Are salal berries poisonous?
A short distance can make a big difference in taste. It amazes me to hear how many people think salal berries are inedible or even poisonous. Admittedly, they are not quite as delicious as thimbleberries, huckleberries, and other Northwest favorites, but they are readily available and have good flavor.
Are salal berries OK to eat?
Its dark blue “berries” and young leaves are both edible and are efficient appetite suppressants, both with a unique flavor.
When should I prune salal?
If necessary, prune the plant in spring to restore the desired shape, or to remove dead or damaged growth.
What are salal berries used for?
Sore throats, sinus infections, allergies, GI flare ups from food sensitivity, diarrhea and bleeding ulcers. Salal is a specific for the urinary tract, during or following a UTI infection or cystitis by reducing inflammation of the bladder when pain is present after urination.
What are salal berries good for?
Salal berries are high in antioxidant capacity, which correlated strongly with proanthocyanidin concentrations over berry development. Our data suggest that consumption of these berries could have positive health benefits.
Can you smoke salal leaves?
It has strong narcotic properties and makes the smoker drunk. This plant is also smoked as medicine. It is also smoked in some of the religious ceremonies. The leaves of the salal plant and the inner bark of the dogwood tree are also dried and used in lieu of kinnikinick.
Can you cut back salal?
Salal (Gaultheria shallon) is hardy in USDA zones 5-9. Normally, the only pruning that Salal needs is to remove dead wood or to cut back an overgrown plant in the spring. Apply a mulch of compost or peat moss each spring to help preserve moisture.
How do you fertilize salal?
Provide salal bushes with nitrogen-rich fertilizer each spring, or any time leaves seem to lose color or glossiness. Use 3 pounds of blood meal for every 100 square feet of the salal patch. Set the blood meal in rings several feet away from each plant, or in bands along the front of each row of bushes.