Chickweed
Parts Usually Used
The herb
Description of Plant(s) and Culture
An annual or biennial prostrate weed; the usually creeping, brittle stems grow from 4-12 inches long and bear opposite, entire, ovate small yellowish-green leaves. The small, white The taste is slightly salty. The seeds are eaten by poultry and birds.
Where Found
Found in abundance all over the world in gardens, fields, lawns, waste places, and along roadsides. A common European weed.
Medicinal Properties
Alterative, antioxidant, astringent, antirheumatic, carminative, demulcent, emollient, expectorant, laxative, refrigerant, mucilaginous, pectoral, discutient
Biochemical Information
Ascorbic acid (vitamin C), biotin, choline, copper, inositol, PABA, fatty acids, mucilage, minerals, phosphorus, potash salts, rutin, silicon, sodium, and vitamins B6, B12, and D. S. National Library of Medicine. Five compounds were isolated and identified as apigenin 6-C-beta-D-galactopyranosyl-8-C-alpha-L-arabinopyranoside (1), apigenin 6-C-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl-8-C-beta-D-galactopyranoside (2), apigenin 6-C-beta-D-galactopyranosyl-8-C-beta-L-arabinopyranoside (3), apigenin 6-C-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-8-C-beta-D-galactopyranoside (4), apigenin 6, 8-di-C-alpha-L-arabinopyranoside (5).
Legends, Myths and Stories
There are about 25 species native and naturalized on the American continent. The Native Americans used native Chickweed for many years, but also adopted naturalized species. Considered a great nuisance by gardeners, but it can be used as a food like spinach. It may be used fresh, dried, powdered, in poultices, fomentations, or made into a salve.
Uses
Historically, herbalists employed chickweed decoctions for severe constipation, though the plant was generally considered of limited value for other internal applications. The fresh leaves were traditionally crushed and applied directly to the skin, or incorporated into lard or petroleum-based ointments to manage bruises, irritations, and other cutaneous complaints. Nicholas Culpeper documented that boiling the herb with hog's grease and applying it topically was believed to assist with cramps and convulsions.
Folk traditions also saw chickweed consumed as a culinary vegetable akin to spinach, eaten raw, or brewed into an infusion. Practitioners claimed these preparations aided digestion, soothed internal inflammation, and reduced respiratory mucus associated with coughs, colds, bronchitis, pleurisy, asthma, and hoarseness. Historical accounts further credited the plant with addressing gastrointestinal complaints, stomach ulcers, rheumatism, gout, and scurvy, as well as curbing obesity.
Topically, herbal infusions and poultices were recommended for piles, mouth ulcers, eye inflammation, scalds, burns, and general skin afflictions, while cosmetic traditions utilized the infusion as a facial lotion intended to refine skin texture. The herb was also historically valued as a nutritional source of vitamin C and various minerals.
How Sold
Capsules, powder, ointment, tea
Bibliography
The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974. , Loma Linda, CA 92354, Original copyright 1939, revised edition 1994 The Complete Medicinal Herbal , by Penelope Ody, Dorling Kindersley, Inc, 232 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, First American Edition, copyright 1993 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 Herbalist Almanac , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, copyright 1988, fifth printing, 1994 Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants , by Steven Foster and James A.
, Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10000 The Nature Doctor: A Manual of Traditional and Complementary Medicine , by Dr. A. , 27 Pine Street (Box 876) New Canaan, CT. 06840-0876. Copyright Verlag A. Vogel, Teufen (AR) Switzerland 1952, 1991 The Magic of Herbs , by David Conway, published by Jonathan Cape, Thirty Bedford Square, London, England. , Lotus Press, PO Box 325, Twin Lakes.
, Simon & Schuster/Fireside, Rockefeller Center 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020 Indian Herbalogy of North America , by Alma R. , Horticultural Hall, 300 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, 1973 American Folk Medicine /i>, by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, 1973 Prescription for Nutritional Healing, Fifth Edition: A Practical A-to-Z Reference to Drug-Free Remedies Using Vitamins, Minerals, Herbs & Food Supplements , by James F.
D. and Phyllis A. , 180 Varick Street, New York, NY 10014, first printed by the United States Government Printing Office, Washington, in 1928, this Dover edition 1974 The Yoga of Herbs: An Ayurvedic Guide to Herbal Medicine , by Dr. David Frawley & Dr. Vasant Lad, Lotus Press, Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, Second edition, 1988. , Special Sale Catalog, 1996