Texas is weird. Growing and collecting plants is a hard call. The most influential factors for collecting plants in the wild are temperature, light, how much rain we’ve gotten, and vegetative zone. We have several vegetative zones meeting one another in Central Texas and get a great mix of medicinal plants. I have created a short list of Wild Seasonal Central Texas Medicinals you can be looking out for. Please make sure you are properly trained if you are considering harvesting plants from wild areas. Not so weedy Fall and Winter Medicinals to Harvest/Plant: Calendula, Cilantro, Borage, Vitex.
| Common Name | Latin Name | When its out where its found | Description | Actions/Use/ Safety |
| Chickweed | Stellaria media NOT NATIVE |
Winter Annual harvest aboveground flowering tops Found in gardens, lawns, parks as an understory herb | Herbaceous, wild, weedy, creeping plant with fragile juicy foliage forming clumps, tiny white flowers, confused with native Horseherb | Known as a nutritive herb, very high in vitamins and minerals, used fresh in salads, infused in vinegars, and oils. Used topically to soothe inflammations and itch |
| Chile Pequin | Capsicum anuum NATIVE |
Fall Perennial harvest berries Found in woodlands, along fencerows, prefers shade in the wild | Small to medium shrub, wild and planted in many gardens and landscapes. White flowers maturing into red berries sometimes several times a year | XXXBerries are edible but very spicey. Can be used in very small dosage in cold and flu remedies to promote circulation. Topically infused in small amounts in oils to help soothe achey joints |
| Cleavers | Galium aparine et al NOT NATIVE |
Winter Annual harvest aboveground vines Comes in with winter rains, will freeze back and cover gardens, fencerows and wetter areas of woodland bottomland | Very weedy. Viney, hairy green plant that tends to stick to you with itty bitty white flowers. Can completely cover areas. | Known for being a good nutritive, high in minerals, is a mild lymphatic cleanser and soothes urinary tract infections. Juiced, made into fresh tincture or glycerite. |
| Goldenrod | Solidago spp NATIVE |
Fall Annual harvest aboveground flowering tops Drought tolerant found in fields in full sun | Tall yellow flowered single stemmed wildflowers often mixed up with Ragweed. Flowers in heads, clustered at top and are very small. Plants tend to droop over. | Strengthening to kidneys and used to help treat urinary tract infections. Tea or tincture |
| Henbit | Lamium amplexicaulis NATIVE |
Winter Annual harvest aboveground parts Found in gardens, parks, lawns | Small weedy herbaceous understory likes to be near chickweed. Has small purple flowers | Can be used like self-heal. Is a mild anti-inflammatory, soothing to skin irritations. Can be made into an oil. Flowers are edible |
| Lobelia | Lobelia cardinalis NATIVE |
Fall harvest flowering aboveground Perennial found in wet marshy ponds and sides of streams. Likes wet feet | Gorgeous wildflower forming tall stands-sometimes up to 6ft in height, striking red flowers | XXX Very popular native medicinal with a complex chemistry used mainly as a calming herb. Fresh Vinegar or Tincture. Drop Dosage |
| Prickly Pear | Opuntia spp NATIVE |
Fall Harvest of fruit Perennial shrub found in both shade and sun but prefers open fields | Weedy, shrubby succulent forming dense prickly communities covered in dark red fruit | XXX One of most prolific fruit sources in Central Texas . Can be juiced/jellied and used to balance blood sugar |
| Shepherd’s Purse | Capsella bursa-pastoris NOT NATIVE |
Winter harvest whole plant Annual herb found in lawns, the cracks of sidewalks, and rundown land | Small herb with spiraling white flowers turning into heart shaped seed pods with basal leaves | First Aid herb used to stop bleeding, commonly used by midwives. Fresh tincture. |
