Native Lands Restoration Collaborative interns are digging deep to learn more about native plants and share their experiences with our community! Our Seeds of Change intern, Eliza, has been studying native seeds, how to identify, collect, clean and grow them with our experienced staff. She'll be sharing her favorite species with all of you here, on the Nature Gang blog! Today's species is Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium):
Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium) should be a staple of prairie restoration because of how quickly it establishes itself and its role in the environment. This perennial plant is usually about 4 feet tall with bristly flowers and coarse, linear leaves, blooming July through September. They are a host plant to multiple rare moth species and loved by native bees, butterflies, and flies due to the abundant nectar in their flowers. There are many theories relating how this species got the “rattlesnake” name, including potential Indigenous use of the root as a medicine to treat snake bites, use of the foliage to wrap and protect limbs from snake bites, etc.
To harvest Rattlesnake Master seeds you will need a tray, leather gloves, a screen, and a container to store the seeds. Leather gloves may be useful in protecting the skin, considering the sharp seed heads, however they are not necessary. Place the screen over the tray and rub the seed heads on to the screen until all of the sharp bracts and seeds fall off into the pan. If you have collected the seed heads in the late fall or winter, the seeds should fall right off!
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