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Wind Cave National Park
Wildflowers - Fleabane
 
Fleabane - Erigeron philadelphicus, Erigeron glabellus
NPS Photo
Fleabane - Erigeron philadelphicus, Erigeron glabellus
 

Fleabane (Erigeron philadelphicus)

Annual or biannual forb between 8 and 30 inches tall with multiple stems and many small, white, daisy-like flower heads. Plains Indians prepared a tea from this plant to treat children’s toothaches. They also made a paste from fleabane blossoms mixed with the brains, spleen and gall of a bison or other animal which, when applied to the hide, acted as a bleach during the tanning process. Prairie settlers used bouquets of burning fleabane as a “fogger” to rid their sod houses of ticks, fleas, and other pests.

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The prairie and the cave of Wind Cave National Park.  

Did You Know?
Wind Cave became a national park in 1903. It is one of the nation's oldest national parks. Today the park not only protects the 4th longest cave in the world, it protects an amazing prairie ecosystem and the wildlife associated with it.

Last Updated: August 31, 2006 at 13:16 EST