Stinging nettles are one of the most useful herb to have in the garden. And it has been used for centuries as medicine for various ailments. It’s especially useful for those suffering from asthma and hay fever.
Catherine, the herbal gardener, told me to take some and make tea with it. She gave me a few plastic bags to put them in. The scary part was the furry spikes on the plants poked through the bag. All of a sudden I felt an intense burning and itchy feeling on my hands. Luckily the itched went away in 30 minutes. I guess they weren’t kidding when they named it “stinging nettle”.
So here I still have the stinging nettle in a glass filled with water. I am a bit apprehensive of the spikes so I haven’t prepare tea with it yet. Instructions are to never boil the plants. It’s best to infused the tea in hot water and let it sit for a while.
Dr. Christopher’s Herbal Legacy has a more detailed list of this plant as herbal medicine. Here is a partial list of it’s useful treatment:
*Anemia/fatigue
*Women’s complaints
Increase lactation
PMS
Menopause
Prenatal/eases labor
*Parasites
*Stones
Gravel from bladder
Kidney stones
Increase urine output
*Allergies
Hay fever
Seasonal allergies
Asthma
Hives
What’s interesting is that people also eat this plant - just boil or steam and serve - with spikes and all. I assume the cooking destroyed the spikes. But I don’t think I can go that far yet, so I’ll just try it as tea. I’ll have to use coffee filter to make sure the are not spikes floating around.
“Stinging nettle should be planted in it’s own spot away from the main garden and not allowed to go to seed or it will spread . It also spreads by runners like mint. It is worth growing however because it has tremendous soil building and health benefits.” - Local Harvest
