Pueblo Indian Use of Native Plants

Using Wild Plants of the Pueblo Province the Traditional Way

Oct 24, 2008

The Indian Tribes of the Pueblo Province in New Mexico have utilized traditional plants in many ways for hundreds of years; today some uses are still in practice.

When the Spaniards arrived in New Mexico in the sixteenth century, there were approximately 40,000 Pueblo Indians living there; today, that number is roughly the same. In total, there are nineteen tribes in the whole Pueblo Province region, a geographic area which not only covers New Mexico but also reaches into Arizona and Texas.

Traditional Use of Native Plants

Each Pueblo tribe may have a differing language, customs, social structure and religious issues but all are united by the belief that all things are held sacred in the natural world; that is, animals, rocks, the landscape and plants. The philosophies of tradition and ecological welfare are central to Pueblo Indian culture.

Most common species of plants have an Indian name in addition to their common name; these names may reflect the size, color and shape of a plant, as well as the plant's habitat and its associations with humans or animals. Medicinal plant names may refer to the ritual uses of the plant. Names of plants may vary from tribe to tribe, as may uses of a particular plant. However, most plants, found in the Rio Grande region, have common uses.

Use of Plants for Food and Medicine

Archaeological evidence verifies that food was the main use of plants in prehistoric times; there are records of more than twenty-five species of native plants which were used for food in the prehistoric Rio Grande region. This number does not reflect those plants which may not have been preserved. In the past century, more than 120 species of wild plants were used as food or beverages in New Mexico by the Pueblo Indians.

It is known that many plants have natural chemicals which are capable of healing. There are 180 different species of wild plants in the Rio Grande region which have medicinal properties used by one of the Pueblo Indian tribes; Zuni Pueblo Indians used fourteen different plant species in the treatment of stomach ache alone.

Use of Plants for Baskets, Blankets, Dying and Painting

Archaeological remains have been discovered which confirm that Yucca leaves were used to make woven vessels; Willow branches or Three leaf Sumac were used to make coiled baskets or trays. Some Pueblo Indians still use native materials today in making baskets. Sleeping mats were made from Cattail leaves and Yucca strips and blankets were woven from Yucca fiber, interlaced with turkey feathers or rabbit fur. Yucca leaves, when twisted together after boiling and soaking, made a rope strong enough for fishnets, belts, ladders and snowshoes.

More than twenty species of native plants were used by Native American Indians in the South West for textile dyes; little evidence remains but it can be assumed that the Pueblo Indians used plants for this purpose. By boiling the stems of the Rocky Mountain Bee plant, a black organic 'paint' was produced; evidence suggests that this was in use in A.D. 1225 in the Rio Grande region. Other plants used for painting were Pinon Pine, Wild Dock and Tansy Mustard.

Use of Plants for Construction and Drums

Trees, combined with earth, were used to build either pit houses or multi-storied pueblos; trees used include Pinon Pine, Juniper, Ponderosa Pine, Cottonwood and Douglas Fir. Trees were also used to make bows and arrows used by the Pueblo Indians; popular trees included Oak, Wild Currant, Apache Plume, and river Reed. Aspen was the preferred plant of drum makers of the Pueblo Indians and is still used today.

The traditions and beliefs of the Pueblo Indians, as well as some sacred sites, are in danger of being lost to the commercial development of the modern world through the building of new roads, shopping malls and the power lines needed to supply them. A basic knowledge and understanding of the uses of native plants may help to preserve some of these traditions which are in danger of being lost forever.

References:

Dunmire, William W., Tierney, Gail D., 1995 Wild Plants of the Pueblo Province Sante Fe, USA: Museum of New Mexico Press

The copyright of the article Pueblo Indian Use of Native Plants in Ethnobotany is owned by Sharon Falsetto. Permission to republish Pueblo Indian Use of Native Plants in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.