marsh invasions. It turns out that salt-marsh caterpillars may reduce boll rot incidences in alfalfa, cotton and lettuce and in neighboring crops.

Cultivators value Ultima's herb as easy to grow. Consumers welcome Ultima's herb in capsules, infusions, poultices, powders, teas and tinctures. Per Rudolfo Anaya's Bless Me, Ultima, Ultima's herb yields benefits accessible to household gardeners and to trained healers.

closeup of Anemopsis californica floral cones: Calibas, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

field of Yerba del manso (Anemopsis californica), San Dieguito River Park, Escondido, southern California; Friday, June 15, 2012, 16:23: Downtowngal, CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Field_of_Anemopsis_californica.jpg

closeup of Anemopsis californica floral cones: Calibas, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Yerba_mansa.jpg

For further information:

Marriner, Derdriu. "Film Review of Bless Me Ultima: The Ultimate Movie Version of the Novel by Rudolfo Anaya." Wizzley > Entertainment & Media > Movies > Drama. Jan. 13, 2015.
Available @ https://wizzley.com/film-review-of-bless-me-ultima-the-ultimate-movie-version-of-the-novel-by-rudolfo-anaya/

Marriner, Derdriu. "Osha Root, Raiz del Cochino: Healing Herb Bag Powder in Bless Me Ultima." Earth and Space News. Sunday, Jan. 18, 2015.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2015/01/osha-root-raiz-del-cochino-healing-herb.html