Food and medicine can be found right under our noses in our gardens if we only take the time to identify some weeds.
Recently I had to relocate my vegetable and herb garden to make room to build our house. It was a huge task but thanks to my husband’s help everything was transplanted beautifully apart from several small rhubarb plants.
They failed to grow but in their place a very healthy crop of green amaranth (A. viridus) sprang up. My husband almost pulled them out because he thought they were weeds. Thankfully he checked with me first (as he has learned to do over the years!).
We may not have all of the rhubarb plants from the original garden but in their place we have a plentiful supply of a green pot herb that is also a medicinal herb.
Other edible amaranths include A. caudatus, a. cruentus, a. lividus, and A. powelli. The young stems of these amaranths can be boiled or steamed as a vegetable and while tender they lack fibre. Green amaranth leaves are an excellent substitute for spinach and can successfully replace it in most dishes. They can also be added to salads, stews, soups, and casseroles. Apart from the plant’s use as a vegetable or pot herb, the clusters of nutty edible seeds are certainly worth eating as a raw snack or added to biscuits to give them a mild flavour and crunch. The seeds can be easily harvested by scraping the ripe (reddish-brown) spikes and boiled in a little water to make a simple but healthy porridge.
As for green amaranth’s medicinal properties, the leaves are emollient and have traditionally been used to treat scorpion sting and snake bite, tumours, and to help rid the body of intestinal worms. Many cultures have different uses for the plant but they are not well documented. However, the leaves can be used as a poultice to treat bruises, boils, and wounds.
Weeds can be a nuisance but those I’ve identified have mostly been beneficial to man and animals and well worth allowing to grow in my garden, which isn’t difficult to do if they are kept in control.
A Rose and an Amaranth blossomed side by side in a garden,
and the Amaranth said to her neighbour,
“How I envy you your beauty and your sweet scent!
No wonder you are such a universal favourite.”
But the Rose replied with a shade of sadness in her voice,
“Ah, my dear friend, I bloom but for a time:
my petals soon wither and fall, and then I die.
But your flowers never fade, even if they are cut;
Recent research has shown this herb has the potential to treat the early stages of conditions such as malaria, and diabetes.
(Bidens pilosa)
Cobbler’s Pegs
Also known as pitchforks and beggar’s ticks, cobbler’s pegs is naturalized in the tropical and warmer temperate areas of the world. It grows in many areas of Australia and I have seen it growing in both temperate and tropical parts of Queensland including the Atherton Tableland and southeast Queensland. In fact it is growing on the property where my husband and I now live and it also grew on a property we had on the Atherton Tablelands. On the tableland property we bred sheep for wool and the seeds that give the plant its name became attached to their wool, which made it difficult when combing it for spinning. Apart from wool and animal fur the seeds become attached to clothing and socks, and can be a real nuisance.
Looking at the structure of the seeds it’s easy to understand why they are so adept at attaching themselves. The tiny seeds are dark grey with two paler grey prongs that have tiny barbs. Cobbler’s pegs is an annual herb that grows to about one metre and has spreading branches. The thin, hairy, and soft leaves are in opposite pairs and the tiny white flowers with orange centres appear at the end of all branches and branchlets from summer to autumn.
Found in the cracks of walls and pavements, roadsides, and any waste or disturbed ground, the herb is thought to have originated in the Americas from where it has spread to other continents possibly preceding European exploration.
Culinary Uses
Cobbler’s pegs’ culinary uses are minimal. The young shoots are edible and are sometimes used as a green vegetable, however, the volatile oils create such a strong flavour that most people tend to find the plant more agreeable as a medicinal herb.
Medicinal Properties and Uses
The herb doesn’t have any notable aromatic oils but an infusion of the plant, sometimes using the flower heads only, has been used as a tonic and stimulant in domestic medicine as well as for conditions including coughs, diarrhoea and dysentery. In some countries the flowers, roots, or shoots were chewed for toothache, young shoots were chewed to treat rheumatism, the juice of the leaves were dropped in to the eyes as a treatment for conjunctivitis and to treat earache, and a strong decoction of the leaves was taken to treat any type of inflammation.
B. pilosa has also been used traditionally to treat other conditions including wounds, flu, colds, fever, neuralgia, smallpox, snake bite, pain, aneamia, rectal prolapse, hepatitis, jaundice, and colic.
Recent Research: There are several varieties of B. pilosa and one of them, B. pilosa Linn var. radiata, found in Japan and tropical America, has been analyzed. The results have shown that it contains active constituents including phenylpropanoids, flavonoids, flavone glycosides, polyacetylenes, aurones, and chalcones as well as beta-carotene, iron, zinc, and calcium.
There are a number of research papers that have observed significant health benefits of B. pilosa as a herbal medicine. While there is still much research to be done the health potential of this herb is certainly very promising.
Research on this herb first began to substantiate its traditional uses but in doing so it was discovered that it has the potential to treat the early stages of malaria, inflammation, diabetes, hypertension, cancer, and allergies; it also has antimicrobial action.
Note: Before locating and making use of this plant as a medicine it’s important to note that B. pilosa takes up cadmium. A study has shown that the herb is very useful in helping to remedy the environment of cadmium pollution but has no known chelation effect on humans. Because of this it would be very wise to know the area when harvesting the plant for medicinal use.
Although cobbler’s pegs can be a nuisance because its seeds attach themselves to clothing and wool, it is harmless to grazing animals apart from possibly tainting the taste of milk, most probably because of the volatile oil. These are minor details though when the herb provides humans and animals with a valuable medicine for a wide range of ailments.
Also known as coast morning glory, purple beach convolvulus, and goat’s-foot morning glory this plant has fascinated me since I was a little girl. Its medicinal properties substantiate the ancient and modern herbalists’ belief that Mother Nature ensures that medicinal herbs grow where mankind will need them.This plant is a prime example of the philosophy because it grows on beaches where it’s available to treat stings from marine creatures. Australian aborigines heated beach convolvulus leaves and placed them against the stings of stonefish and stingrays. Some say that the juice of the leaves also worked well. They also used the heated leaves the same way to treat other conditions such as boils, headaches, sores, swellings, and ant stings. Decoctions made from the leaves were drunk to treat colds and also were used as a wash for scabies. The Australian aborigines weren’t the only people to use the plant for treating these conditions, those from Latin America, India, Africa, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, and Torres Strait also used the plant for similar purposes.
It is interesting to note here that although beach convolvulus is popularly believed to have a powerful constituent that counters stings, two American studies have found that the plant has no medicinal effect. However, a study done in Thailand has discovered a substance in the plant that is mildly antihistaminic and it does counter the poison from jellyfish.
The seeds of beach convolvulus have been spread around vast regions of the Indian and Pacific oceans by ocean currents and wherever the plant is found growing it is known as a strong medicine.
Beach convolvulus is a trailing creeper that grows vigorously on sandy beaches and coastal sand dunes. The leathery heart-shaped leaves have a cleft at the tip and are shaped like a goat’s footprint hence its Latin name pes-caprae, meaning ‘foot of goat’. Pink or lavender trumpet flowers appear in autumn and the seeds are found inside capsules at the end of long stalks.
While the plant is native to Africa and Asia it has spread throughout the India-Pacific region including northern and eastern Australia and is found on beaches as far south as Sydney.
Closely related to sweet potato, beach convolvulus has a similar starchy root that has an irritant taste and fibrous texture so Aborigines only ate it in times of famine. In other areas the leaves have been boiled as a vegetable.The tough, flexible stems have been used to make cord, and the leaves were used to provide shade for fish traps.
Originating in southern African, balloon cotton-bush is now widely naturalized in northern New Zealand, Australia, and other subtropical parts of the world. This evergreen shrub has star-shaped white flowers that appear in summer and pale green narrow leaves. It’s a short-lived shrub that was used in African medicine as a purgative and for intestinal conditions in children. Europeans living in Africa powdered the leaves to use as a snuff to help treat lung diseases. However, the plant is known to be poisonous so using it as a medicine is not recommended at all. There have been cases of animals being poisoned after consuming the plant although fatalities have been rare.
Apart from medicinal uses a fibre is made from the stems and the soft seed-hairs inside the inflated fruits have been used instead of kapok to stuff cushions.
A member of the soapberry family (sapindacea), balloon vine or heartseed is a common climber found growing in many tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Thought to be native to Africa, the Americas, and Asia the plant probably evolved in South America.
It is a fast-growing weedy, tendril-climber with three cornered bladder type fruits formed from scented white flowers that bloom in summer. Its common name, balloon vine, was derived from the shape of the fruit. However, Linnaeus, who gave the plant its botanical name Cardiospermum from the Greek kardia, heart, and, sperma, seed named it after the heart-like shape of the fruit.
The vine grows to a height of about six metres and has alternating ferny leaves growing from slender, hairy stems. The two centimetre wide bell-shaped flowers have four petals and are in short racemes that terminate at the end of long stalks. The greenish-white pendulous three angled fruits are up to five centimeters long and have three compartments containing a single black spherical seed in each one.This attractive so-called weed can be found growing wild in waste places and roadsides. It often grows in a dense mass that has the potential to smother native plants so is sometimes regarded as a pest, which is a shame because it has very useful medicinal properties.
Balloon vine is a traditional medicinal plant in Asian countries and can be found in the Ayurvedic medicine pharmacopoeia of Sri Lanka and India. This attests to the age-old use of the plant in these countries because the pharmacopoeia originated thousands of years ago.
The leaves, root, and seeds are used. If you are fortunate enough to have the vine growing close by you can make a poultice from the leaves to treat wounds, skin infections, swellings, sprains, and arthritis. Inhale crushed leaves to relieve headache and make eardrops from the juice of the leaves to treat earache. To treat bronchitis and nervous disorders make an infusion of the leaves. Taking a decoction of the roots can stop bleeding from haemorrhoids and a decoction from the crushed seeds can relieve fevers and rheumatism. This is a valuable plant that should be taken on board in the west as a medicinal plant rather than being viewed as a weed.
(Chamaesyce hirta – formerly Euphorbia pilulifera)
Native to tropical America and naturalized in Northern Australia, India, and other tropical and subtropical regions, asthma plant can be found growing on river flats, waste places, and roadsides. Also commonly known as pill-bearing spurge, the plant is a semi-prostrate annual with spreading stems that grow up to 40 centimetres (19”) long. It has opposite pairs of purplish-green, ovate leaves that are up to 4 centimetres (6/8”) in length. The tiny flowers, consisting of small reddish heads, are borne in the leaf-axils and produce tiny globe shaped fruit.
Historically used for coryza (profuse discharge from the mucous membranes of the nose), hayfever, and emphysema, it is now used by professional herbalists to treat asthma, spasms of the larynx, upper respiratory catarrh, bronchitis, and anti-amoebic activity.
During the 1800s and well in to the 1900s the herb played a major role in the treatment of asthma in the former British colonies including Australia. Named after the condition that it was mostly used for the herb was prepared as a decoction or made in to a tincture. Used as folk medicine in other parts of the world including Africa and Asia for the treatment of respiratory and intestinal conditions, asthma plant also has other uses. All parts of the plant secrete large amounts of white latex (sap) when broken and is used by the Australian aborigines to remove warts. The Malaysians used the latex to treat eye conditions and they pounded the whole plant to make a poultice to treat bruises.
Much of the plants healing virtues were written about in the late 1800s and the early 1900s and it was listed in the British Pharmacopoeia until the 1950s if not later. Apart from making decoctions and tinctures from the herb, another way of obtaining its medicinal action for respiratory conditions was to smoke it or burn it and inhale the smoke. It is a strong herb so compared to many medicinal plants, the adult dose should be very small: 0.12 – 0.30 grams of the dried herb three times daily.
Harvest the plant during flowering, in late spring to autumn.
Many commercial hot chillies may have originated from Capsicum frutescense which some believe was introduced from India to the West in 1548. Back then it was known as Ginnie pepper and was recommended by Gerard for scrofula, a prevalent lymphatic throat and skin infection that was called King’s Evil. Others believe that the plant originated in the equatorial Americas where its seeds have been found in Mexican caves that date back to 7000BC. Whatever its origins the plant has become a popular culinary and medicinal herb in many parts of the world including the Mediterranean, China, southeast Asia, India, United Kingdom, Australia, and the USA. Because of its warming properties cayenne was used by nineteenth century Physiomedicalists to treat such conditions as depression, chills and rheumatism.
Medicinal Uses
Hot chillies stimulate the salivary glands and have a cleansing action on the digestive tract, helping to rid it of intestinal parasites. Cayenne’s character is drying, pungent, and very hot. Its properties give it the actions of circulatory stimulant, carminative, antibacterial, stimulating nerve tonic, antiseptic, gastric stimulant, and it also promotes sweating. Applied topically it’s a counter-irritant because it helps to increase blood flow to the area of application so it’s helpful for treating conditions such as arthritic joints and rheumatism. When I treat a patient who is suffering from a spur on the heel I make a cayenne ointment and get them to apply it to the spur (using gloves of course) and have them cover the area with a sock. By doing this the increased blood flow helps to break up the spur over time.
To treat chills, colds, shock, cold feet and hands, make an infusion by pouring a cup of boiling water over half a teaspoon of fresh herb. Let it steep for at least ten minutes then dilute 20 ml of the infusion with a cup of hot water and sip as needed. Sluggish digestion can be stimulated by taking several drops of the undiluted infusion before meals. The infusion can also be used to treat tonsillitis and to ease the severe pain of migraines and shingles. To treat bruising, sprains, and rheumatic pains make a compress by soaking a pad in the infusion. Apply to the affected area.
Cautions Don’t consume the seeds as they can be toxic.
Too much cayenne can lead to liver damage and enteritis so always take the recommended dosage.
Always use gloves when handling fresh chillies to avoid irritating the eyes or cuts.
If using the herb in a compress don’t ever leave it on the skin for a long time, especially if it’s sensitive, as it can cause blistering.
Medicinal doses must be avoided during pregnancy or when breastfeeding.
The dreadful distress caused by excess doses of cayenne can be fatal to humans.
A member of the Amaranth family, chaff flower is a weedy plant used as herbal medicine in African and Asian villages. In India and Sri Lanka the plant is used in Ayurvedic medicine to cure or prevent poisonous snake bites and to treat rabies after someone has been bitten by an infected animal. It’s unlikely that such use of the plant is valid however, there does seem to be some benefit in using poultices of the pounded leaves to ease the discomfort of less serious conditions such as rheumatism, chills, scorpion bites, bruises, and for skin ailments and eye infections. A diuretic is made from the flowers, seeds or roots.
Native to India and Australia, chaff flower has a wide distribution mainly because of the way its seeds are dispersed over long distances. They are enclosed in small, hollow, dry fruits that are covered with enough of the remains of the prickly flower to enable them to be carried by the wind and to easily attach to bird feathers, animal fur, and people’s clothing. The plant is a soft-wooded shrub growing up to 1.5 metres tall. Its elliptical leaves appear in opposite pairs and are 10 centimetres long. Narrow, purplish-green flowers, 5 millimetres long, are crowded and borne on slender spikes that rise above the leaves.
Chaff flower grows as a native in the warmer areas of Asia, Africa, and Australasia. It is widespread in the northern half of the Australian continent and has been introduced to New Zealand’s far north.
Other members of the Amaranth family include green amaranth (A. viridus), which was used as a substitute for spinach in the early colonial days of Australia, redroot amaranth (A. retroflexus), spiny or needle burr amaranth (A. spinosus), and slim amaranth (A.hybridus).
In Africa and Asia the young leaves and stems of amaranth are a popular potherb known for their tenderness and lack of fibre. Slim and spiny amaranths provide much needed amino acids for the South African Zulus who have a vegetarian diet of maize meal.
Green amaranth has clusters of nutty seeds that make an excellent crunchy addition to biscuits or can be eaten as a raw snack. The seeds are ripe when they are reddish-brown and can easily be harvested by scraping the spikes between the fingers. Porridge can be made by boiling the seeds in a little water. To use as a vegetable cook the leaves as you would cook spinach.
The Atherton Tableland, Queensland, Australia, is a beautiful place. Some years ago my family and I lived there on a farm where a strong smelling weed grew prolifically. The smell was unpleasant to say the least but was mostly evident when the plant was handled or mowed. Apart from its nuisance value I didn’t take much notice of it until a local was visiting us; she told me it was called ‘stinking roger’ and it was a great herb for repelling fleas. So I stopped tossing the weeded plants on to the compost heap and began laying them where our dogs slept. I did notice later that there seemed to be no fleas around their bedding. While we lived there I continued using the plant as a natural flea repellent and the dogs were flea free. While I’ve never had the plant properly identified I do believe its botanical name is Tagetes minuta, a member of the daisy family (Asteraceae), which also includes Canadian fleabane.
From a distance both plants look similar, so when I recently saw Canadian fleabane growing along a roadside I thought it was stinking roger. When I got closer I realized my mistake but it got me thinking about how Mother Nature provides so much for the survival and comfort of all creatures. Here we have two wild herbs that are members of the same family and both have insect repellent and medicinal properties yet they have naturalized in separate locations and in so doing provide benefits for any creature living in or passing through their location.
Canadian fleabane’s reputation as a flea and other insect repellent has been known about for a long time. According to Culpeper, the juice of the plant destroys insects but they find the smell of the plant attractive and Mrs M Grieve states in her book, A Modern Herbal, that the smoke from burning fleabane repels insects including fleas. By 1994 scientific studies validated the plant’s use as an insecticide.
Medicinal Uses
Apart from its insect repelling properties fleabane is a medicinal herb with diuretic, carminative, astringent, and haemostatic (helps arrests the flow of blood) actions; its main application is in the treatment of kidney problems, respiratory infections, and diarrhea.
Origins and History
Native to North America, Canadian fleabane has become widespread in other parts of the world including southeastern Australia. The American Indians introduced the herb’s medicinal virtues to the early settlers of the New World who spread the word about its benefits. Herbalist to King Charles 1 of England, John Parkinson, heard about the medicinal uses of the herb and in 1640 described it as a species of America. Interestingly, the herb was found growing in the botanical gardens of Paris in 1653. The only way fleabane’s presence could be explained was that it was introduced to the gardens by seeds that were attached to stuffed birds or beaver skins.
Herb Name
It’s unclear how fleabane got its name; some think it was because of its tiny seeds that look like fleas and others think it’s because of the flea repelling oil it produces. Whatever its name there’s no doubt that it’s a valuable wild medicinal herb.
Herb Description
Considered a weed rather than a herb, Canadian fleabane is an erect annual that grows to 2.2 metres tall. The stem rises from a clump of basal leaves that wilt later and alternate lance-shaped, dark green leaves have coarse white hairs, and margins that are occasionally toothed. Numerous tiny daisy-like white flowers appear throughout the year.
Side Effects Canadian fleabane (Conyza Canadensis) can cause dermatitis in sensitive people. The essential oil of stinking roger (Tagetes minuta) could be toxic so should only be used in moderation; it’s very phototoxic so avoid applying it to areas that would be exposed to sunlight otherwise cover the area or stay indoors for the period of use.
Thinking this pretty plant worships the sun because it closes up tightly at night and on cloudy days the Californians of Spanish heritage call it dormidera, meaning ‘the drowsy one’. They still make a hair tonic by cooking the plant in olive oil. This delightful poppy with its yellow and orange blossoms once blanketed the coastal mountains of California. So impressed by the golden colour of the new land Spanish explorers named the region the Land of Fire. The glorious show of poppies didn’t stop there. Right up until development began on the hills the blanket of poppy blossIn the latter half of the 18th century the French smuggled cloves from the East Indies to Indian Ocean islands and the New World, breaking the Dutch monopoly.oms shone so brightly that sailors far out at sea were able to use them as beacons to mark their course.
California poppy was mainly used by the Indians on America’s west coast for pain relief for toothache but they also used it as a poultice for ulcers and sores and as a sedative for insomnia and headache. Today it’s still used as an analgesic and gentle sedative, a use that has been confirmed by research, which shows the plant has low levels of alkaloids known to have sedative effects. Similar to other members of the poppy family the alkaloids are contained in the sap.
In the 1800s settlers introduced the plant in to Australia where, after spreading from gardens, it became naturalized by 1879. Today it’s still favoured by Australians as a garden plant and is widely cultivated throughout the country.
The poppy is a perennial herb that grows up to 60 centimetres. Leaves grow from spreading stems and consist of many blue-green segments that look similar to ferns. Flowers are conspicuous, have many stamens, four petals, and range in colour from a bright yellow to a deep orange. The plant can be found growing wild on hilltops, roadsides and waste places. This beautiful flower is the state flower of California.
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