BETULACEAE (BIRCH FAMILY)
Yellow Birch (Betula lutea Michx. f.), “wiˈnîsîk”. The Flambeau and Couderay Ojibwe tap the Yellow Birch for sap to add to maple sap for a pleasant beverage drink.
Hazelnut (Corylus americana Walt.), “mûkwobagaˈ nak” [bear nut].[134] The Flambeau Indians use the hazel nut as a food and are especially fond of the newly gathered nuts before the kernel has hardened. The name is often shortened to “bagaˈ nak”.
Beaked Hazelnut (Corylus rostrata Ait.), “baˈ ganaˈ mîc” [nut tree]. The Pillager Ojibwe also use the Beaked Hazelnut. The Flambeau Ojibwe also recognize it as “bagaˈ nak” [nut] and use it as a food.
CAPRIFOLIACEAE (HONEYSUCKLE FAMILY)
Nannyberry (Viburnum lentago L.), “atîteˈ tamîn”.[135] The berries are eaten when ripe, fresh from the bush, and are also used in jam with wild grapes.
CELASTRACEAE (STAFF TREE FAMILY)
Climbing Bittersweet (Celastrus scandens L.), “manîdobîmaˈ kwît” [spirit twisted].[136] The Pillager Ojibwe story of this plant is practically the same as that of the Menomini, as given in Museum bulletin Vol. IV, No. 1, pp. 63-64. Bittersweet is fairly abundant around Leech Lake, and is found in dense hardwood forests climbing to tops of trees thirty feet or more in height. When food is unobtainable in the winter, because the snow is too deep and game is scarce, the Ojibwe gather this bark and separate the inner bark to make a thick soup for a meal. While it is not so very palatable, it is sustaining and they may subsist on it for a considerable time, until they are able to get some game, or to go to some relatives and get other foodstuffs. The Ojibwe name refers as does the Menomini name, to the twisted intestines of their cultural hero, Winabojo.
COMPOSITAE (COMPOSITE FAMILY)
Large-leaved Aster (Aster macrophyllus L.), “mêgêsiˈ bûg”, [eagle leaf]. The leaves of this aster are eaten when young and tender. The Flambeau Ojibwe declare that they are fine-flavored and good to eat, because they act as medicine at the same time that they are food. Among the Pillager Ojibwe they use the root of this same aster as a soup material, but call it “nêmêgosiˈ bûg” [trout leaf].