Herb of The Season

Diary of a Herbalist
Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara)
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
Pilewort (Rananculus ficaria)

Over the course of the next couple of months I hope to contribute an article every 2/3 weeks to the IRH Website www.irh.ie based on my observation of herbs that grow around us, and I am hoping that other people will start to contribute to these articles and help to keep us informed of what seasonal herbs are growing in their area. I am also hoping to make observations on nature, plants and wildlife in my area and plan to organise a number of herb walks in Wexford and Dublin over the coming months. 

I have chosen three herbs for this article which were in full bloom the first weekend after Easter when the weather was incredibly beautiful and warm; you could really feel the sun and feel that summer had arrived. The common link between these three herbs is that they are all from the Asteraceae (Compositae) Daisy family and also perhaps the colour which is yellow, what the significance of this colour is I am not really sure, but it is the first indication of sunshine. The three herbs are: Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale), Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara) and Pilewort (Rananculus ficaria).

When I was asked a number of weeks ago to contribute a piece to the IRH website on a herb of the month, I had initially planned to do this by way of monograph. Then I thought what can I write about a monograph that hasn’t already been written. I then felt it might be more interesting to enlighten people on local herbs and show that we don’t need to look to China or America for amazing herbs when we have such equally amazing herbs growing all around us.

I will begin by talking about Dandelion, which as I stated is a member of the daisy family. Basically this herb, or as gardeners and people worldwide will call it ‘a weed’, will grow anywhere. The Chinese call it “golden hairpin weed”. This plant is almost indestructible, it self-fertilising, it has a deep tap root which makes it very difficult to take out, and it flowers almost all year long. Now what can you use dandelion for? Well where will I begin, it can do so much and was originally used as a spring tonic and still is. Recently I looked through a monograph on dandelion, which was over two pages long and the list of remedies varied from abscess to acne, from varicose veins to venereal warts, it is clear it is a one

herb heal all conditions. It is full of minerals especially potassium and vitamins A, B, C and D. The young leaves can be boiled up into a tea, or eaten fresh in salads. They are detoxifiers clearing blood and lymph by increasing elimination through the kidneys and bowels. This in turn benefits overall health. The main thing to think about with dandelion is liver; it is a safe liver herb especially where there are toxins or heat in the blood. The plants chemicals cause the gallbladder to contract releasing bile, stimulating the liver to produce more. So all liver related conditions are aided by dandelion including jaundice and hepatitis, gallstones and urinary tract infections, painful menopause, PMT and menstruation; improvements are achieved in the pancreas, spleen, skin and eyesight.

It is the bitterness in the dandelion that makes them so good for your digestion and this will help stimulate secretions of digestive fluids including stomach acid bile and pancreatic juices. As a diuretic it is really affective for swollen ankles, fluid retention and high blood pressure and can safely be used long term. The whole plant is invaluable for the liver and gallbladder problems, for skin complaints including acne and eczema; it helps reduce high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and pain of arteriosclerosis and joints, digestive problems, viral infections. Now I could say to people why not go out, gather a load of dandelions and make a tincture out of it but as most herbalists are either too busy or unwilling to do this, maybe they would do what I did myself last Sunday and make a dandelion infused flower oil and it is so easy to do. I am recommending if you were to do one thing this week just try to make this oil. Basically pick enough dandelion flowers and put them into a clean dry jar. Chop them up with a scissors and cover them with extra virgin olive oil, cover the jar with a piece of cloth tied with string, and leave the jar in a warm sunny place – a sunny window ledge is ideal. After about two weeks when the flowers are limp and have lost their colour strain off the oil. Allow standing and the oil can be poured into clean bottles leaving any watery bits in the bottom of the jar. Dandelion oil is an excellent rub for muscle tension and aches, and cold stiff joints; it is good for stiff necks and arthritis and also very good for dry skin. The oil can also be added to a salad. Essential oils can be added as a natural preservative, and bring their own healing qualities to the mixture, lavender and rosemary combine well, about 20 drops per 100ml of oil.

The second herb I want to talk about is Coltsfoot. Originally I had intended to do my monograph on Coltsfoot but very little of it had emerged with only one piece of it in my own garden and I was still waiting for that to flower, it was at least a month to six weeks later than last year. Coltsfoot in the middle Ages was known as Fillies ante partum (son before father) because the flower appears before the leaves. This herb grows anywhere from roadsides to hedgerows. Coltsfoot is a really good herb for that dry cough, and all kinds of upper respiratory tract complaints, as it is said to have a tonic effect. It contains mucilage, which is soothing to the mucous membranes.

You can make a tea out of the flowers or leaves. Recently when I went to look for it there was very little to be found but when I went out herb walking over Easter weekend low and behold I came across hundreds of flowers growing just outside a quarry on waste ground where you would imagine nothing would grow, it was just a sea of yellow, beautiful flowers. I sat with the plant for quite a while when the sun was shining and observed lots of flies and insects feeding on the nectar, I left a gift of some tobacco and gathered lots of flowering heads which I have since put drying in a shaded area of my poly tunnel and I am looking forward to trying it as tea. It is especially good when you add fennel to it. Perhaps I will bring some of the flowers to the tea bag club so others can enjoy. One note of caution, Coltsfoot has been found to contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids similar to comfrey. Not all these alkaloids are toxic, however, and coltsfoot’s small amount does not appear to be harmful at low doses. I can’t see these causing any problems as cough mixtures are not normally taken long term.

Coltsfoot combines well with mullein especially for dry coughs and as I stated is good as tea when used with fennel.

The third herb I came across was Pilewort, It was last Sunday and the sun was shining, I had just seen two swallows and thought I was seeing things then I came across a clump of yellow flowers which I initially thought were daisies growing at the side of the road but in fact it was Pilewort. To be honest I hadn’t noticed it the last couple of years and it is interesting how plants decide to come out at certain times and what triggers the mechanism of a plant to come out. That afternoon as I went walking up by the river I came across what could only be described as a carpet of yellow Pilewort. The type of soil it seems to like is damp, wet soil and I noticed that where this mass of Pilewort was now growing was within an area that had

recently been covered by flood waters, it was obvious the river had burst its banks at some stage over the winter and the water had come in and flattened the river bank over 30/40 feet. It is not an herb we use much and again there are a lot of question marks over it. It is an incredibly beautiful plant and Bartram encyclopaedia of Herbal Medicine lists its use for non-bleeding piles, itching anus and to sooth inflamed anal membranes can be taken as a tea 2-5 grams, thrice daily, probably safest to use externally as an ointment, 1 part whole fresh plant while in bloom to 3 parts benzoinated lard; macerated in gentle heat 24 hrs.

I will endeavour over the next couple of summer months to get out and see what herbs are in season at the time, however these may not be the herbs that everyone else is seeing so I do hope that my fellow herbalists will correspond and enlighten us on their observations and what’s growing in their area. It would be great if we could all put together local information on the herbs that are physically growing around us. Whilst we don’t all have the time or the energy to start digging up roots, washing them and chopping them to making tinctures and then worry about the quality we could all make some great teas, oils and creams.

I can also be contacted on john@ecoherb.ie and I am looking forward to hearing from other herbalists.