Lamium album
| Lamium album | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 4 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 2' |
| Width: | 3' |
| Blooms: | Late Spring-Early Winter |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Shelter | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Lamium album (common name: white dead nettle)
Propagation: Seed - this species usually self sows freely and should not require human intervention. When required it can be sown in situ as soon as it is ripe.
Division in spring. Division succeeds at almost any time in the growing season[K]. Very easy, larger clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the spring.
Cultivation: A very easily grown plant, it tolerates most soils and conditions[1]. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Prefers a sunny position, though it also does well in partial shade[2].
Plants are hardy to about -25°c[3].
The white dead nettle is too weedy to be grown in the flower garden, but it does well in the wild garden and self-sows when well sited[1].
Plants seem to be immune to the predations of rabbits[4].
A good bee plant[5][6] and a good companion plant, helping any vegetables growing nearby[7][8].
Range: Europe, including Britain, from Scandanavia south and east to Spain, the Himalayas and Japan.
Habitat: Fields, hedgerows, woodland edges and clearings and moist waste ground[9][10][11].
Edibility: Young leaves - raw or cooked[12][13][9][14][15]. They can be added to salads or mixed with other leaves and cooked as a potherb[16]. They can also be dried for later use[17]. The leaves are a good source of vitamin A[18].
A pleasant herb tea is made from the flowers[2].
Medicinal: White dead nettle is an astringent and demulcent herb that is chiefly used as a uterine tonic, to arrest inter-menstrual bleeding and to reduce excessive menstrual flow. It is a traditional treatment for abnormal vaginal discharge and is sometimes taken to relieve painful periods[19].
The flowering tops are antispasmodic, astringent, cholagogue, depurative, diuretic, expectorant, haemostatic, hypnotic, pectoral, resolvent, sedative, styptic, tonic, vasoconstrictor and vulnerary[5][9][10][14][20][21][22][23][2][18]. An infusion is used in the treatment of kidney and bladder complaints[10], diarrhoea, menstrual problems, bleeding after childbirth, vaginal discharges and prostatitis[2][19]. Externally, the plant is made into compresses and applied to piles, varicose veins and vaginal discharges[9][2][19]. A distilled water from the flowers and leaves makes an excellent and effective eye lotion to relieve ophthalmic conditions[9]. The plant is harvested in the summer and can be dried for later use[10].
A homeopathic remedy is made from the plant[10]. It is used in the treatment of bladder and kidney disorders and amenorrhoea[10].
Usage: The plant has a creeping rootstock and makes a good groundcover plant for woodland edges[6].
Pollinators: Bees
Notes: A fairly common weed, it should be fairly easy to find it growing wild.
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Seed Ripens: Mid Summer-Early Winter
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Heavy Clay: Grows in heavy-clay soils.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Bown, Deni. Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopaedia of Herbs and Their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, 1995.
- ↑ Phillips, Roger and Martyn Rix. Perennials - The Definitve Reference. Pan Books, 1991.
- ↑ Thomas, Graham. Perennial Garden Plants. J. M. Dent & Sons, 1990.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Baines, Chris. Making a Wildlife Garden.
- ↑ Hylton, Josie and William Holtom. Complete Guide to Herbs. Rodale Press, 1979.
- ↑ Philbrick, Helen and Richard Gregg. Companion Plants. Watkins, 1979.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 Chiej, Roberto. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald, 1984.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 Launert, Edmund. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn, 1981.
- ↑ Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ Mabey, Richard. Food for Free. Collins, 1974.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Triska, Jan. Encyclopaedia of Plants. Hamlyn, 1975.
- ↑ Hatfield, Audrey. How to Enjoy your Weeds. Frederick Muller Ltd, 1974.
- ↑ Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ Loewenfeld, Claire and Philippa Back. Britain's Wild Larder. David and Charles.
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Chopra, R. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants. Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi, 1986.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 Chevallier, Andrew. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants. Dorling Kindersley, 1996.
- ↑ Lust, John. The Herb Book. Bantam Books, 1983.
- ↑ Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ Mills, Simon. The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism.