Summer wrap-up
Boozhoo (hello in Ojibway)
Oki (Hello in Blackfoot)
Thank you to everyone who joined the plant walks this summer. Thanks to you we collected over 2,000 observations of plant species throughout southern Alberta. This data will be used to learn more about the communities that Onnikiisaikimsskaan and Purple Geranium live in. We also got to learn a bit about Niitsitapi culture, or Niitsitápiipaitapiiwahsini, the Blackfoot way of life. We learned how to show our gratitude for the land, how to follow protocol to harvest correctly, and some of the original names for native plants.
Our last plant walk in August took place at Eagle Child Tipi Ring Site, which is 5 minutes south of Naapi's Garden. Here we saw a dry mixed grassland with exposure to horses. The native plants there were thriving. Some of the highlights were:
Ááhsowa, Wild Licorace (Glycyrrhiza lepidota)
Niistsikápa’s, Yampah (Perideridia gairdneri)
Sticky Purple Geranium (Geranium viscosissimum)
Sooyáíiihtsi, Prairie Smoke, (Geum triflorum)
Ninaika’ksimii, Silver Wormwood, (Artemisia ludoviciana)
Before walking on the land, Api'soomaahka gave a prayer. Aakitsitsipo'takio'pa pisstaahkaani - we each gifted some tobacco (Pisstaahkaan). We do this to ask permission to walk on the land, and to say thank you for being there.
We were able to harvest some Ááhsowa and Ninaika’ksimii. The root of Ááhsowa can be dried and used to keep you hydrated. Along with holding antioxidents, chewing on the root makes you thirsty and drink more water. The Niisitapi would chew on the root while they travelled on foot across the plains. Ninaika’ksimii can be used for smudging and ceremonies. When harvesting, we learned we must remember Ihpitsskskopaotspi (stewardship), or our responsibility for looking after the land. Therefore, we only take what we need, and leave some plants behind. We only harvest the second plant we see, and never the last.
Nii'stinniiyi'tak (I am grateful, Blackfoot)
Miigwetch (Thank you, Ojibway)
Tory
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