The Medicinal Herb Info site was created to help educate visitors about the often forgotten wisdom of the old ways of treating illnesses. Many of today's drugs and medicines were originally derived from natural ingredients, combinations of plants and other items found in nature.

We are not suggesting that you ignore the help of trained medical professionals, simply that you have additional options available for treating illnesses. Often the most effective treatment involves a responsible blend of both modern and traditional treatments.

We wish you peace and health!

Lamb’s Quarters

Scientific Names

Lamb's Quarters

  • Chenopodium album L.
  • Goosefoot family

Common Names

  • Hui-t’iao (Chinese name)
  • Pigweed
  • White goosefoot
  • Wild Spinach

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Parts Usually Used

Leaves
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Lamb's Quarters

Description of Plant(s) and Culture

Lamb’s quarter is an erect, annual weed, 1-3 feet high; the stem often mealy, red-streaked. Leaves somewhat diamond-shaped, coarsely toothed; mealy white beneath. Flowers greenish-white, on densely flowered spikes, inconspicuous; in clusters; June to October.
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Where Found

Found in gardens, fields, waste places. Throughout the United States.
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Medicinal Properties

Stomachic, antiscorbutic
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Biochemical Information

Phosphorus, iron, calcium, vitamins A, B2, Niacin, and C
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Legends, Myths and Stories

This weed found in most gardens makes a good spinach substitute. The young tops are pinched off and steamed in a small amount of water. The nutritional value is greater than spinach, and the flavor is similar. Foliage and seeds are edible.

Although discarded by most modern Americans, not so the Native Americans. Lamb’s Quarters are a favorite among and gathered by Navajos, the Pueblo Indians of New Mexico, all the tribes of Arizona, the Diggers of California, and the Utahs. Boiled as an herb alone, or with other foods, large quantities are also eaten in the raw state.
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Uses

Native Americans ate the leaves to treat stomachaches and prevent scurvy. Cold tea used for diarrhea. Leaf poultice used for burns and swellings. Fold remedy for vitiligo, a skin disorder.
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Nutrient Content

Phosphorus, iron, calcium, vitamins A, B2, Niacin, and C
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Bibliography

Buy It! Back to Eden, by Jethro Kloss; Back to Eden Publishing Co., Loma Linda, CA 92354, Original copyright 1939, revised edition 1994

Buy It! Chinese Medicinal Herbs, compiled by Shih-Chen Li, Georgetown Press, San Francisco, California, 1973.

Buy It! The Herbalist Almanac, by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, copyright 1988, fifth printing, 1994

Buy It! The Herb Book, by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974.

Buy It! Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants, by Steven Foster and James A. Duke., Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10000

Buy It! Webster’s New World Dictionary, Third College Edition, Victoria Neufeldt, Editor in Chief, New World Dictionaries: A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc., 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023

Buy It! The Rodale Herb Book: How to Use, Grow, and Buy Nature’s Miracle Plants (An Organic gardening and farming book), edited by William H. Hylton, Rodale Press, Inc. Emmaus, PA, 18049., 1974

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