Central West Virginia's Guide To Life

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By Sue Cosgrove

9/07 - Stinging Nettles

Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica), a familiar and common plant is only one of about 500 species of Urtica. The Japanese species, U. urentissima, reportedly has a sting that lasts a year! The erect stem of U. diocia springs from an underground rhizome and the leaves are heart-shaped and serrated. The hollow needles that give nettle a fuzzy or downy appearance are attached to sacs that contain irritant chemicals. These chemicals are ejected onto the skin with the hollow needles, or hair, are bent.

Nettle grows easily from seed or root divisions. Scatter seed in the spring and take root divisions in autumn.

Why purposely grow nettles? We've used it as medicine, as a foliar spray for plants, and as a mineral-rich (iron, sodium, chlorine and protein) addition to livestock and poultry diets. Nettle is also one of the richest sources of chlorophyll in the vegetable kingdom. Harvesting nettle from one specific area is easier than to roam and gather.

Used in weaving before it became know in herbal healing, archeologists discovered nettle-fabric burial shrouds at Bronze Age sites in Denmark. Also, during World War I, when the cotton supply diminished in Germany, nettle cloth was substituted.

Herbal use of nettles goes back to around the third century BC when Hippocrates' peers used nettle juice externally to treat bites and stings, and internally as an antidote to plant poisons. Roman soldiers also used nettle stings to keep warm. This practice of "urtication," deliberate application of nettle stings to the skin, is a treatment still used today for stiff arthritic joints and the severe pains of gout.

To enjoy nettle as a vegetable dish or as "pot greens," simply steam or quickly simmer the foliage until tender. Both cooking and drying the plants destroys the stinging qualities of nettle. Harvest the leaves before the plant flowers in late spring/early summer. Fresh, tender young shoots do not sting and can be eaten fresh in salads. Spread leaves on screens in a dry, dark room with good air circulation, or dry them in a dehydrator. Package in airtight containers and store in a cool, dry cupboard until needed.

Recent research indicates nettle is high in Vitamin C, and German research shows that both nettle juice and infusion (tea) help relieve the pain of gout. According to the medical herbalist Rudolph Fritz Weiss, M.D., the effect ". . . is not very powerful, but long-term use may give definite clinical results."

A study at the National College of Naturopathic Medicine in Portland, OR, showed that freeze-dried stinging nettle provided significant hay fever relief. Nettle also acts as a diuretic. Bronchial and asthmatic ailments may improve with nettle taken internally. I can personally vouch that a tea made from dried nettles, ginger root and marshmallow root quickly soothes the burning pains of bronchitis.

Herbal folklore is filled with remedies to ease the burn of stinging nettle. Of course, wear gloves and long sleeves when handling the plant. One suggestion, if stung despite precautions, is to rub the affected area with nettle juice. Perhaps the most famous remedy is immortalized in the British rhyme: "Nettle in/dock out/Dock rub/nettle out." The dock referred to here is any of the Rumex species such as Curly Dock (Rumex crispus), or Red or Yellow Dock, all common to this region.

Nettle also has a reputation as a good companion plant because it increases the aromatic oil content of herbs such as angelica, marjoram, oregano, peppermint, sage, and valerian.

To make a fantastic foliar spray for your garden plants, throw equal amounts of nettle and comfrey (Symphytum vulgare) leaves in a large container such as a plastic trash can, then fill with water. Let the container sit in the sun for 10 days to 2 weeks, taking care to cover the container with a screen or screening material to keep mosquitoes out. Stir with a long stick or spade every couple of days. Strain out the plant material (compost it) and use the liquid as a foliar spray on your plants or water into the soil.

Be warned: This fertilizer has a really rank odor when made properly, but the odor dissipates quickly in a garden with good air circulation.

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