Our Better Nature: Plants with a P.R. Problem

Names are important, as we often form opinions based on what we associate with them. Even if you’ve never watched an episode of the ’60s sit-com Gilligan’s Island, you could probably guess that the character Mary Ann Summers was not a millionaire on the show, and that Thurston Howell III wasn’t the down-home farmer from Kansas. Fiction writers like to play on common beliefs to convey good or bad through their characters’ names. And sometimes, they use this ploy to subvert stereotypes when characters turn out to be the opposite of whatever their names implies. In the teen sci-fi series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the monster-killing protagonist belies her innocent-sounding name, while the character Faith betrays Buffy and sides with the forces of evil.

For better or worse, what we think about the natural world can be shaped by names as well. One might assume vampire squids are dangerous, but they aren’t. Cone snails look harmless, but their sting can kill you. And your thoughts on blue-footed boobies depends on whether you’re an adolescent or not.

In many cases, a plant’s names suit it well. Poison ivy and giant hogweed don’t sound the least bit enticing, which is good, because they’re dangerous to touch. And you’d likely avoid planting hellbine even before you learned it is a bizarre, orange-tentacled parasitic plant that sucks the life out of crops.

A few species don’t deserve the label “weed,” which says they’re undesirable. And yet, jewelweed, which is related to cultivated impatiens flowers, has none of the bad habits of real weeds. Its orange (or yellow) orchid-like flowers attract hummingbirds and butterflies, and its sap has long been used to counteract poison ivy. Milkweed, I admit, can act like a typical weed, but it is critical to the survival of monarch butterflies, and lots of people grow it in butterfly gardens. At certain stages of growth, milkweed is delicious when cooked properly. My kids even liked milkweed shoots, green florets, and immature pods, which is a pretty high bar to pass.

Some plants more worthy of the title “weed” still have redeeming qualities. The bane of many land managers, Japanese knotweed is so invasive that it’s illegal in most places to plant or move. However, its young shoots make a fair substitute for rhubarb, and its roots show promise as a treatment for certain cancers. And while redroot pigweed, a type of wild amaranth, can become a nuisance in some crops and vegetable gardens, its leaves are nutritious and tasty.

One of my favorite wildflowers is so unfairly maligned by awful monikers that I want to set the record straight. This 9- to 20-inch-tall beauty is not only attractive, it’s a potent medicinal plant. For some reason, it’s garnered nicknames that include gagroot, vomitwort, and pukeweed. I mean, what a marketing debacle. Many know it as Indian tobacco. Fortunately, because this plant is in the genus Lobelia, you’ll generally find it listed as blue lobelia.

It’s a close relative of the bright-red cardinal flower, Lobelia cardinalis, which bursts into flaming bloom along stream and pond banks in late summer and early fall. Though not as showy as its crimson cousin, blue lobelia is attractive in its own right. Its pale, blue-violet flowers first appear in mid-summer and continue until the first freeze. Pollinated flowers give way to puffy mini-balloons full of seeds that remain on the stem.

This is the part of the program where I need to say that it’s essential to consult your healthcare provider before using lobelia, and to only use it under their supervision. Except that I mean it this time. Blue lobelia is a potent and effective medicine but, like many drugs, such as insulin and digitalis, is dangerous in large amounts.

At the time of European contact, blue lobelia was widely used as a medicine by indigenous peoples over the extent of its range, which is all of eastern North America, north from the Canadian tundra and south to northern Florida. As its less-flattering nicknames suggest, this plant will induce vomiting at high doses, a feature that can save lives in cases of accidental poisoning.

It is perhaps best known for its ability to help relieve the symptoms of asthma. One of blue lobelia’s key constituents, lobeline, accounts for the herb’s ability to relax bronchial tubes, open airways, and stimulate breathing. It has been traditionally smoked in small amounts, although today it is also available as a tincture or in capsule form. Occasionally it is combined with other herbs and used as a chest or sinus rub.

Structurally, lobeline does not resemble nicotine, although it affects the body in many of the same ways. This may relate to its long history in helping people kick the tobacco habit. Studies suggest that lobeline could help treat stimulant abuse. It seems that lobeline alters the way stimulants act on dopamine receptors, the brain’s “feel-good reward center,” disrupting the way dopamine is stored and released.

As impressive as its CV is, I appreciate blue lobelia most for its flowers. For it to be more widely accepted, I think this amazing plant deserves a good public-relations team.