Page 93 - Lost Book Remedies

The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies

and bacteria, and they help increase the deployment of will sprout in the spring. The tubers bruise easily and
white blood cells to areas of infection. lose moisture quickly, so I usually prefer to leave them
in the ground and harvest them when needed.
Harvesting: Dig up the roots in autumn or leave
them in the ground over the winter to harvest in the Warning: Jerusalem Artichokes can cause digestive
spring. Store them in high humidity to prevent them distress and excessive gas in some people.
from wilting and softening. Tubers left in the ground

flowers are
Lady’s Thumb, densely packed
in 1-inch (2.5 cm)
Polygonum persicaria or spiked terminal
Persicaria maculosa clusters. They
spike open, while

Lady’s thumb, also known as smartweed, heart’s ease, those of the pale
spotted knotweed, or redshank, is a broadleaf weed look-alike smart-
that is often found growing in large clumps. It grows in weed remain
disturbed wet soil across North America. It is in the closed (pale
Polygonaceae (Buckwheat/Knotweed) Family. smartweed also
lacks the purple
leaf smudge).
Each bloom is ap- Stem of Lady's Thumb, Martin Olsson, CC by
proximately 1/8 SA 3.0
inch (0.35 cm) across with five petals. Fruits are brown
to black and glossy. They have three sides and are egg-
shaped. Each fruit contains one tiny seed.
Edible Use: The leaves and young shoots can be
eaten raw or cooked. Gather young leaves and sprouts
in the spring to mid-summer. As they mature, they be-
come more peppery and less palatable. The seeds are
also edible, but they are rather small and require a lot
of work to harvest enough to make a serving.
Medicinal Use: Use as a tea, decoction, or by ap-
plying the leaves directly to the skin.
Stomach Pains: For stomach pain and digestive
upset, drink a leaf tea.
Polygonum persicaria by Bouba at French Wikipedia, photo by Skin Ailments: Lady’s thumb is a rubefacient, and
Bouba, CC-BY-SA-3.0-migrated
thus increases blood circulation at the skin’s surface,
supporting healing. It is also an astringent. Use for poi-
Identification: Lady’s thumb grows from 1 to 3 feet son ivy, poison oak, skin rashes, and other skin ail-
tall (0.3 meters to 0.9 meters) and is an erect plant. ments. Rub the crushed leaves on the skin or put a
The 2 to 6-inch-long (5 cm to 17.5 cm) leaves are alter- poultice on the surface of the skin.
nate, narrow, and lance-shaped with wavy edges. They
usually, but not always, have a dark green to purple Arthritis: For arthritic pain, soak in a tub of warm
spot in the middle. Leaves may be hairless or covered water containing a decoction of lady’s thumb. The de-
sparsely with small stiff hairs. Leaf nodes are sur- coction can also be mixed with flour to form a wet poul-
rounded by a thin papery membrane that wraps tice to help relieve painful joints.
around the stem. The small, dark pink, (rarely white)
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