Agrimony

Parts Usually Used

Dried whole plant before flowering, without the roots.

Description of Plant(s) and Culture

A perennial plant with an erect stem (2-3 feet tall) with few branches, bearing pinnate leaves; and a terminal leafless flower spike, with many small, bright yellow, five-petalled flowers. The leaves narrow and about 5 inches long, have alternating pairs of large and small, saw-toothed leaflets. The whole plant is deep green and is covered with soft hairs. Fruits are upside-down cones, covered with hooked bristles on the top.

Golden star-shaped flowers have a mild apricot scent. This is not the generally known troublesome cockleburr. Agrimony grows best in light shade and dryish soil. Agrimonia eupatoria is listed in early American herbals as Agrimonia gryposepala. eupatoria reported here; and A. Pilosa, thought to have antitumor activity. (Also called cucklbur is Xanthium strumarium)

Where Found

Grows abundantly by roadsides, at field edges, and on wasteland, and on the northern prairies and in Canada. A European native. Good rock garden plant.

Medicinal Properties

Astringent, antispasmodic, anti-inflammatory, diuretic, hemostatic (stops bleeding), analgesic, and promotes bile flow, tonic

Biochemical Information

Tannins, bitter glycosides, nicotinic acid amide, silicic acid, vitamins B and K, iron and essential oil.

Legends, Myths and Stories

Mainly valued today as a healing herb for the mucous membranes and for its astringent properties to stop bleeding. It has been used since Saxon times for wounds. In the 15th century, it was the prime ingredient of “arquebusade water”, a battlefield remedy for gunshot wounds. This healing power is now attributed to the herb’s high silica content. A related variety, (A. pilosa) known as xian he cao in China, is used in a similar way.

Uses

Historical herbalists used agrimony as a mild sedative for dry coughs and recommended it for certain forms of rheumatism. Also known in some traditions as liverwort, it was regarded as a tonic for the liver and was traditionally employed for complaints involving the liver, spleen, kidneys, and gallbladder, including jaundice and gallstones. In French folk tradition, the plant was consumed as a beverage both for its flavor and for its reputed medicinal properties.

Herbal teas made from agrimony were historically administered for fevers, colds, sore throats, indigestion, diarrhea, mucus colitis, gout, dropsy, and internal parasites, as well as being used as a gargle for throat irritation and a wash for conjunctivitis. Practitioners also prepared poultices from the fresh leaves and roots to apply to bruises, wounds, ulcers, sores, and to help extract thorns and splinters.

Additionally, extracts were sometimes compounded into suppositories aimed at addressing hemorrhoids, tapeworms, and diarrhea.

How Sold

Tea

Bibliography

The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974. The Herbalist Almanac , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, copyright 1988, fifth printing, 1994 Culpeper’s Complete Herbal & English Physician: Updated With 117 Modern Herbs , by Nicholas Culpeper, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, 1990, (reprint of 1814) The Complete Medicinal Herbal , by Penelope Ody, Dorling Kindersley, Inc, 232 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, First American Edition, copyright 1993 Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants , by Steven Foster and James A.

, 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) Indian Herbalogy of North America , by Alma R. , Lotus Press, PO Box 325, Twin Lakes. , 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023 An Instant Guide to Medicinal Plants , by Pamela Forey and Ruth Lindsay, Crescent Books (January 27, 1992).

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. , 1974