Years ago people had to make the most of the food that was available to them. Pokeweed, better known as "poke salad", was one of those plants that grew wild around fence rows and barns. Most parts of the pokeweed had toxic chemicals in it but could be eaten if cooked properly.
It was best to pick the poke salad when tender and young, about 6-8 inches tall. The roots were never eaten as they were more poisonous. When picked early the leaves and stems were less toxic. People usually cooked it a couple of times (pouring off the water each time it was boiled) to remove some of the toxic chemicals. The third time it was boiled and then cooked until tender. Sometimes scrambled eggs were added or little green onions. Poke salad was beneficial because it was rich in iron and vitamin C.
Poke salad has reddish color stems and can grow as tall as 12 feet tall. The white flowers it produces develop into hanging clusters of purple to black berries. We were always told the berries were poisonous too, however, it didn't stop us from mixing them in our mud pies. We also made homemade play dough from salt and flour using poke berries as our dye. The early colonists also used the ripe berries as a dye.
Native Americans used a herbal remedy made from pokeweed for a heart stimulant, for treating cancer, rheumatism, itching, and syphillis. Common country folk used it as a laxative. Today scientists are studying pokeweed as a source of possible chemicals for the treatment of diseases.
From the American cancer website we discovered that researchers have identified a protein called PAP (pokeweed antiviral protein) that has shown anti-tumor effects in mice. Test-tube studies have also shown that PAP demonstrates action against herpes and HIV. So far there have been no clinical trials using PAP on humans. This plant ,some consider a weed and some consider a food source, may one day provide important drugs for all of mankind.
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