Recently we returned to the jungle, beaches, & ruins of the Yucatán peninsula in Mexico for another plant family adventure.
Here are just a few medicinal highlights!
1. My mermaids relaxing
2. Diana Pastrana, an amazing plant scientist in Tulum and homesteading mom with some exciting native herbal offerings on the horizon, one of those new friends who feels like an old friend right away!
3. Pluchea carolinensis was fun. We hiked down to a cenote hidden in the jungle behind Diana’s house and this shrub was leaning out over the water, and I said now THAT one’s medicinal—but we didn’t know who it was or the first thing about it. It just *felt* medicinal…and lo and behold, this is a well known Mayan medicine for sore throats, coughs, rashes, and other times you would want an anti inflammatory astringent. It’s also called “salvia” when used medicinally (but don’t get confused, it’s an aster family plant not related to sage or the Salvia genus). INaturalist says one of its other common names is cure-for-all, if that tells you anything. Once I met it at that cenote, I found it in every village we went to—it’s so abundant and helpful!
4. Pluchea carolinensis up close
5. Maguey morado (scientific name Tradescantia spathacea) a close relative of aloe and agave that is revered for its antiseptic and wound healing properties
6. Chaca tree, super important medicinal throughout the Caribbean that I’ve met before as gumbo limbo. Diana has a great story about Chaca & Chechen trees as brothers but I’ll let her tell it!
1. Floating in life jackets through the mangrove swamp in a hand-dug Mayan trading canal was a peak experience
2. Diana introducing me to hairy wedelia, widely used for medicine throughout the Caribbean for a range of uses from coughs to injuries and from stress to cancer.
3. Achiote, Bixa orellana, which is the source of the delicious Cochinita spice that defines the regional cuisine (which is amazing)
4. Jatropha curcas, strongly antimicrobial and anti-cancer, with a long history of use for a litany of major infections
1. Monkeys above the Mayan ruins in the jungle at Muyil
2. Damiana, Turnera diffusa, famed stimulating nervine for mood-boosting vitality & libido support
3. Wild sweet basil AKA ixcacaltun, Ocimum campechianum. Another fever-breaking diaphoretic herb that is also a diuretic, stimulating the movement of fluid!
4. Ixcanaan, traditional Mayan medicine named for a goddess Ixchel and something of a panacea (which seems appropriate given the goddess name)
As always in the Caribbean, there was so much plant abundance…
but I’m not going to post all 600+ plant pictures. The usual suspects were all there: vervains & prickly pear & yucca & passionflower & oregano & orchids & portulacca & every house plant you’ve ever seen & & &…There’s nothing like the tropics to put you in a botany frame of mind!
I’ve written before about important ethical considerations for plant people and healers when traveling, as well as other plant family trip reports, if this sort of thing floats your boat!
Deepest gratitude to the incomparable Diana Pastrana and her family for hosting us for plant walks in the jungle.
Ethical Practice
If you love place-based herbalism and want to practice it, here are just a few of the best practices you can keep in mind in order to be safe and respectful for you, your loved ones, the community, and the environment:
- Honor your Harvest: Acknowledge the land stewardship practices of local people and pay respect to the environment. Practice mindful foraging by leaving areas undisturbed and seeking permission from both humans and plants before harvesting. As a general rule, I do not recommend wild-crafting when traveling without local connections and explicit permission, as it could be very disrespectful or have significant detrimental effects on local ecosystems that you are not familiar with. Here is more about Ethical Wild-Crafting in your local area.
- Get Educated: Stay informed about endangered and at-risk plant species in your region through educational programs and organizations. Contribute to conservation efforts by spreading awareness and participating in conferences and workshops. United Plant Savers is a great place to start.
- Find Ways to Give Back: Engage in rewilding efforts, transplant endangered plants, or support habitat restoration projects to contribute to biodiversity conservation. Support local indigenous-led plant restoration and land rematriation projects (such as Bomazeen Land Trust in my area). Explore your ancestral rituals of reciprocity and gratitude.
- Be the Educator: Share your knowledge and enthusiasm for respectful, place-based herbalism within your community to inspire collective action. Engage in collaborative projects, planting initiatives, and educational outreach to promote environmental stewardship.
For more information on Mexican and Caribbean medicinal plants, check out the many deeply rooted, amazing Herbalists working in Mexico, throughout the Caribbean, and as part of diaspora.