http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/653648/
The above link was an ID for a shrub which grows in my area. It was brought to my attention that when a poultice was made of the leaves and applied to poison ivy or poison oak, it would dry it up. The suffering appendage would be swathed in damp cloth ( old sheets were commonly used ) and kept damp. This information came from a 91 year old man who knew my interest in plants and wanted to know what it was called...
Now that it has been ID'd, my question is this ~ has anyone in DG land ever heard of St. Andrews cross being used for any sort of medicinal purposes? pod
Medicinal uses for plants?
Here is an entry for Hypericum hypericoides in the plants for a future database. It does show a traditional use for kidney & urinarty issues as well as skin problems and ulcerations, although interestingly the sap can cause photosensitivity in some people.
http://www.pfaf.org/database/plants.php?Hypericum+hypericoides
An Old Texas Herbal has the following entry:
"St. Andrew's Cross Ascyrum hypericoides Location: usually in sandy soil Medical use: Extract of the leaves is used as an astringent and resolutive Seeds have purgative properties "
http://www.angelfire.com/tx6/trickcoyote/oldherbal.html
The USDA plant guide has the following entry:
Ethnobotanic: The Alabama, Choctaw, Houma, Koasat, Natchez, and other Native American tribes used St. Andrew’s cross for medicinal purposes. It was thought that infants would learn to walk at an earlier age if they were bathed in a cold or warm tea made from the roots of the plants. Children who were too weak to walk were bathed with a decoction mixture made from the mashed roots. Infusions of the plant were administered to children who had trouble urinating. Dysentery was treated with an infusion made from the whole plant. An infusion of the roots and branches was used to treat ulcerations and swollen glands. The leaves were used to make an infusion to wash sore eyes. Roots were gathered, at any time of year, and made into a decoction used to treat severe pain, especially in childbirth. A decoction of the roots was also used to treat colic. Rheumatism was treated with a decoction or infusion of the leaves. The scraped roots and bark were used to treat fevers. To treat toothaches, some bark was scraped from the stem and packed into the offending tooth. The plant was used to treat horses that were bitten by snakes.
garden_mermaid ~ Thank you so much for your trouble. It sounds like a cure all but the "skin ulcerations" might be where this use came about. I have printed this off and will show him your research.
This same elderly gentleman told of when young, his mother doctored earaches with mullien. Also using it for bandage material.
There is much to learn from the elderly and I have come to believe that all plants are put on this earth for a reason. I find both fascinating.
podster, an important connection in the information on this plant is it's use in treating the kidneys. In ayurvedic medicine, the skin is considered the 3rd kidney. So skin inflammations are closely related to the health of the kidney.
We use mullein oil for ear infections/earaches today. The mullein oil is made from the blossoms of the plant. You can buy this at Whole Foods or make your own.
The mullein leaves are dried and drunk as an expectorant tea for the lungs.
I prefer comfrey leaves for bandage material, but mullein is related.