09/04/2026
Fun Facts Friday
Q: Did you know enslaved African Americans preserved and passed down herbal knowledge despite the hardships of slavery?
A: Plants were an important part of everyday care when access to medical treatment was limited.
This knowledge was passed through families and communities, including the knowledge of healers, midwives, and root doctors.
Their herbal traditions drew from African knowledge, Indigenous plant knowledge, and experience with the plants growing around them.
Did you know?
Sassafras was one plant used in African American folk medicine and was traditionally prepared as a tea for things such as fevers and chills.
Try this:
When you learn about an herb, learn a little about the people and traditions that carried its knowledge forward.
What herbal knowledge was passed down in your family?