Description
Plantago major
Well known herb, or weed, if you are that way inclined. Edible leaves can be used raw or cooked, they are high in calcium and vitamins A, C and K. They can also be dried and used to make a tea. The seeds are high in vitamin B and can be used raw or cooked.
This plant is also widely acknowledged to be a safe and effective medicinal treatment for a host of complaints. and its use dates as far back as Alexander the Great (356 B.C.-323 B.C.) who used plantain to cure his headaches and Pedanius Dioscorides (40 BC-90BC), who studied medicine in Egypt and was a physician in the Roman Army, who used plantain for its soothing, cooling, healing and softening properties. The Anglo-Saxons (450 A.D. to 1066 A.D.) listed plantain as one of their nine sacred herbs.
Modern testing has proved its effectiveness for wound healing and as a treatment for lung conditions, including bronchitis, asthma, coughs, mucous membrane irritations, upper respiratory infections. Research has also shown that it is valuable used topically for skin problems. Amongst other things, a poultice of the leaves can be used on wounds and stings to help heal and prevent infection, and a leaf tea treats diarrhea and is useful for treating menopause symptoms, as well as being a powerful antioxidant. Plantain is great to have in the garden – if you get a bee sting, insect bite, stinging nettle sting or a splinter just pick a fresh leaf chew it up and use the pulp on the complaint.
Plantain can also be fed to or foraged by chooks and stock for its nutritional and medicinal benefits. Finally this taprooted plant is useful for breaking up hardpans and stabilizing soils. Hard to see then why it is a major target of herbicides in many gardens. Why not embrace its benefits instead?!
9cm pot. Certified organic plant.
Freight: full list of freight and packing charges
Photo: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grote_weegbree_bloeiwijze_Plantago_major_subsp._major.jpg
