An interesting quelite has popped up in my feed. The flor de cimal. A reader (thank you Kellan) has asked about a (possible) quelite called flor de cimal and has noted the only reference to be found on this plant is “This small, red-leafed herb that grows at the base of the maguey – century plant – is incorporated into tamale dough in the traditional … Continue reading Flor de cimal (?)
One of the first written references to papaloquilitl is to be found in the work Historia natural de Nueva España (7 Volumes) penned by Francisco Hernández de Toledo circa 1570 AD Now, to the author…. Francisco Hernández de Toledo (c. 1515 – 28 January 1587) was a naturalist and court physician to King Philip II of Spain. He was among the first wave of Spanish … Continue reading Medicinal use of Papalo in 1651 as noted by Hernández
The first written references to papaloquelite (papaloquilitl) appear in the Libellus de Medicinalibus Indorum Herbis (“Little Book of the Medicinal Herbs of the Indians”) or more commonly the Codex de la Cruz-Badiano (Badianus Manuscript) . This text was written by Martín de la Cruz in the Colegio de Santa Cruz de Tlatelolco (1) in 1552 and then translated into Latin by Juan Badiano. The book … Continue reading Papaloquelite : It’s History in Text
acocoxochitl : (Nahuatl) “flower of hollow stems with water” – atl (water), cocotli (tube) and xochitl (flower) also called Chichipatli : (Nahuatl) “bitter medicine” – chichic (bitter) and patli (medicine) (1) an alternative translation is “dog medicine” chi (dog) and patli (medicine/medicinal herb) (Bye 1986) (Simeon 1984). It is sometimes said that chichimeca people are called “dog” people (although it is likely closer in translation … Continue reading Acocoxochitl : The Dahlia
Mexixquilitl (as L.virginicum) also called lentejilla The picture above depicts a plant from the tropaeolum genus. These are commonly known as nasturtiums. The leaves of the nasturtium are edible and have a “peppery” bite to them. The Tropaeolum genus is native to Central and South America and were introduced into Europe from Peru by the Spanish. Nasturtiums received their common name because the produce an … Continue reading Quelite : Mexixquilitl
Masa Americana 