Page 190 - Lost Book Remedies

The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies

Mayapple, Wild The fully ripe fruit can be eaten raw or cooked and is
often used for jams and pies. The seeds and rind are
Mandrake, not edible and must be removed before cooking or eat-
ing. The fruit tastes similar to a paw-paw.
Podophyllum peltatum Medicinal Use: Warts, Moles, Genital

Mayapple should be used internally with great caution Warts, and Skin Cancer: Mayapple resin from
if you choose to use it. It is in the Berberidaceae (Bar- the plant stems is useful for treating warts and moles.
berry) Family. It is widespread in eastern North Amer- Place diluted resin on the wart, mole, or skin cancer,
ica. You are most likely to find it in damp meadows and being careful to keep the resin confined to the affected
open woods. area.
Wear gloves when squeezing the resin from the stems
and mix with alcohol at a 20% resin dilution (1 part of
resin diluted with 5 parts alcohol). This dilution should
be strictly observed. Higher concentrations can do
harm to the skin, while lower dilutions may not be ef-
fective enough.

Leave the diluted resin on the skin for one to four hours
and then wash. Only a single application is needed. The
lesions whiten within a few hours and begin to wither
away within one to two days. Within three days, the le-
sions begin to disappear.
Other Cancers: Mayapple has been used in the
treatment of other cancers. However, the plant is quite
toxic and can be fatal. Only use mayapple under the su-
pervision of a highly qualified medical professional.

Warning: Do not use during pregnancy or on small
children. Avoid handling the resin with bare hands, as
Identification: Mayapple grows 12 to 18 inches (20 it is absorbed through the skin and can be toxic or even
cm to 30 cm) tall and has very large leaves. The leaves deadly.
are smooth, paired, and umbrella-like. Leaves are pal-
mately lobed, 8 to 12 inches (20 cm to 30 cm) in diam-
eter, with 3 to 9 lobes.
Some stems produce a single leaf without any flower or
fruit, while others produce two or more leaves and 1 to
8 drooping flowers (often just one) in the axil between
the leaves.

The 1-inch (2.5 cm) wide waxy flowers are white, red,
or yellow, with 6 to 9 petals and bloom in May. These
plants grow in clumps that originate from a single rhi-
zome.
Edible Use: The fruit are edible when ripe, but other
parts of the plant are poisonous. Note that the fruits
are poisonous until they ripen. They mature into a yel-
low or red fleshy fruit that is 2 inches (5 cm) long, egg-
shaped, and wrinkled.

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