Uqgwik
Alnus viridus Vill. subsp. sinuata (Regel) A. Löve & D. Löve
Plant
Sitka alder is a common, medium to large deciduous shrub that often grows in dense thickets. The plant has dark green, oval, toothed, sometimes sticky leaves that turn brown in the fall yet may stay attached. It produces long, narrow, drooping, pollen-producing flower clusters and smaller, upright, seed-producing flower clusters. It has smooth, gray bark and cone-like fruit.
Gathering: People transported bundles of alder on their backs, held by a sling, or drag bundles the wood. Alder bundles were also rolled down hills to the beach and transported inside kayaks and dories. Alder branches are gathered in sunny weather, especially in July, when the leaves are mature but not sticky. They are ties in pairs and hung to dry.
Food: Historic sources suggest Alutiiq people once ate alder bark cooked in fat.
Medicine: Alder branches are the most common steam bath switch. There are used to relieve aches and pains, promote good heath, and help a new mother remove old blood. People gargle alder cone tea for sore throats and laryngitis and drink it to relieve diarrhea. Chewing green alder cones can also treat diarrhea.
Fuel: Sitka alder is important for home heating in areas without spruce and at times when weather prevents harvesting other fuel. Some people use alder to smoke fish but remove the bark to avoid an unpleasant aftertaste.
Material: Flexible alder wood was used to make the rib of kayaks, snowshoes, temporary shelters, the shafts of fish spears, and fish traps as well as game pieces, whistles, and snuff containers. Alder branches are used as an air freshener in outhouses and smokehouses. People make a reddish-brown dye from alder bark.
