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"I wouldn't do it in areas that are highly impacted," such as
Tony Grove, he said, explaining that frequently visited places
in the canyon get all the wear and tear they can handle
"I wouldn't do it just for something new to do if you don't know
what you're doing, either."
Too much picking can be detrimental to the plant life, and even
a little picking of the wrong thing can be disastrous for naive
hikers. Barkworth and Davis point out the risks of getting a mouthful
of a sinister plant, such as the aptly named death camas.
When pioneers first moved into the canyon, the Native Americans
living there were kind enough to show them which bulbs were safe
to eat. The pioneers apparently got too hungry to carefully examine
each bulb they unearthed, and many ended up sick or dead from
eating the wrong ones. Even the experts are careful when choosing
their wild-growing snacks.
"Bulbs need to have a plant attached, so I can be sure what
they are," Davis said.
Plants such as the choke cherry also flourish in Logan Canyon
and make for much safer tasting than the death camas. Trained
volunteers at the Stokes Nature Center have made labels for nearly
every type of plant along the hiking trail near the center, just
inside the mouth of the canyon. The label hanging from the largest
choke cherry tree explains that the sour fruit sustained adventurers
Lewis and Clark as they trekked west. Stout-hearted people who
can tolerate a blast of tartness can eat the fruit raw, but most
campers will prefer to each choke cherries in a slightly less
natural state. Cooked fruit makes a tangy jam and wine.
The Wood's rose plant also produces an edible fruit, called
rose hips, which can be made into jam, tea or wine. The volunteers
at Stokes say Native Americans cooked Wood's rose seeds and ate
them to alleviate muscular pain. The roots proved useful in nursing
sore throats. Rich in vitamin C, the various parts of the Wood's
rose plant provide crucial winter food for pheasants and grouse,
and are a food staple for black bears in the fall.
Rose
hips,
golden
currant
and
choke cherries, yes.
Death
camas, no.
Golden currant plants produce a raisin-like berry that can be
eaten cooked or right off the shrub. The plant people at the herbarium
become wistful and dreamy just talking about the little, yellow
wrinkles of fruit that are among their favorite Logan Canyon treats.
Native Americans added this berry to a meat mixture to make pemmican,
according to the shrub's label at Stokes. Even today, many people
make currant jelly and jam, and nearly every kind of bird or mammal
living in the canyon eats golden currant berries. The shrub itself
is a popular decorative addition to many local yards, but the
fruit, say the herbarium experts, tastes best in the canyon.
Native Americans, pioneers and mountaineers found innovative
ways to use the plant life in Logan Canyon. The big sagebrush
was useful and versatile. Volunteers at Stokes explained that
medicine made from this shrub was used to treat colds and congestion
of early settlers. Native Americans chewed the leaves to ease
stomach gas and bowel disorders, and the green leaves functioned
as nature's own Band-Aid, stopping bleeding in both people and
livestock. Pioneers even made hair tonic from the leaves, and
elk, mule deer and moose all find the leaves tasty and nourishing.
The water birch, bigtooth maple and even the common box elder
tree all provided early settlers with sugary sap to make maple
syrup. Because they tapped the tree for sap, they were able to
get what they needed but left the tree standing and able to recover.
Other trees were cut down and removed from the canyon. Buildings
made from Logan Canyon materials still stand. One of those buildings
is the LDS temple in Logan. According to a brochure published
by the local office of the Forest Service, in the 1870s and 1880s
pioneers turned an area of the canyon, now known as Temple Fork,
into a sawmill. Construction of the temple took nearly seven years,
and was completed in 1884. Over 1 million board feet of timber
and 20,000 tons of rock from the canyon were used, say the authors
of the guidebook Stones, Zones, Trails and Tales of Logan Canyon.
The resources of Logan Canyon can be seen in their natural state
growing as trees, or in an equally striking form, as the material
used to build historical landmarks such as the temple.
Other trees, such as the box elder, were used by the pioneers
to make less permanent constructions. The box elder trees in the
canyon got their name because they were used to make boxes; their
wood splinters and folds easier than most, say the volunteers
at Stokes. The wood of the red-osier dogwood is hard and durable,
and Native Americans used it to make bows and arrow shafts and
even cooking racks.
While the original settlers of the canyon are now gone, one
type of plant has lived in the canyon long enough to see them
both come and go. The plant Equisetum, commonly called horsetail
or scouring rush, is the remaining member of a family of plants
that first appeared 400 million years ago, according to teachers
and scientists who wrote Stones, Zones, Trails and Tales. "Horsetails
generally grow in wet or damp habitats," it reads. "The pioneers
used this plant as sandpaper and to scrub their pots and pans."
Ancestors of the modern horsetail were as tall as 25 feet, but
the plant still retains primitive characteristics, such as photosynthesizing
in its stems instead of its leaves.
Far less common and far more delicate than the horsetail is
Maguire's primrose. Reaching a height of only 7 centimeters, Maguire's
primrose is native and unique to Logan Canyon, and is now listed
as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. The
act provides the primrose with protection and hefty fines for
visitors caught picking or otherwise destroying the plants.
The maroon flowers of Maguire's primrose appear from mid-April
until June, said Barkworth. This primrose is also quite particular
about where it grows; it likes damp ledges and shady crevices
at an elevation between 4,800 and 6,600 feet, warns a rock climber's
guide published by the Forest Service.
Maguire's primrose is the best-known but not the only endangered
plant that hides up high in Logan Canyon. Frank Smith's violet
grows in similar places and is also endangered; signs remind hikers
and rock climbers to respect the plants.
"Viola franksmithiae grows up on rock cliffs where no
plant in its right mind will go, where no human in his right mind
will go -- but there are people called rock climbers, you know,"
said Barkworth. She acknowledged the part local rock climbers
have played in the efforts to conserve and protect the rare plants
they encounter; it was the idea of rock climbers to establish
rules and post signs warning of the whereabouts of such rarities
as Maguire's primrose, Frank Smith's violet and the Conquist daisy.
The natural beauty of Logan Canyon is not to be missed by anyone,
scietist or amateur hiker, its advocates say.
"It's a place close to the city with lots and lots of stuff
in very short order," said Barkworth. "The number of species per
linear foot is very high, and there's a lot of native stuff around."
Barkworth said she used to do a "grand tour" through Nevada
and Idaho to collect plant specimens with her students, but she
"probably could have done the whole thing in Logan Canyon."
Barkworth is partial to Tony Grove, a popular spot to hike and
picnic in the canyon.
"Tony Grove is phenomenal," she said. "You can take anyone from
anywhere to Tony Grove, and their mind is just blown."
Andy Leidolf, a graduate instructor for the department of fish
and wildlife, agrees.
"There's a lot of undisturbed habitat," he said. "There's stunning
wildflower bloom every year. Once the snow melts, it just happens.
Nearly any picture of wildflowers in our area, on a phone book
or a postcard, whatever, is usually taken at Tony Grove."
Pictures are one thing both the Forest Service and the plant
experts agree are acceptable to take from the canyon. While Davis
said taking "a handful here and there isn't going to hurt," she
also said she feels compelled to set a good example, by getting
a collector's permit from the Forest Service and taking specimens
and samples from less-affected areas.
"It's unfortunate that people think they have to rape, pillage
and plunder to have a good time," she said.
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