Red Root identification, medicinal use and ecology

Red root (Ceanothus velutinus) is one of the most unique and intriguing medicines in our bioregion. You can use the stem bark (less impactful) or the root bark, though the root bark is favored because it supposedly contains compounds that the stem bark does not. Please harvest this plant only where it is healthy and abundant (in this video you can see the shrubs as far as the eye can see). It is fairly labor intensive to dig up, so bring your friends and make a day of it!

You will need to peel off the fresh bark to make a tincture, which I like to do in the field. We typically find a shaded tree, bring a large picnic blanket, and use our pocket knives to painstakingly peel off each bark bit. I use a scrub brush to clean it off a bit first.

If you want to keep learning with me, I have many recorded classed for sale here: https://adiantumschool.podia.com/