Oregon Grape is Oregon’s designated state flower. Oregon Grape is widely distributed throughout Oregon. It can be identified by its waxy leaves and clusters of bright yellow flowers in the spring which ripen into blueberry sized and colored berries in the early fall. The berries are edible though seedy and sour. Native people ate the sour fruit in small quantities and to treat a variety of human ailments. The yellow root was also used to make a yellow dye to color baskets and porcupine quills. It is still used today as a natural dye for wool.
