Coltsfoot
Parts Usually Used
Berries, flowers, root and leaves
Description of Plant(s) and Culture
Coltsfoot is a perennial plant 4-8 inches high; the creeping rootstock sends up first the downy white scaly flower stems topped by large, bright, yellow, daisy-like flowers with many slender rays on a reddish-scaled stalk, then, after the flowers wilt, the cordate, dentate (heart-shaped) leaves appear from whose shape the plant gets its name. The leaves stand on long footstalks and are glabrous above and downy white beneath.
March-April.
Where Found
Found in the United States, Europe, Siberia, and the East Indies in wet areas such as streambanks, in pastures, hedges, waste land, and on ridges or embankments, preferring loamy and limestone soils. Nova Scotia to New Jersey; Ohio to Minnesota.
Medicinal Properties
Astringent, demulcent, emollient, expectorant, antitussive, anti-inflammatory, pectoral, diaphoretic, tonic
Biochemical Information
Caoutchouc, volatile oils, pectin, resin, and tannins Flowers contain mucin, two flavonoids (rutin and arnidiol) and faradio, essential oil. Leaves contain mucin, abundant tannin, sitosterol, saltpeter, inulin, a glycosidal bitter principle.
Legends, Myths and Stories
Coltsfoot is a curious herb which seems to grow in 2 distinct stages. Very early in the growing season, the plant develops flat orange flower heads. Only after the flowers have withered do the broad, hoof-shaped, sea-green leaves develop. This habit of growth earned coltsfoot its old name of Filius ante patrem (the son before the father). Smoking coltsfoot for coughs and asthma was recommended by Dioscorides, the Greek physician.
The Latin name of the plant means “cough dispeller” and even today, herbal cigarettes often contain coltsfoot. In China, only the flowers, known as kuan dong hua, are used. Mat I Matcheha, mother and step mother, is Russia’s name for coltsfoot. Coltsfoot is said to “madden young stallions and fleeted mares”. Coltsfoot herb is a main ingredient in British herbal smoke mixtures, generally consisting of Buckbean, Eyebright, Rosemary, Thyme, Lavender, and Chamomile.
Uses
Historical herbals recommended the plant for persistent coughs, asthma, bronchitis, hoarseness, catarrh, sore throats, pleurisy, and headaches. Traditional practitioners also employed it for fever, diarrhea, indigestion, and piles. The leaves were sometimes smoked in folk tradition for chronic bronchitis, shortness of breath, and dry coughs. Externally, historical sources recorded the application of crushed leaves or decoctions for insect bites, burns, sores, and various localized swellings.
How Sold
Capsules, extract
Warning
Contains traces of liver-affecting pyrrolizidine alkaloids, potentially toxic in large doses, has caused liver damage in rats. Use internally only under medical supervision.
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 Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants , by Steven Foster and James A. , Loma Linda, CA 92354, Original copyright 1939, revised edition 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) Old Ways Rediscovered , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, published from 1954, print 1988 Chinese Medicinal Herbs , compiled by Shih-Chen Li, Georgetown Press, San Francisco, California, 1973.
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. , Copyright 1988, published 1992 The Complete Medicinal Herbal , by Penelope Ody, Dorling Kindersley, Inc, 232 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, First American Edition, copyright 1993 Indian Herbalogy of North America , by Alma R.
, Horticultural Hall, 300 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, 1973 American Folk Medicine , 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. , Garden City Park, NY 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. , 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023 An Instant Guide to Medicinal Plants , by Pamela Forey and Ruth Lindsay, Crescent Books (January 27, 1992). , West Nyack, NY, 1987. , Special Sale Catalog, 1996 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