"medicinal" news and stories

Many of the plants I read about and see can be used for tea. Some must be dried first, and some can be used dried or fresh. I would like to start with the most common ones first. These plants can be found almost anywhere. I found these three growing in my yard upstate.

While mowing the lawn Sunday, I smelled the familiar spicy-minty smell of ground ivy, also known as gill-over-the-ground, creeping charlie, catsfoot, and several other localized nicknames. Ground ivy is a small ground cover that frequently runs amok at the edges of lawns and around buildings. It has fan-shaped, toothed, opposed leaves, and produces small funnel-shaped blue to violet flowers. It grows with runners, and will appear like many small vines tangled in the other weeds that grow at the edges of landscaped areas.

Crushing and smelling the leaves will confirm that you have ground ivy. It has a distinctively mint-like odor. Tea from ground ivy should be made from dried leaves. I did some research on the uses for ground ivy tea. The medicinal uses are extensive.

Fiery-Foods.com recently featured a fascinating and thorough article by Fiery-Foods and BBQ editor Dave DeWitt. The article examines uses of chiles around the world to treat a variety of ailments from headaches to hemorrhoids. The piece opens with a discussion of how many cultures also use the sting of chile pods as a means of disciplining unruly children. Also included is mention of a chile eyewash used by some to simulate conjunctivitis and avoid hard labor. There are several recipes for chile-based tonics, syrups and ointments included throughout DeWitt's article. None, of course, are intended as medical treatments or advice.

[Photo: Nick Vagnoni]