Figwort

Scientific Names

Scrophularia nodosa L.
Scrophulariaceae
Figwort family

Common Names

Carpenter’s square
Figwort root
Heal-all
Kernelwort
Knotty-rooted figwort
Rosenoble
Scrofula plant
Throatwort
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Description of Plant(s) and Culture

Figwort is a perennial plant that grows 2-4 feet high; the knobby rootstock is brown outside, whitish and fibrous inside. The erect, quadrangular, glabrous stem bears opposite, ovate to lanceolate, serrate leaves with an offensive odor. (Foliage is variegated green and creamy yellow on the S. n. variegata variety). Small globular, dark purple flowers appear in terminal panicles from June to October. Full sun or partial shade; zones 6-9. The plant is disease-free. It goes dormant in the fall; will seed itself so freely it can become a weed.

Other varieties: also called figwort (Scrophularia marilandica); the Chinese figwort (S. oldhami) is called Hsuau-shen.
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Where Found

Found in rich, damp woodlands, wastelands, and thickets from Maine to Georgia and Tennessee, and west to South Dakota and Kansas. Native to Europe and temperate Asia.
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Medicinal Properties

Diuretic, exanthematous, anodyne, depurative
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Biochemical Information

Stereoptene, propionic and acetic acid
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Uses

Figwort primarily is for external use; a skin medication for eczema, scabies, scurf, tumors, rashes, etc. Made into an ointment or fomentation it is used on scratches, bruises, and minor wounds. Treatments: deobstruent to the glandular system, tonsillitis, scrofula (tuberculosis of the lymph glands), gout, rheumatism, sluggish digestion, constipation, piles, takes away all redness, spots, and freckles of the face. Externally, for ringworm, psoriasis, varicose veins, piles, swelling, abscesses, ulcers, leprosy, boils, and itch.
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Formulas or Dosages

Infusion: use 1 heaping tsp. of the plant with 1 cup water. Take 1-2 cups per day. Figwort has a bitter taste and may be sweetened with honey.

Poultice: use the leaves, crush and apply as a poultice.

Tincture: take 1/2 to 1 tsp. at a time. Also may be used externally.
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Warning

Figwort stimulates the heart; avoid use in cases of rapid heartbeat or heart problems.
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Bibliography

American Folk Medicine, by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, 1973

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

Culpeper's Complete Herbal & English Physician, by Nicholas Culpeper, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, 1990, (reprint of 1814)

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

Herbal Gardening, compiled by The Robison York State Herb Garden, Cornell Plantations, Matthaei Botanical Gardens of the University of Michigan, University of California Botanical Garden, Berkeley., Pantheon Books, Knopf Publishing Group, New York, 1994, first edition

The Magic of Herbs, by David Conway, published by Jonathan Cape, Thirty Bedford Square, London, England. (Out of print)

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, 1984

The Rodale Herb Book, edited by William H. Hylton, Rodale Press, Inc. Emmaus, PA, 18049., 1974