Bush Medicine used by Aborigines

Snakevine (Tinospora smilacina)..

Goat’s Foot Vine or Beach Morning Glory

To heal sores and boils, it was customary for the Garby Elders to first apply bloodwood kino to the site. A bandage of boiled goat’s foot vine ( Ipomoea pes-caprae ) was then applied as a poultice. Sections of vine could also be rubbed, bent and bruised, and then tied around the head to relieve headaches and migraines

Backhousia citriodora..Lemon Mrytle …Lemon Myrtle is reputed to have a ‘sweet’ citral fragrance and taste. Other ‘lemony’ essential oils come from citrus (3-10% citral), lemon grass (75%), the tropical Verbena (74%), the Lemon Scented Tea Tree (80%) and the Lemon Myrtle, (90-97% citral).

Lemon Myrtle Backhousia citriodora is a medium sized coastal rainforest tree which prefers to grow in humid sub tropical conditions. It is the worlds richest source of citral which is also the essential oil found in Lemongrass. The best cultivars of Lemon Myrtle contain up to 11 times the essential oil content as Lemongrass. Current research is revealing the wonderful healing properties of Lemon Myrtle Oil, reputed to have better healing properties than tea tree oil.

Flax Lily..Dianata Revoluta…

Dianella revoluta

The leaves were sp

lit and then twisted together to make a strong tie. The flowers are

blue and the berries purple, but the berries were eaten.

http://www.fsd.monash.edu.au/files/bethgottpamphlet_po.pdf

Cyclad Palm…these nuts were a staple diet of the Aborigines whose traditional knowledge included how to roast and process the seeds to remove these toxins. The seeds are, after all, very high in energy, fat and carbohydrates. They have to be soaked in running water for 3 weeks to remove the poisons before use as food.

http://www.sgapqld.org.au/bushtucker20.html

Paper Bark….Melaleuca quinquenervia balawun.gaare considered to be effective in reducing hay fever and sinus infections as they can be crushed to release a vapour which is then inhaled. The aromatic oils freed by this process are similar to those of eucalypts and are therefore commonly used in the treatment of head colds. The leaves are also used in smoking ceremonies or rubbed onto the skin as an insect repellanthttp://www.arrawarraculture.com/fact_sheets/pdfs/15_Medicine.pdf

Grey Mangrove

The leaves and young shoots of the grey mangrove

Avicennia marina or baru-baruga were traditionally chewed and used on stingray stings. The bark

can also be rubbed on stings, and the wood ash made into a paste to treat skin sore

Wild Ginger

Wild Boronia….antiseptic and insecticide

Foxtail fern..used as padding for bedding

Tea tree oil is an essential oil obtained by steam distillation of the leaves of Melaleuca alternifolia, a plant native to Australia.Historically, the leaves were used as a substitute for tea, which is how tea tree oil got its name. The part used medicinally is the oil from the leaves. The island has Lemon ti tree as well as Ti Tree….

Berries were eaten to provide saliva for a dry mouth…

http://www.bri.net.au/medicine.html

**TABLE OF REMEDIES**
HEADACHE	Red ash (Alphitonia excelsa) Headache vine (Clematis microphylla) Rock fuchsia bush (Eremophila) Liniment tree (Melaleuca symphyocarpa) Tamarind (Tamarindus indica) Snakevine (Tinospora smilacina)	Bathe with crushed leaves in water Crushed leaves inhaled Leaf decoction drunk Crushed leaves rubbed on head Fruit pulp rubbed on head Mashed stems wound around head
COUGHS, COLDS	Lemon grasses (Cymbopogon) Fuchsia bushes (Eremophila) Tea trees (Melaleuca) River mint (Mentha australis) Great morinda (Morinda citrifolia)	Decoction drunk or applied as wash Decoction drunk Crushed leaves inhaled Decoction drunk Ripe fruit eaten
FEVERS	Turpentine bush (Beyeria lechenaultii) Kapok tree (Cochlospermum fraseri) Lemon grasses (Cymbopogon) Red river gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) Tea tree (Melaleuca viridiflora)	Leaf decoction taken Bark and flower decoction drunk External wash of boiled leaves Steamed leaves inhaled Bath of crushed leaves in water
DIARRHOEA	Lemon grasses (Cymbopogon) Eucalypt bark (Eucalypt) Cluster fig (Ficus racemosa) Sacred basil (Ocimum tenuiflorum) Native raspberries (Rubus)	Decoction drunk Infusion drunk Bark infusion drunk Root infusion drunk Leaf infusion drunk Decoction drunk
WOUNDS	Billygoat weed (Ageratum) Tree orchid (Dendrobium affine) Spike rush (Eleocharis dulcis) Paperbark tea trees (Melaleuca) Cocky apple (Planchonia careya)	Crushed plant applied Bulb sap dabbed on cuts Decaying plant bound to wounds Bark wrapped as a bandage Bark infusion poured into wounds
ACHES AND PAINS	Northern black wattle (Acacia auriculiformis) Beach bean (Canavilia rosea) Rock fuchsia bush (Eremophila freelingii) Beaty leaf (Calophyllum inophullum)	Root decoction applied Mashed root infusion rubbed on Wash with leaf decoction Rub with crushed nut and ochre
STINGS	Nipan (Capparis lasiantha) Native hop (Dodonaea viscosa) Beach convolvulus (Ipomoea pes-caprae) Snakevine (Tinospora smilacina) Peanut tree (Sterculia quadrifida)	Whole plant infusion applied Chewed leaves bound to sting Heated leaf applied Root poultice applied Heated leaves pressed on sting
RHEUMATISM	Blackwood (Acacia melanoxylon) Konkerberry (Carissa Ianceolata) Beach bean (Canacalia rosea) Tick-weed (Cleome viscosa) Stinging tree (Dendrocnide moroides) Nettle (Urtica)	Bathe in bark infusion Oily sap rubbed as liniment Mashed root infusion rubbed in Leaves applied Boiled leaves and bark rubbed in Patient beaten with leaves
SORE EYES	Ironwood (Acacia melanoxylon) Green plum (Buchanania obovata) Regal birdflower (Crotalaria cunninghamii) Emu apple (Owenia acidula) Fan flower (Scaevola sericea)	Root decoction administered Infusion of inner bark applied Sap or leaf decoction given Wood decoction applied Fruit juice applied
SORE EARS	River mangrove (Aegiceras corniculatum) Lemon grass (Cymbopogon) Native hop (Dodonaea viscosa) Lady apple (Syzygium suborbiculare)	Leaf decoction applied Root decoction poured into ears Boiled root juice applied Fruit pulp applied
TOOTHACHE	Green plum (Buchanania obovata) Denhamia (Denhamia obscura) Supplejack (Flagellaria indica) Pemphis (Pemphis acidula) Quinine berry (Petalostigma pubescens)	Tooth plugged with shredded wood Tooth plugged with inner bark Benumbing stem chewed Burning twig applied Fruits held in mouth