Remediations and Reciprocal Relations with Mushroom, Plant, and Human Healers

Abstract

Remediations and Reciprocal Relations with Mushroom, Plant, and Human Healers is a two-node dissertation that employs narrative and multispecies inquiry and a community action research project. Node 1 explores interspecies communication as a form of reciprocity in both the Mazatec tradition with the sacred mushrooms in the Sierra Mazateca and in an Asháninka tradition with master plants at Mayantuyacu, a plant medicine center outside of Pucallpa, Peru. Four Chjon Chjine, women of knowledge, in the Mazatec tradition and seven curandero/as or students of the plants were interviewed for Node 1. These healers were found to engage in reciprocal relationships by singing to the fungi and plants. Alternately, as a practice of reciprocity, Node 2 investigates sunflowers and mycorrhiza fungi, who aid as allies in earth repair work to remediate a lead-contaminated lot in East Central Baltimore. In Node 2, quantitative data include lead readings on the roots, shoots, and seeds of the sunflowers, distributed soil sample readings, cross-comparative data on lead accumulation between black oil and autumn beauty sunflower varieties both in situ and within control settings, as well as lead testing on both sunflower varieties—where the black oil variety of sunflowers is shown to have double the extraction potential of autumn beauties at both 10 and 50 cm above ground. Additionally, four members of the community association and four members of the bioremediation collective were interviewed to learn about their perceptions on this phytoremediation project. The sunflowers reveal themselves as a unique ally who both extract lead from the soil and enhance positivity in the hearts of people who experience their beauty. Node 1 explores the healer as a remediator aided by other-than-human persons, who are the fungi and plants, while Node 2 realizes a community action research project through the formation of a bioremediation collective whose members work beside the community association and with sunflowers and mycorrhiza toward a greener neighborhood.Keywords: other-than-human person, interspecies communication, sunflowers, earth repair, reciprocal restoration