Navajo Tea (Thelesperma megapotanicum)
At a glance
- Lifecycle
- Perennial (hardy)
- Exposure
- Full sun
- Frost limit
- −6.7 °C
Cultivation
Succeeds in any moderately fertile well-drained soil in full sun. This species is not very hardy outdoors in Britain, usually requiring cold greenhouse treatment. According to one report this species might be no more than a synonym for T. gracile.
Propagation
Seed - sow spring in situ, only just covering the seed. In dry weather the seed should be watered in. Division might be possible.
Edible uses
Flower buds. No more details are given. A tea is made from the fresh or dried leaves and flowering stems.
Medicinal uses
The plant has been used in the treatment of children with tuberculosis. An infusion of the leaves and stems has been used as a 'nervous stimulant'. An infusion of the leaves and stems has been used as a treatment for the teeth.
Material uses
A yellow dye is obtained from the flowers. A brown dye is obtained from the leaves and stems. An orange-yellow dye can be obtained from the boiled roots.
Habitat
Sandy or rocky prairies and roadsides in Texas. Dry sandy soils in south-western S. Dakota.
Native range
Western N. America.
Same genus
- Colorado greenthread (Thelesperma ambiguum)
- Burridge's greenthread (Thelesperma burridgeanum)
- Stiff greenthread (Thelesperma filifolium)
- East Texas greenthread (Thelesperma flavodiscum)
- Longstalk greenthread (Thelesperma longipes)
- Hopi tea greenthread (Thelesperma megapotamicum)
- Rio Grande greenthread (Thelesperma nuecense)
- Slender greenthread (Thelesperma simplicifolium)