Cinquefoil

This is the second plant mentioned during Frank's and Claire's walk with Mrs. Baird after leaving the pub!

Potentilla erecta

Also known as Common Tormentil, Five Finger blossom or grass, Barren Strawberry, and Blood Root (Bavarian).

Cinquefoils are holarctic or almost exclusive to the cool to cold regions of the world.

The cinquefoil, P. erecta, which is specific to the Scottish Highlands has been used for inflammation and gastrointestinal disorders. In fact, research is being done on its safety and efficacy on disorders such as ulcerative colitis. Other species of cinquefoil, P. discolor and P. mutlifida are used in Chinese medicine for diabetes treatment. Obviously, Claire would be limited to using P. erecta.

Potentilla spp. roots, or actually their rhizomes, are used as an astringent due to unusually high tannin levels for an herbaceous plant. A decoction can be used as a mouthwash for loose teeth, spongy gums, thrush, and periodontal disease as well as can be put on infections, sores, and rashes. It can be taken as an aid for dysentery and diarrhea as well as for fevers and weakness (debility). Powdered root/rhizome can be used to stop bleeding. Fresh juice mixed with honey relieve and relax sore throats and coughs.

In beauty regimens, an infusion of the leaves can be used in a lotion for skin cleansing and soothing. It is an ingredient in many anti-wrinkle creams.

Other uses include using the roots as a red dye for leather and to make a bitter herbal liqueur called Blutwurz, which means "Blood Root" - not be confused for Sanguinaria canadensis which is also called Blood Root.

As with the other herbs covered thus far, the young shoots may be eaten raw in a salad or used as a pot vegetable.

Interestingly, cinquefoil was used in many recipes for magic. One such recipe called "Witches' Ointment" called for the juice of five finger grass, smallage, and wolfsbane to be mixed with the fat of children dug up from their graves and added to fine wheat flour. It was also used in many love potions - likely due to the root's red color.

The cinquefoil is used on the Scottish Clan Hamilton's arms of chief. 

Cinquefoil; P. erecta

Lamb's ear

Claire and Frank are walking down the street with Mrs. Baird after visiting the pub, with Frank swishing a stick through the roadside weeds - which Claire identifies in her thoughts: lamb's ear, cinquefoil, and sweet broom .... this post will be about lamb's ear!

In the book, versus the televised version, Frank and Claire are in Inverness near Beltane, not Samhain, thus why flowers are just beginning to bloom!

Stachys byzantina

Also known as woolly hedgenettle and synonymous with Stachys olympica and Stachys lanata

Grown often in children's gardens for it is easy to grow and fun to touch. It is often used as an edging plant in gardens. The flowers are pollinator-friendly (big plus!) so use this as an opportunity to teach children how to be around bees harmoniously. If you yourself do not know how, ask a local beekeeper or send me a message. I'm a beekeeper who is allergic to bees, yet I can walk through my hives without a bee suit on without fear.

This soft little plant combats Staphylococcus aureus. (That's the dreaded staph infection, y'all!) Even to that which is resistant to vancomycin. S. byzantina is quite useful against gram positive bacteria which is comforting since so many are becoming resistant to man-made drugs. This is likely due to singling out constituents rather than using the whole plant as nature intended in which multiple constituents work harmoniously together making a complete "drug" where man-made drugs are incomplete. This leaves open the door for infectious diseases to become resistant. Thankfully, when these missing constituents are used in the form they were intended, they tend to overcome the resistant varieties.

S. byzantina is anti-microbial seeing as how it's properties include being anti-bacterial, antiseptic, and anti-inflammatory. For these reasons, the fuzzy leaves make good wound bandaging when needed. They tend to help blood clot faster on top of being absorbent like a bandage.

Other uses listed by Fig & Honey include: infusing bruised leaves to make an eye wash for pink eye and sties; a tea, which apparently has a slight pineapple flavor, for sore throats and mouths, diarrhea, fevers, internal bleeding, and weakness in the liver and heart; bruised leaves (to release juices) can be put on bee stings, hemorroids, and used postpartum to reduce swelling.

Young, tender leaves may be eaten raw in a salad or may be lightly steamed as greens.

A camping tip: leaves may be used instead of toilet paper and dried leaves can be used as fire tinder! Suburban Stoneage found some pretty unique uses for our sweet little plant. This one seems to be another in which it's invasiveness may come in handy simply due to how much one can use it for! I know I'll be giving it a go for cleaning my chicken waterers.

S. byzantina is a perennial herb, considered an evergreen even though it may 'die back' some in the winter, in which new growth is regenerated from the crown. Flowering takes place in late-spring/early summer with small purple flowers on a stalk.

If you have problems with deer or rabbits, you'll be happy to hear that according to The Spruce, S. byzantina is deer-resistant and the flowers are rabbit-proof! 

 

Plant Press versus Hanging

What's the difference and what difference does it make?

A plant press flattens out a specimen for preservation while essentially blotting away all liquids.
Hanging allows plant materials to dry while preserving much of the volatile oils which are of great medicinal value.

So the big question becomes what are your goals for a particular plant? If you simply want to preserve a plant for display - whether for a project or your own personal pleasure, then a plant press is the way to go. However, if you desire to use a plant medicinally then hanging is the way to go.

Guess what! You can make your own plant press and, of course, you can hang your own plants! Here is a set of instructions to build a plant press yourself ...

American Museum of Natural History's How to Build Your Own Plant Press curriculum

An example of pressed plants for display.

To hang plants, it is even more simple ... simply loosely twine string around the lower stems and secure upside down to a rafter/beam or string line or drying rack until completely dried. Some examples are:

Now, Claire had been using books to press her specimens. To do that it would look similar to this...

Notice how the coloring of the plant material stains the pages though. This is why if you need to use a book that you should put the plant between paper towels, newspaper, or some other paper that doesn't matter should it be ruined.

Have fun and be sure to let me know if you do any pressing of drying!

Groutweed

Groutweed aka Goutweed

Aegopodium podagaria 'Variegatum' 

Also known as Goutweed, Bishop's weed, and Ground Elder among a few other local common names.

There is some confusion on the web concerning this herb as it is called Goutweed in 99% of references. However, I found a reference in the book Zone 5 by Robert, David, and Steven Waugh, in which it was called Groutweed with the scientific name of Aegopodium podagaria which is also the same scientific name as Goutweed. Herein, this is a lesson right off the bat that I teach all my herbal students - one can never rely on the common name for anything, so learn the scientific names!

Grout/Goutweed is more commonly used for gout and arthritis. The anti-inflammatory portion of the plant however, does lend itself useful to treat hemmorhoids as well. This is noted in Handbook of Medicinal Herbs, Second Edition by James Duke, at Mountain Herb Estate and a few other little sites.

Here are a couple of photos of our little Aegopodium podagaria. 

Use of Aegopodium podagaria has fallen out of favor in modern times even though medicinally it still provides the same services. Leaves and roots are boiled together then used as a poultice on the affected area. This is good for arthritis, gout, sciatica, hemorrhoids, and the like. Taken internally Aegopodium podagaria acts as a diuretic and mild sedative.

Young leaves used to be eaten the same as spinach, providing they were picked prior to flowering when the leaves would begin to turn bitter. In fact, it is said to pick the youngest shoots before the leaves have even unfolded fully. The stem is also as much the vegetable more so than the leaves. Frying them up in olive oil the same way one would sauté spinach leaves is said to be the best way to bring out the flavor. Considering this plant is so invasive, one could potentially have a never-ending supply of greens to live off of.

The name Bishop's weed or Bishop's mantel came into play because it was found around monastery's quite often and is still found around monastic ruins. This is because monks used it medicinally quite often and is even referred to in monastic writings such as Phsyica by Hildegard von Bingen who was named Doctor of the Church by Pope Benedict XVI in 2012.