Post by Longshadows on Jun 16, 2008 15:50:11 GMT -5
Before going to the herb feilds, come here to see what you may need the plant for. All plants that have grown in the herb feilds are here.
Acacia, Catsclaw (Acacia greggii) The pod is powdered and applied moistened as a poultice for muscle pain, bruises or sprains. It also is used for the same purposes as Mesquite. Gather the pods when still green and dry the leaves and branches over a paper as the leaves often fall off while hanging. The longer distal roots, chopped into small segments while moist. The gum is gathered the same way as mesquite gum and the flowers are dried. The green leaves, stems, and pods are powdered for tea (standard infusion) or for topical application; the roots are best used as a cold standard infusion, warmed for drinking and gargling.
Pods are used for conjunctivitis in the same manner as mesquite pods and the gum, although catsclaw is harder to harvest it is used in the same way as mesquite gum. The powdered pods and leaves make an excellent infused tea (2-4 ounces of the standard infusion every three hours) for diarrhea and dysentery, as well as a strongly astringent hemostatic and antimicrobial wash. The straight powder will stop superficial bleeding and can also be dusted into moist, chafed body folds and dusted on infants for diaper rash. The flowers and leaves as a simple tea are good anti-inflammatory for the stomach and esophagus in nausea, vomiting, and hangovers. It is distinctly sedative. The root is thick and mucilaginous as a tea and is good for sore throat and mouth inflammations as well as dry raspy coughing.
Aloe (Aloe barbadensis) Commercial aloe juice is made from the inner leaf, which is blended and strained, with a preservative added. To make aloe “gel”, the juice is thickened with seaweed to mimic the leaf’s original thick consistency. The crystalline part called aloin, a brownish gel found alongside the leaf blade, is powdered and used in some commercial laxatives. It is so strong that it must be combined with other herbs to prevent intestinal griping. The commercial juice and gel remove this part of the leaf, so both the juice and the gel are soothing to digestive tract irritations, such as peptic ulcers and colitis. In one study, the stomach lesions of twelve peptic ulcer patients were all completely healed. A popular ingredient in commercial drug store products, aloe is commonly used to soothe burns, including sunburn and radiation burns. Aloe is also applied to wounds, eczema, ringworm and poison oak and poison ivy rashes. There is evidence that it effectively regenerated injured nerves. One study reports aloe to be successful in healing leg ulcerations and severe acne and even finds that it promotes hair growth. When 56 frostbit patients were treated with a product containing 70% aloe, only 7% developed infections, compared to 98 frostbitten patients not treated with aloe, 33 of whom eventually needed amputation. It has also proved helpful in treating periodontosis. One study injected aloe extracts into the diseased areas of 128 patients with varying degrees of gum disease. Within a week, the development of symptoms stopped, pain decreased and marked improvement followed in all patients.
Aloe is wide used in folk medicine, both as a liniment and as a drink, to reduce the swelling and pain of arthritis and rheumatism. Diabetics in the Arabian peninsula eat aloe to control their blood sugar levels. A clinical study did find that when volunteers who were not insulin dependent took half a teasthingy daily for 4-14 weeks, their fasting blood sugar levels were reduced by half, with no change in body weight.
Another preparation from aloe, carrisyn, is a polysaccharide. It has been claimed that carrisyn directly kills various types of viruses, including herpes and measles, and possibly HIV. However, research is still in the preliminary stages.
Indigo (Indigofera sumatrana).
A plant cultivated in the Far East for many centuries, important for its purple dye which is resistant to fading.
Major commercial cultivation in India until the turn of the century when development of synthetic alternative caused economic crisis.
Ivy (Hedera Helix).
Evergreen climber common everywhere.
Leaves vary in shape. Trunk may reach 30 cm in diameter after long growth.
Medicinal use of leaves once made as wash for sores, burns etc. Leaves may cause dermatitis. Also thought to break down red blood corpuscles.
Smearwort (Aristolochia rotunda)
The name Smearwort is derived from its use as ointment. Poultices derived from the leaves were used to heal chronic sores. Roots were often used on sheep to remedy cough, and the seeds have found employment in the making of shagreen.
Poppy Seeds
Used to cause sleeping and relieves pains.
Comfrey
Mends broken bonesand stops infection.
Feverfew
Used to relieve migrains and helps fevers and chills.
Yarrow
Eaten to counter poisoning, but must be eaten quickly.
Catnip
Used to soothe coughs.
Acacia, Catsclaw (Acacia greggii) The pod is powdered and applied moistened as a poultice for muscle pain, bruises or sprains. It also is used for the same purposes as Mesquite. Gather the pods when still green and dry the leaves and branches over a paper as the leaves often fall off while hanging. The longer distal roots, chopped into small segments while moist. The gum is gathered the same way as mesquite gum and the flowers are dried. The green leaves, stems, and pods are powdered for tea (standard infusion) or for topical application; the roots are best used as a cold standard infusion, warmed for drinking and gargling.
Pods are used for conjunctivitis in the same manner as mesquite pods and the gum, although catsclaw is harder to harvest it is used in the same way as mesquite gum. The powdered pods and leaves make an excellent infused tea (2-4 ounces of the standard infusion every three hours) for diarrhea and dysentery, as well as a strongly astringent hemostatic and antimicrobial wash. The straight powder will stop superficial bleeding and can also be dusted into moist, chafed body folds and dusted on infants for diaper rash. The flowers and leaves as a simple tea are good anti-inflammatory for the stomach and esophagus in nausea, vomiting, and hangovers. It is distinctly sedative. The root is thick and mucilaginous as a tea and is good for sore throat and mouth inflammations as well as dry raspy coughing.
Aloe (Aloe barbadensis) Commercial aloe juice is made from the inner leaf, which is blended and strained, with a preservative added. To make aloe “gel”, the juice is thickened with seaweed to mimic the leaf’s original thick consistency. The crystalline part called aloin, a brownish gel found alongside the leaf blade, is powdered and used in some commercial laxatives. It is so strong that it must be combined with other herbs to prevent intestinal griping. The commercial juice and gel remove this part of the leaf, so both the juice and the gel are soothing to digestive tract irritations, such as peptic ulcers and colitis. In one study, the stomach lesions of twelve peptic ulcer patients were all completely healed. A popular ingredient in commercial drug store products, aloe is commonly used to soothe burns, including sunburn and radiation burns. Aloe is also applied to wounds, eczema, ringworm and poison oak and poison ivy rashes. There is evidence that it effectively regenerated injured nerves. One study reports aloe to be successful in healing leg ulcerations and severe acne and even finds that it promotes hair growth. When 56 frostbit patients were treated with a product containing 70% aloe, only 7% developed infections, compared to 98 frostbitten patients not treated with aloe, 33 of whom eventually needed amputation. It has also proved helpful in treating periodontosis. One study injected aloe extracts into the diseased areas of 128 patients with varying degrees of gum disease. Within a week, the development of symptoms stopped, pain decreased and marked improvement followed in all patients.
Aloe is wide used in folk medicine, both as a liniment and as a drink, to reduce the swelling and pain of arthritis and rheumatism. Diabetics in the Arabian peninsula eat aloe to control their blood sugar levels. A clinical study did find that when volunteers who were not insulin dependent took half a teasthingy daily for 4-14 weeks, their fasting blood sugar levels were reduced by half, with no change in body weight.
Another preparation from aloe, carrisyn, is a polysaccharide. It has been claimed that carrisyn directly kills various types of viruses, including herpes and measles, and possibly HIV. However, research is still in the preliminary stages.
Indigo (Indigofera sumatrana).
A plant cultivated in the Far East for many centuries, important for its purple dye which is resistant to fading.
Major commercial cultivation in India until the turn of the century when development of synthetic alternative caused economic crisis.
Ivy (Hedera Helix).
Evergreen climber common everywhere.
Leaves vary in shape. Trunk may reach 30 cm in diameter after long growth.
Medicinal use of leaves once made as wash for sores, burns etc. Leaves may cause dermatitis. Also thought to break down red blood corpuscles.
Smearwort (Aristolochia rotunda)
The name Smearwort is derived from its use as ointment. Poultices derived from the leaves were used to heal chronic sores. Roots were often used on sheep to remedy cough, and the seeds have found employment in the making of shagreen.
Poppy Seeds
Used to cause sleeping and relieves pains.
Comfrey
Mends broken bonesand stops infection.
Feverfew
Used to relieve migrains and helps fevers and chills.
Yarrow
Eaten to counter poisoning, but must be eaten quickly.
Catnip
Used to soothe coughs.