Ohkehteau (Plants of the Earth): A Shinnecock Oral History - Joe-Pye Weed
Joe-Pye Weed (Eupatorium purpureum)
Discovery Garden
Running time 0:43
When Europeans settled here, they brought diseases. One of those diseases was called typhoid. This disease spread along the East Coast. And in the Northeast, a Mohegan and Pequot medicine man by the name of Joepye traveled throughout the New England area, curing people that had the typhoid disease using this plant. Both the flower and the leaves of the Joe-Pye weed have medicinal value. They often grow in clusters that have flowers that can range from pink to purple, and the flowers bloom between July and September.
Plants of the Earth
Ohkehteau (Plants of the Earth): A Shinnecock Oral History highlights native plants around Brooklyn Botanic Garden and the ways that Indigenous peoples use and know them. On your self-guided tour, hear Chenae Bullock tell stories passed down to her and describe traditional uses for plants, including medicines that have been used for thousands of years
“It’s hard to protect what you cannot recognize. This tour was made with good intent to share the value of the plants and in turn, protect our Earth.” —Chenae Bullock
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Chenae Bullock is an enrolled Shinnecock Indian Nation tribal member and a descendant of the Montauk Tribe in Long Island, New York. Chenae is a community leader, water protector, cultural preservationist, Indigenous perspective historian, and humanitarian and has worked at many accredited Indigenous museums. She is the author of 50 Plant Medicines: Indigenous Oral History and Perspective, on which this exhibit is based.
