pulverized stinging nettle juice, pulverized plantain juice (Plantago major), vinegar, pulverized dock juice (Rumex L.), baking soda. We were at a child’s birthday party two years ago when I realized that I’m not your “average” parent. The plant is considered an herbaceous perennial, meaning that it has herbal properties and grows back in the same areas year after year. Types of stinging nettle Common nettle or stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) This is the most common nettle found in Europe and is most likely the species of stinging nettle that comes to mind first. Use a clean chopstick or spoon handle to gently stir the plantain and oil, and release any air pockets in the jar. and applied to scalds and wounds, providing pain relief, as well as decreasing minor bleeding due to it’s coagulating properties. Known as Snakeweed because of its abilities to draw poison from a wound. Both have similar medicinal properties, and tend to grow in well-drained soil, meadows and along pathways and driveways. Once the oils have melted, remove from heat and add essential oils. After I read about it, I went out side to see if I could identify it myself it, and there was, growing along the sides of my driveway and along my front boulevard. Fill the jar up with olive oil to about 1″ from the top. If you find plantain in the wild, you can use its fibers for cords, fishing line, or sutures too! Will last for approximately one year, or longer if refrigerated. Plantain has a reputation for drawing the poison out of a wound. It’s part one of a series of harvesting stinging nettle for spinning and weaving on the Joybilee Farm TV channel. Log in, « Don’t give up on your homestead dream — keep hope alive, Harvesting Nettles for Spinning and Weaving ». Here are 6 evidence-based benefits of stinging nettle. Leave to infuse on your window sill for 2-3 weeks before straining. Sure enough, I found the species of some broad leaf plantain growing in the gravel, picked a couple clean-ish looking leaves, whipped them off of my shorts, popped them in my mouth, and began to chew on them as I headed back down toward the screams. Used as an antihistamine, Ribwort Plantain is very effective at dealing with nettle stings or insect bites/stings unlike Dock which is just a placebo but if your children get stung and you can’t find any Plantain, placebos work. You can either then put just the juice on it or put a poultice on the affected area. I’ll never forget the look on that child’s face as I pulled the wad of macerated plantain from my mouth and stuck it directly on top of his bee sting. Plantain plants have round leaves lying flat and facing upward. Plantain can help bring a blister or pimple to a head, pull a stinger out of a bee sting, or extract a deeply-imbedded splinter. Plantain is excellent at drawing out poisons from bee stings and will even help to avoid a reaction. Used as an antihistamine, Plantain is very effective at dealing with nettle stings or insect bites/stings unlike Dock which is just a placebo but if your children get stung and you can’t find any Plantain, placebos work. Native Americans embraced this plant after it was brought over by the English and used it for wounds, bruises, boils and to reduce the swelling of rheumatic pains. Should the stinging become too intense, it can be relieved by crushing plantain, yellow dock, or teasel leaves and applying them to the area. In the past I had to come to the aid of a young man on a Butterfly Garden tour that got into Stinging Nettle….Plantain worked its miracle on the stings and the tour was able to go forward. Plantain is so helpful when suffering from a bee sting, insect bite, stinging nettle sting or even a splinter. A poultice, by definition, is “a soft, moist mass of material, typically of plant material or flour, applied to the body to relieve soreness and inflammation and kept in place with a cloth.”. Simply chew it up and place on the red spot. INFUSING OIL WITH PLANTAINS: gather plantain leaves and leave them to wilt on your windowsill for a day or two. Plantain is very high in vitamins A and C and in calcium. Its antimicrobial and skin rejuvenating properties make it an effective first aid salve for burns, bee stings, nettle stings, spider bites, and minor cuts and scrapes. scrunched up enough so that its juices can run a little) is remarkably soothing and provides rapid relief for pain, itching or irritation on the skin. Simply chew it up and place on the red spot. This graphic sorts the nettle sting remedy fact from the fiction. I have horrible mosquito bites on my arms and nothing has helped, until just now, when a friend brought plantain leaves in! Other chemicals contained in the stinging nettle venom, and the ones we now think are primarily responsible for the pain it induces, are histamine, acetylcholine, and serotonin. © 2020 Modern Hippie Health & Wellness Inc. How to Use Plantain for Bug Bites, Stings and Burns. Once aware of plantain, you start to notice it all around. It draws out the poison from snake bites, rabid animal bites, insect bites, and insect and nettle stings. Those evil stinging leaves are actually an essential part of a … I doesn’t taste bad….just a bit “grassy”. Scan the growing vicinity for a plantain plant, also a frequent companion plant to stinging nettle. It has happened before so knew and was glad when relief came within minutes. Researchers caution that more research is needed, but this preliminary research seems to support how nettle has been used traditionally. The plantain is a super quick aid to stop the burn. Perhaps most commonly, it’s used topically to treat insect bites and stings, stinging nettle, poison ivy etc. How to Make a Plantain Poultice Remedies that act as histamine antagonists, or antihistamines may help to counter nettle stings. Your email address will not be published. This is also an excellent way to draw out splinters, tiny shards of … I ran over to the crowd to make sure… nope, not my child. Repeat the process 2 times every day until stinging nettle rash disappears. The skin surrounding the hives may be red. Your Guide to Living a Cleaner, Greener Life! Plantai… We had a very wet summer again, so along with the nettle going crazy, we had a healthy patch of plantain growing right along side. Join the Modern Hippie Community – Sign up to receive recipes, DIY tips and a FREE copy of our e-book "The Modern Hippie's Guide to DIY Skincare"! In the centre, find spires of … It has been used as an herbal remedy for thousands of years. It is more common in areas with moist soil – which explains its ubiquity in the UK! Once it starts to grow, it will shade out the grass plants around it, thanks to its leathery spoon-shaped leaves, which form a dense rosette from 6 to 12 inches (15 to 30 cm) across. Using plantain topically can help relieve the pain and discomfort caused by bee stings, nettle, poison ivy, mosquito bites and minor burns including sun burns! The nettle species, Urtica dioica , actually encompasses six different subspecies, all but one of which have stinging hairs. A plantain poultice is great for many skin ailments, including a nettle rash. Your email address will not be published. Regardless, everyone wanted the “recipe”. In place of the sting, nettle root tincture or cream can also be used topically for this purpose. I remember the day clearly…. use them fresh to make a poultice (instructions below) or tea. Now that I know more, I’m definitely putting a few plants in my yard. Kathy FINLAND 1. If yes, then this is a remedy that deserves your immediate attention! Hi, I'm Carly! Add the Plantain Oil and Beeswax to a glass jar or Pyrex measuring cup and melt over low heat using the “double boiler” method (place the jar of oils in a saucepan or pot of simmering water). Stinging nettle is a plant that grows in North America, Europe, and Africa. In place of the sting, nettle root tincture or cream can also be used topically for this purpose. It primarily grows in damp, fertile soil. It comes with properties that help you to beat the skin irritation in a fairly short span! The sooner you act the faster the relief. Active Time 20 minutes Additional Time 5 hours Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) has been a staple in herbal medicine since ancient times, such as to treat arthritis and back pain. 'In all, it seems that the effect of dock leaves on stinging nettle stings is little more than that of a placebo,' Mr Brunning continued. If you're looking to re-claim your health and detox your home, then stay right there and join me in my fun, fermented journey to living a cleaner, greener life! Broadleaf plantain (Plantago major), also called greater plantain, is a very common perennial lawn weed.It’s most often found in compacted soil, scalped lawns or spots where the lawn is especially thin. Plantain is also used internally to treat poisoning, including amanita poisoning (Perez-Silva and Herrera, 1992). A good friend of mine mentioned she had developed dry chapped hands from the cold weather we have been experiencing the past week, so I decided to make her a small pot of Calendula-Plantain-Nettle Infused Simple Salve. This more recent study suggests a “positive benefit-risk-ratio allows the recommendation of plantain in moderate chronic irritative cough, also especially for children.”. If a child gets stung by a nettle we get a greater plantain [Plantago major] leaf, chew it, and rub it on the sting [Tooting Common, London, 21 August 2011]. We had a very wet summer again, so along with the nettle going crazy, we had a healthy patch of plantain growing right along side. 2. The leaves are edible raw as well as the seeds. It's the same story with plantain leaves. Blood curdling screams that could only mean one thing – bee sting. I was going up to service when it happened luckily there was plantain in the driveway still,chewed it up placed it on stings went to service. A pre-made plantain salve is great to have on hand if you don’t have access to fresh plantain, or you’re going camping and can’t confirm that plantain will be in the area. Complete infusion tutorial HERE. You can also use the root and the flower, but I find them harder to work with. I am a believer,I was stung 7 times,wasp that had gotten into my cassok that I had hanging about 10 feet from fireplace last fall,brought in some firewood possibly dormant wasp that warmed up. When going for my morning nettle harvest, I would inevitably get stung. Make a paste with baking soda and a few drops of water. is a common weedy plant found growing throughout the world, in urban and rural areas alike. Plantain (Plantago spp.) Watch this video that shows you how to make a plantain poultice to treat nettle stings. I could kiss you! In that case, plantain took about three days to get all of them out, with some coming out each day. Stinging Nettle. Plantain’s Topical Use. Just pick a fresh leaf chew it up and hey presto you have a “spit poultice”. Sting relief home remedy. Wash the leaves in cold water, and at this point, you can either: In this article, I just want to show you how to use plantain externally for bug bites, stings and burns. Stinging nettle has anti-inflammatory properties which can help alleviate pain. Many herbalists are familiar with the use of plantain leaf for first aid in the field, where fresh plantain is chewed and applied directly to the skin to ease stings, bites, and minor burns or cuts. A jewelweed plant is the same plant as an impatiens. Plantain is also used internally to help relieve coughs, bronchitis, tuberculosis, sore throat, laryngitis, urinary infections and digestive problems. Made of nettle leaves this effective oil might help with skin irritations or baldness. Jewelweed has oval, green leaves with orange or yellow trumpet-shaped flowers. Just ensure that you’re harvesting the herb from a pesticide and pet-pee-free area. I have used plantain to remove splinters of all sizes, sorts, and shapes, including one of wood that was actually in tiny smithereens. 8. Simply crush the leaves and apply the resulting liquid to the affected area to reduce pain, inflammation, and itchiness. The leaves can also be used to make a … It works for … We find that any plantain, applied immediately, is effective for nettle stings and prefer it to dock leaf. Here are 6 evidence-based benefits of stinging nettle. Serotonin, in particular, might sound familiar – it’s produced in our bodies, and sometimes referred to as the ‘happy hormone’, though it’s actually responsible for a number of other roles too. I’ve found that the most convenient way to apply plantain is by making a poultice out of the fresh leaves or applying a plantain salve. Although considered a common weed today, plantain (plantago major) has been used for hundreds of year, by many cultures around the world, for it’s medicinal and healing properties. The Anglo-Saxons (450 A.D. to 1066 A.D.) listed plantain as one of their 9 sacred herbs and considered it to have great healing powers (source). As a gardener I have been told to alternatively spit on a sting or rub it with a dock, or by one Finnish gardener to urinate on the sting (I have not tried this) [Folklore Society Legendary Weekend, Scarborough, September 2018]. Required fields are marked *. Stinging nettle, or Urtica dioica, is a common plant that grows in the United States, Canada, and Europe. Stinging nettle rash presents as raised bumps or hives that are often light in color and up to a centimeter in diameter. They would also chew the roots to relieve toothache and heat the leaves to place on wounds (source). Applied topically, Plantain is an excellent wound vulnerary with the power to stop bleeding and heal bruises, including puncture wounds, bug bites, bee, wasp, and nettle stings, boils and ulcers. This mineral-rich nettle oil is a powerful remedy with a wide spectrum of uses from easing stiff joints to scalp and hair treatment. The nettle has sharp hairs on its leaves. But that didn’t stop me. Each remedy is said to be an effective treatment for stinging nettles. The first step to making a Plantain Salve is to make plantain-infused oil. Welcome to Modern Hippie Health & Wellness - a Clean-Eating, Green-Living website designed to educate and inspire! For the sake of science and humanity, I’ll intentionally sting myself, try each treatment method, then report back on the results! Store strained oil in the fridge for future use. 'In all, it seems that the effect of dock leaves on stinging nettle stings is little more than that of a placebo,' Mr Brunning continued. harvesting stinging nettle for spinning and weaving, draws poisons and is useful for treating brown recluse spider bites, bee stings. The leaves of the jewelweed plant are one of the top remedies, when the discomfort is because of direct contact with the stinging nettle. Thank goodness the kid spoke up and confirmed that his pain had subsided – I have laughed out load since then, imagining what the scenario would have looked like it he instead kept crying and screamed out, “it’s not working!” LOL. His mother to the right of me had the similar expression – it read, “WTF are you doing you crazy witch?”, I quickly tried to explain the medicinal properties of the “weed” that I found growing along the driveway, and that “Native Americans used to use plantain poultices to draw out toxins from stings and bites….and that it even helps soothe the effects of poison ivy….” I started to ramble, and I was losing them…. When treating cuts and other open wounds, it not only staunches the bleeding, it also prevents infection by removing dirt, and as an antiseptic it disinfects the wound. Applying the salve to a bite, sting or burn will provide relieve when in a pinch! Until suddenly, the kid’s cries suddenly subsided and he spoke, “It doesn’t hurt at all anymore”. There are over 200 varieties of plantain around the world, but two are commonly found around where I live, on the West Coast of Canada – narrow leaf plantain (plantago lanceolata) and broad leaf (plantago major). I’m already known as the “hippie” among my friends, but I think this took it to a whole new level. I ran in the opposite direction of the crime scene and up to the dusty driveway to where I thought I would find it growing along the edges – plantain. Calendula-Plantain-Nettle Infused Simple Salve I realized I had a little bit of two infused oils I made a few months ago in my fridge that needed to be used up soon. Plantain is amazing. So effective at extracting substances that it can be employed to draw out splinters. The plantain is a super quick aid to stop the burn. This remedy is great for humans and pet alike! Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) has been a staple in herbal medicine since ancient times, such as to treat arthritis and back pain. Yellow dock – Crush up the leaves of dock to make sure the juices get flowing. If time allows, use a mortar and pestle, or even two stones, to mash the clean leaves into a paste. Medicinally, Native Americans used plantain leaves to relieve the pain of bee stings and insect bites, stop the itching of poison ivy and other allergic rashes, and promote healing in sores and bruises. The fresh plantain leaves, bruised (i.e. It’s also convenient to be able to identify it, as it’s a handy summertime-remedy for all sorts of ailments. It is highly rated for many common outdoor happenings including bites, cuts, grazes, stinging from other plants etc. For this remedy, take a handful of these beneficial leaves and crush them to make a paste. In the beginning of this article, when I explained that I chewed up plantain leaves and then placed the macerated wad on that poor little boy’s bee string, this is precisely what I was trying to achieve – a poultice. The leaves spread out from the centre of the plant, overlapping to form the base of the plant. Most Herbalists admire Plantain as an effective cellular regenerator, which makes it incredibly good at healing wounds. Should the stinging become too intense, it can be relieved by crushing plantain, yellow dock, or teasel leaves and applying them to the area. If you don’t have plantain in your area, you can use dried plantain like THIS. It can be identified by its green leaves with deeply serrated edges. Crushed dock can help relieve a stinging nettle rash. All the children huddled around the victim, hoping to sneak a peak of the wound. Squeeze with back of spoon. Some 2013 research shows that there are many plant foods that are anti-inflammatory, including nettle. Crumble your dried plantain leaves into a clean glass jar. Plantain is also edible and has a long history of use as a medicinal plant — including treating bee and wasp stings. Your email address will not be published. When going for my morning nettle harvest, I would inevitably get stung. Thanks Kami as always for your informative emails. Using plantain topically can help relieve the pain and discomfort caused by bee stings, nettle, poison ivy, mosquito bites and minor burns including sun burns! Plantain salves treat pain and itches generally. Ideally, the dried plant material will fill the jar somewhere between the 1/3rd and 1/2 level. Applying the salve to so a bite, sting or burn will provide relieve when in a pinch! These plants usually grow in the same area as stinging nettles. When harvesting plantain, you can use leaves from either the narrow leaf or broad leaf species. It's the same story with plantain leaves. As a matter of fact, the jewelweed plant (1) is almost always in the vicinity of the stinging nettle. There was no infection. Apply fresh spit poultices (with a sticky plaster if you have one) to the affected area as required every few hours, and problem solved!! Fill a jar ½ -3/4 full with the wilted or dried plantain and cover with a liquid carrier oil like olive, avocado, sweet almond or grapeseed (don’t get too hung up on amounts). To my relief, everyone’s disgust quickly turned to intrigue. I’ve found that the most convenient way to apply plantain is by making a poultice out of the fresh leaves or applying a plantain salve. Plantain's antihistamine effect is also beneficial for hayfever and other allergies, and combines well as a tea with elderflower and mint. The leaves are edible raw as well as the seeds. Do you want to get redeemed of the problem at the earliest? It was a warm summer evening in July, and I was sitting around chatting with the moms, watching our children run around in the clover, when suddenly – screams. Apply the plantain directly to the sting, bite or burn. Of course, if time is of the essence, or you’re applying the plantain to your own body, just use the good old “chew method”. Plantain Leaves. The same drawing action allows it to remove splinters of all sizes and shapes. A … These plants also grow naturally in the same areas where you may come across a stinging nettle. Pour into a small glass jar, or whatever you have on have that you can re-purpose, and seal with a lid. The chemical content found in the juice from the leaves and stem of a jewelweed plant is reportedly effective at … The stinging nettle is a plant found practically all over the world. Outdoor happenings including bites, bee stings a paste with baking soda and a few of. Any air pockets in the jar at drawing out poisons from bee stings grow in well-drained soil, and... Which have stinging hairs for approximately one year, or antihistamines may help avoid. ( source ) a mortar and pestle, or antihistamines may help to counter nettle stings into a small jar! 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