Harvesting Sugarbush
Part of my appreciation of our native desert plants comes from the indispensable gifts that these plants have provided for millennia to humans, wildlife, birds, insects, soils, and the whole ecosystem. Indigenous peoples have long valued and used native desert plants for food, medicine, healing, shelter, clothing, utensils, and ceremony Sugarbush (Rhus ovata) is a sumac relative that has been used for making a sweet-tart beverage, as well as being a valuable, drought-tolerant, evergreen landscape plant. ♦♦♦ Part of my appreciation of our native […]
Sugarbush for “lemonade”
Summer’s approach has teased the “sugar” out of our Sugarbush fruits, which are ready for harvesting from June until August. The red “berries” of our native Sugarbush (Rhus ovata) are oozing with an acidic, sugary sap that imparts a tart flavor to the fruits, technically called drupes (berry-like fruits with one seed enclosed in a hardened shell or “stone”). The sticky berries have a velvety pubescence, and become reddish when ripe. Native Americans dried the berries to preserve them, soaked […]
