Wednesday, November 8, 2023

Medicinal Shrubs and Woody Vines: Juniperus, Juniper


Juniperus, Juniper Twenty-two varieties of Juniper have been noted for their medicinal value: Juniperus ashei - Ashe Juniper, Juniperus californica - Californian Juniper, Juniperus communis, Juniperus communis nana, Juniperus conferta - Shore Juniper, Juniperus deppeana - Aligator Juniper, Juniperus drupacea - Syrian Juniper, Juniperus excelsa - Grecian Juniper, Juniperus horizontalis - Creeping Juniper, Juniperus chinensis - Chinese Juniper, Juniperus monosperma - One-Seed Juniper, Juniperus occidentalis - Western Juniper, Juniperus osteosperma - Desert Juniper, Juniperus oxycedrus - Prickly Juniper, Juniperus recurva - Himalayan Juniper, Juniperus rigida - Temple Juniper, Juniperus sabina – Savine, Juniperus scopulorum - Rocky Mountain Juniper, Juniperus silicicola - Southern Redcedar, Juniperus squamata - Flaky Juniper, Juniperus tetragona, Juniperus virginiana - Pencil Cedar 


Only three Junipers are native to my region, and both tree are virginiana: Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana (Eastern Redcedar), Juniperus virginiana var. silicicola (Southern Redcedar). These are generally referred to simply as cedar, although they are junipers. One is shrub-form, Juniperus communis var. depressa (Common Juniper, Ground Juniper, Mountain Juniper).


 Juniper has a long history as a medicinal herb. Galen stated that Juniper berries, “cleanse the liver and kidneys, and they evidently thin and thick and viscous juices, and for this reason they are mixed in health medicines.” 


Dioscorides wrote in de Materia Medica: 


Some juniper is bigger, some smaller. Either of the junipers [the bigger and the smaller] are sharp, diuretic and warming, and when burned the fumes drive away snakes. One type of the fruit (called the juniperberry) is the size of a hazelnut, the other equal to a bean— both round and fragrant, sweet, and a little bitter to chew. It is mildly warming and astringent, good for the stomach, good taken in drink for infirmities of the chest, coughs, gaseousness, griping, and the poisons of venomous creatures. It is also diuretic; as a result it is good for convulsions and hernia, and those who have congested or blocked wombs. It has sharp leaves, as a result applied as a plaster and taken as a drink (or the juice taken with wine) they are good for those bitten by vipers. The bark (burned and rubbed on with water) removes leprosy, but the scraping dust of the wood (swallowed down) kills. There is a great juniper too, which some call cypressus sylvestris, some mnesitheus, some acatera, and the Romans juniperus, and it is known to most like cypress growing for the most part in rough places and near the sea. It has the same properties as the former. The lesser juniper some call archeuthis, some, mnesitheus, others, acatalis, the Africans zuorinsipet, the Egyptians libium, the Romans juniperus, and the Gauls jupicellusum. 


Dioscorides also wrote of a Juniper wine: 


Cedar, juniper, cypress, bay, pine or fir wines are made the same way. Separate the newly cut wood when it gives out fruit, lay it in a bath in the sun or near the fire so that it may sweat, and then mix one pound of this to four and a half litres of wine. Mix it and leave it alone for two months. Then put it in another jar, and having placed in the sun for a while, put it in smaller jars. 


We must fill up the jars of wines made like this, for if we do not they grow sour. Nevertheless these medicinal wines are unfit for the healthy. They are all warming, urinary, and somewhat astringent. That of bay is the most warming. 


A wine is also made from the fruit of the bigger cedars. Mix half a pound of bruised cedar berries to four and a half litres of must and keep it in the sun for four days, and after all this strain it and pour it into another jar. Wine is also made from the berries of juniper trees, as well as from the fruit of the cedar, which has the same effects. 


A Juniper beer was very popular in Scandinavian countries before hops came into common use, and is still enjoyed by some craft brewers. 


Saint Hildegard von Bingen wrote: 


The juniper is more hot than cold, and signifies excess. Take its fruit, cook it in water, strain this water through a cloth. To this add honey and a bit of vinegar and licorice, and less ginger than licorice. Cook it again, and place it in a little bag, and make a spiced wine. Drink it often, whether fasting, or having eaten. It diminishes and mitigates pain in the chest, lungs or liver. Also, take the green twigs and cook them in water. Make a sauna bath with that water. Often bathe in it, and it diminishes the bad fevers in you. 


Juniper has also been widely used among British herbalists. Gerard state: 


Juniper is hot and dry, and that in the third degree, as Galen teacheth; the berries are also hot but not altogether so dry: the gum is hot and dry in the first degree, as the Arabians write. 


The Virtues. 


A. The fruit of the Juniper tree doth cleanse the liver and kidneys, as Galen testifieth: it also maketh thin clammy and gross humours: it is used in counterpoisons and other wholesome medicines: being over-largely taken it causeth gripings and gnawings in the stomach, and maketh the head hot: it neither bindeth nor looseth the belly: it provoketh urine. 


B. Dioscorides reporteth, that this being drunk is a remedy against the infirmity of the chest, coughs, windiness, gripings and poisons, and that the same is good for those that be troubled with cramps, burstings, and with the disease called the mother. 


C. It is most certain that the decotion of these berries is singular good against an old cough, and against that with which children are now and then extremely troubled, called the chin cough, in which they use to rise up raw, tough and clammy humours, that have many times blood mixed with them. 106 


D. Divers in Bohemia do take instead of other drink, the water wherein those berries have been steeped, who live in wonderful good health. 


E. This is also drunk against poisons and pestilent fevers, and it is not unpleasant in the drinking: when the first water is almost spent, the vessel is again filled up with fresh. 


F. The smoke of the leaves and wood driveth away serpents, and all infection and corruption of the air, which bring the plague, or such like contagious diseases: the juice of the leaves is laid on with wine, and also drunk against the bitings of the viper. 


G. The ashes of the burned bark, being applied with water, take away scurf and filth of the skin. 


H. The powder of the wood being inwardly taken, is pernicious and deadly, as Dioscorides' vulgar copies do affirm; but the true copies utterly deny it, neither do any of the old writers affirm it. 


I. The fume and smoke of the gum doth stay phlegmatic humours that distil out of the head, and stoppeth the rheum: the gum doth stay raw and phlegmatic humours that stick in the stomach and guts, if it be inwardly taken, and also drunk. 


J. It killeth all manner of worms in the belly, it stayeth the menses, and hæmorrhoids: it is commended also against spitting of blood; it dryeth hollow ulcers, and filleth them with flesh, if it be cast thereon: being mixed with oil of roses, it healeth chops in the hands and feet. 


K. There is made of this and of oil of Linseed, mixed together, a liquor called varnish, which is used to beautify pictures and painted tables with, and to make iron glister, and to defend it from the rust. 


Culpepper wrote: 


This admirable solar shrub is scarce to be paralleled for its virtues. The berries are hot in the third degree, and dry but in the first, being a most admirable counter-poison, and as great a resister of the pestilence, as any growing: they are excellent good against the biting of venomous beasts, they provoke urine exceedingly, and therefore are very available to dysuries and stranguaries. It is so powerful a remedy against the dropsy, that the very lye made of the ashes of the herb being drank, cures the disease. It provokes the terms, helps the fits of the mother, strengthens the stomach exceedingly, and expels the wind. Indeed there is scarce a better remedy for wind in any part of the body, or the cholic, than the chymical oil drawn from the berries; such country people as know not how to draw the chymical oil, may content themselves by eating ten or a dozen of the ripe berries every morning fasting. They are admirably good for a cough, shortness of breath, and consumption, pains in the belly, ruptures, cramps, and convulsions. They give safe and speedy delivery to women with child, they strengthen the brain exceedingly, help the memory, and fortify the sight by strengthening the optic nerves; are excellently good in all sorts of agues; help the gout and sciatica, and strengthen the limbs of the body. The ashes of the wood is a speedy remedy to such as have the scurvy, to rub their gums with. The berries stay all fluxes, help the hæmorrhoids or piles, and kill worms in children. A lye made of the ashes of the wood, and the body bathed with it, cures the itch, scabs and leprosy. The berries break the stone, procure appetite when it is lost, and are excellently good for all palsies, and falling-sickness.  


An Irish Herbal states: 


The berries provoke urine and cure old coughs, flatulence and cholic pains. The gum of the tree expels worms from the body and stops excessive menstrual flow. 


Juniper is also an excellent herb to stimulate appetite and to help the liver. It is a natural bitter, and just thoroughly chewing and eating a few berries before a meal can be among the best helps in digestion for elderly and chronically ill people. Care should be taken not to overuse them though, as in large amounts they can irritate the kidneys. Juniper is also good for the immune system and cleaning the blood – a good spring tonic. 


Fr. Kneipp wrote of Juniper: 


Juniper. (Juniperus communis L.) 


Who does not know the Juniper-berry?


Juniper, when used for fumigation, spreads an agreeable odour through the rooms and passages, and improves the air. I am no friend of the so-called "fumigation" with sugar, vinegar, etc. for I do not see how one can speak of fresh air there. But if it is a question of disinfecting a room in which a patient with an infectious disease, or a corpse has been lying, or at the time of infections illnesses to purify the air by fumigating, then I al- ways like such juniper vapour. It thoroughly destroys all fungi, and whatever the volatile infection and disease- bringer may be called. Juniper works with similar effects upon the interior of the human organism. The berries fumigate, as it were, the mouth and stomach, and ward off contagion. 


Those who are nursing patients with serious illnesses, as scarlet fever, smallpox, typhus, cholera, etc, and are exposed to contagion by raising, carrying, or serving the patient, or by speaking with him, should always chew a few juniper-berries (six to ten in a day). They give a pleasant taste in the mouth, and are of good ser- vice to the digestion. They burn up, as it were , the harmful miasms, exhalations, etc. when these seek to enter through the mouth or nostrils. Those who are suffering from a weak stomach, may try the following little course with juniperberries. 


The first day they should begin with 4 berries, the second day take 5 berries, the third day 6, the fourth 7, and so increase by one berry every day until the twelfth, on which they will take 15 berries ; then they may continue for five days longer taking each day one berry less. 


I know many whose stomach, filled with gases and thereby weakened , has been purified and strengthened by this simple berry-cure. Juniper berries have been noted since olden times as a remedy for stone and gravel, and for complaints of the kidneys and liver ; also in all cases where foul gases, foul, watery and slimy matter are to be removed from the body. Not only the berries, but also the young shoots of the juniper bush are made use of for tea, in the first stages of dropsy, and also as purifying medicine. 108 The oil is best bought from the chemist. The tincture can be made at home with wine, brandy, or spirit.


I would not praise the father or mother of a family, who were certainly very careful and diligent in preserving their meat and vegetables with berries from the juniper bush, and were punctual and careful in fumigating their dwelling with the same, but who allow ed their body, the dwelling of their soul, to lie in dust and dirt. They ought to apply such a fumigator for this much more important dwelling, at least a few times in the year. 


Brother Aloysius wrote of Juniper: 


The berries and young twigs are used medicinally. The berries principally have diuretic, diaphoretic, warming and wind-breaking properties and promote digestion. They are especially used for ascites, gastric weakness accompanied by wind, accumulation of mucus, etc. They are also recommended as a protection from intermittent fever, rheumatism and gout pain. The young twigs, mixed with woodruff and wild strawberry leaves, make a delicious and healthy drink, which can take the place of Indian tea, and is certainly much healthier; milk and sugar can be added according to taste. 


One of the preparations is juniper oil, which has excellent diuretic properties. The dose is 2 – 10 drops. You can use 10-15 berries for one cup of tea. …. Juniper berries strengthen the nerves, cleanse the blood and the stomach; are also used for kidney, lung and liver complaints, gravel, stones, bladder catarrh, diarrhea and migraines. The decoction of twigs and berries is ½ cup per 2 cups water. The decoction of young twigs and wood is 2/3 to 1 cup per 2 cups water, which can be taken for rheumatism, gout, syphilis, chronic cough and congestion in the chest. 


Or, use 3 tablespoons of berries, ground to a powder, and cooked with 2 tablespoons of lard as an excellent remedy for scurf in children; the head should be smeared with it twice a day. A remedy fo phlegm in the chest and coughs, 3 tablespoons juniper berries should be boiled in 2 cups barley water and reduced by half, add a little sugar candy and drink this quantity throughout the day. 


Fr. Johannes Kunzel wrote in Herbs and Weeds: 


The juniper or Reckolder (Juniperus) is a medicinal plant of the first rank; everything about it is medicinal: wood, needles, berries, bark. 


It has the power to warm up, relieve internal colds, cleans everything whatever it can reach, stomach, intestines, lungs, blood, and is therefore used in almost all herbal mixtures, except for hot diseases (such as fever etc.). 


Even stronger than the common Juniper is the kind found on the high Alps that creeps along the ground. 


Juniper baths are usually a good remedy for old rheumatisms; I have seen old people twisted by gout become straight and healthy again through continued use of such baths; and how people who stayed in bed stiff like a piece of wood for six months were healed by washings and later bathing in Juniper decoction. 


Of course, the green Juniper twigs have to be boiled for three hours; the patient is washed with this (warm) water ten times a day all over his body until he is able to take a bath. 


Because the bath is very sharp and aggressive, it is advisable to mix it with fir tree or green pine tree twigs’ decoction. The baths must be warm and last for half an hour; At the end the whole body has to be poured over with cold water; if you fail to do this, it is better not to take the bath, otherwise the rheumatism will come back even more severely. 


Jolanta Wittib writes: 


Whenever I see a juniper with berries/cones on my walk in the forest, I collect a few junipers ripe - black or dark blue ones and chew them while walking. 


I love them: they have a sweetish and a very aromatic taste and I know that they will strengthen my body and spirit. 


Fr. Sebastian Kneipp, who has already been mentioned more than once in this book, suggested juniper cone therapy after a long illness, exhaustion, after cancer treatment, etc, because Juniper cones clean the body, clean the blood, improve metabolism. They are good for rheumatism, arthritis, they have an antibacterial effect. Besides, they are tasty, disinfect one’s mouth and leave a nice flavor. 


Resources of the Southern Fields and Forests states: 


CEDAR, (Juniperus Virginiana, Linn.) Grows in upper and lower districts; Newbern. Fl. March. Big. Am. Med. Bot. iii, 49; Pe. Mat. Med. ii, 184; Fr. Elems. 195; U. S. Disp. 413; Mer. and de L. Diet, de M. Med. iii, 698;589 Mich. N. Am. Sylva, iii, 221; Am. Journal Pharm. xiv, 23; Thacher's Disp. 247; Lind. Nat. Syst. Bot. 316; Griffith Med. Bot. 607; Supplem. to the Diet, de M.Med. 1846, 406; Bull, de l'Acad. Eoy. de Med. vi, 478; S. Cubieres' Mem. on the Eed Cedar of Virginia, in French, Paris, 1805; Nicolet's Essai on the Physiol, and Chemistry of genus Juniperus; see Journal de Pharm. xxvii, 309, and Bonastie's note on a volatile oil from the Virginia cedar, in Journal de Pharm. xxi, 177, 1834. The bark is employed in Abyssinia, under the name of Bisenna. 


The expressed oil is very useful as an application to rheumatic pains and swellings of the joints. One bushel of the dried shavings, heated in an inverted iron vessel, will yield a half pint of oil. A decoction of the berries promotes diaphoresis, and is also beneficial in rheumatic pains, stiff joints, etc. The leaves act very much as shavings, being stimulant and emmenagogue, and are employed in catamenial obstructions. The cedar berry is used in a popular remedy for dropsy, which is claimed by some to be highly efficacious. We can readily understand the reason that it may prove useful when we remember its close alliance with the juniper berry. It is as follows: take one handful of the seed of the cedar, the same of mullein, the same of the root of dogwood; put into two quarts and a pint of water, boil down to one quart, and add one gill of whiskey. Dose, a wineglassful night and morning. A cerate is made for keeping up the irritation and discharge from blisters; this is quite serviceable, and is prepared by boiling the fresh leaves in twice their weight of lard, with the addition of a little wax. The fungoid excrescences on this tree are thought to be anthelmintic. The wood of the tree is well known. It is sometimes dug up in the mud of our swamps in a perfect state of preservation. It is aromatic, light, soft, bearing exposure to water and weather, and suitable for all kinds of cabinet work, in the construction of posts, staves, buckets, the inner work of houses, and particularly in the building of boats. Cedar boxes are not infested by insects, moths, etc., and are used for storing away woollens. The leaves also prevent the attacks of insects when spread over cloth. The roots make a beautiful purple dye. 


King's American Dispensatory, 1898 tells us: 


Action, Medical Uses, and Dosage.—Both the berries and oil are stimulating, carminative, and diuretic. The oil is said to act like copaiba in arresting mucous discharges, especially from the urethra. It is contained in the spiritous liquor called Hollands, one of its best forms as a diuretic. Five minims of the oil, with 1 fluid drachm of nitrous ether, given 3 times a day in any common vehicle, produces diuresis in dropsy when other means fail. Combined with an equal part of watermelon seeds, and made into an infusion, I have cured several cases of ascites occurring in children, having them to make free use of it (King). The berries are employed principally as an adjunct to other diuretics, and have been found efficient in gonorrhoea, gleet, leucorrhoea, cystirrhoea, affections of the skin, scorbutic diseases, etc. Pyelitis, pyelo-nephritis, and cystitis when chronic, and particularly when in old people, are relieved by juniper. Uncomplicated renal hyperemia a is cured by it. The indications are a persistent weight or dragging in lumbar region. Dose of the berries, from 1 to 2 drachms; of the oil, from 4 to 20 minims. The infusion (berries, ℥i; aqua, Oj), may be given in wineglassful doses, a pint being taken in a day. It is very useful in the dropsy following scarlatina, and other infectious diseases, and may be combined with acetate or bitartrate of potassium if desired. OIL OF CADE has been successfully employed in parasitic skin diseases, moist eczema, and psoriasis. 


Preparation of Juniper.—HOWE'S JUNIPER POMADE. This preparation is a compound of lard, oil of juniper and Fowler's solution, the proportions of which have been published in the Eclectic Medical Journal. Much pharmaceutical skill is required to blend the ingredients so as to prevent subsequent separation. Juniper pomade is useful in "all forms of eczema or tetter. It allays the itching and destroys the vesicles and scales. The unguent may be used upon all parts of the body, though sparingly upon mucous surfaces. It is employed in the nasal cavities with a camel's hair brush to mitigate the symptoms of catarrh, to arrest hay-fever, to heal nasal ulcers, to arrest ringing in the ears, and to improve states of deafness depending upon thickening of the linings of the Eustachian tubes. Juniper pomade softens the scaly patches oil the face which are often epitheliomatous. It has proved an excellent dressing for tetter of the edges of the eyelids, which leads to 'wild hairs', and induration of the tarsal borders. The pomade is reliable in the treatment of sore nipples in nursing women. and it will cure chapped hands" (Prof. A. J. Howe, M. D.). 


The Rodale Herb Book states: 


Juniper is considered one of the most useful medicinal plants. Stimulating for appetite and digestion, helpful in coughs and to eliminate mucus, it has a diuretic effect, stimulating the function of kidneys and bladder. A strong tea of the berries is considered an excellent wash for bites and poisonous insects, snake bites, dog bites and bee stings. 


Rodale’s Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs states: 


Rheumatism, arthritis, bruises, ulcers and wounds are said to be relieved by juniper poultices and rubs. Adding a handful of leaves to warm bathwater is said to sooth aching muscles. For poultices, berries can be simmered in olive oil or simply mashed and applied ot the sore area. American Indians simply tied bundles of the boughs to sore limbs. Juniper tincture has been used externally on painful swellings, bruises and sores. 


Sacred and Healing Herbal Beers tells us that Juniper was once widely used in beer brewing. After discussing the various folk medicine and spiritual beliefs traditionally associated with Juniper, as well as its documented medicinal uses, Mr. Buhner leaves us with this very reasonable statement: 


Generally, juniper is a marvelous herb to use in brewing, and the taste of juniper ale is good and very refreshing. Given the many benefits from the herb, as a preservative and a medicine, especially on nutrition and digestive health and as a potentially useful herb in the treatment of colds and flu, it seems and excellent herb to use in ales and beers. 


Peterson Field Guides Eastern and Central Medicinal Plants tells us: Eastern red cedar: 


American Indians used fruit tea for colds, worms, rheumatism, coughs, to induce sweating, Chewed fruit for canker sores. Leaf smoke or steam inhaled for colds, bronchitis, purification, rheumatism. Said to contain the anti-tumor compound podophyllotoxin, best known from mayapple.


Botany In a Day states: 


Cypress: A tea of the leaves is used internally or externally to stop bleeding and for colds. 


Juniper, red cedar: juniper berries can be eaten raw or used in tea. The bitter berries are the main ingredient in gin. Most people would consider them unpalatable, but I have acquired a taste for them. Juniper berries contain volatile oils and resins; they are eaten as a carminative to expel gas and the distilled oil is rubbed on painful joints. Additionally, juniper berries are diuretic, but may irritate the kidneys with prolonged use. They are not recommended for pregnant women. A boiled tea of the fruits and leaves as a treatment for coughs. You may be able to decrease the risk of catching a virus by keeping juniper berries in the mouth while around others who are infected. Also, try chewing the berries when drinking unclean water. Juniper needles can be added to bathwater for a stimulating effect on rheumatism. 


Cedar, Arbor vitae: cedar contains toxic volatile oils. It is used as a diaphoretic to promote sweating, emmenagogue to promote menstruation, and as an irritant poultice to stimulate healing for rheumatic pains. It should not be used without medical supervision. It is also expectorant.  


The Physicians Desk Reference for Herbal Medicine tells us: 


Juniper has been primarily noted for its anti-inflammatory, diuretic, and dyspeptic effects. Because of its ability to inhibit cyclooxygenase, it is useful in inflammatory conditions, such as arthritis. Juniper is used to treat chronic urinary tract, bladder and kidney infections as well as herpes and flu infections. The diuretic effect is probably primarily due to the volatile oil terpinene-4-ol. In addition to drug works to lower blood pressure and may regulate hyperglycemia. In animal experiments a hypertensive, an anti exudative effect was proved. In vitro, an antiviral effect was also demonstrated.



PS. New in my Woodcraft Shop:

https://judsoncarrollwoodcraft.substack.com/p/cooking-spoon-4


This article is an excerpt from 

Medicinal Shrubs and Woody Vines of The American Southeast An Herbalist's Guide

Read about Medicinal Shrubs and Woody Vines of The American Southeast An Herbalist's Guide: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/06/medicinal-shrubs-and-woody-vines-of.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B2T4Y5L6: by Judson Carroll

His New book is:



Read About:  The Medicinal Weeds and Grasses of the American Southeast

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2023/05/medicinal-weeds-and-grasses-of-american.html

 Available in paperback on Amazon: 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47LHTTH


His new cookbook is:



Read About The Omnivore’s Guide to Home Cooking for Preppers, Homesteaders, Permaculture People and Everyone Else"

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/10/the-omnivores-guide-to-home-cooking-for.html


Available for purchase on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BGKX37Q2


His other works include:

Confirmation, an Autobiography of Faith

Read about Confirmation, an Autobiography of Faith

Available in paperback on Amazon: 


Ferns and Fern Allies, an Herbalist's Guide 

Read About Ferns and Fern Allies, an Herbalist's Guide 

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/11/medicinal-ferns-and-fern-allies.html

Available for purchase on Amazon:


Growing Your Survival Herb Garden for Preppers, Homesteaders and Everyone Else

Read About Growing Your Survival Herb Garden for Preppers, Homesteaders and Everyone Else: http://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/04/growing-your-survival-herb-garden-for.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09X4LYV9R


The Encyclopedia of Bitter Medicinal Herbs:

southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/03/the-encyclopedia-of-bitter-medicina.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B5MYJ35R


Christian Medicine, History and Practice:

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/01/christian-herbal-medicine-history-and.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B09P7RNCTB


Herbal Medicine for Preppers, Homesteaders and Permaculture People

southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2021/10/herbal-medicine-for-preppers.html

Also available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09HMWXL25


Look Up: The Medicinal Trees of the American South, An Herbalist's Guide

http:///www.amazon.com/dp/1005082936


The Herbs and Weeds of Fr. Johannes Künzle:

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2021/05/announcing-new-book-herbs-and-weeds-of.html


Author: Judson Carroll. Judson Carroll is an Herbalist from the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.

His weekly articles may be read at judsoncarroll.com

His weekly podcast may be heard at: www.spreaker.com/show/southern-appalachian-herbs

He offers free, weekly herb classes: https://rumble.com/c/c-618325


Disclaimer

The information on this site is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease or condition. Nothing on this site has been evaluated or approved by the FDA. I am not a doctor. The US government does not recognize the practice of herbal medicine and their is no governing body regulating herbalists. Therefore, I'm just a guy who studies herbs. I am not offering any advice. I won't even claim that anything I write is accurate or true! I can tell you what herbs have "traditionally been used for." I can tell you my own experience and if I believe an herb helped me. I cannot, nor would I tell you to do the same. If you use any herb I, or anyone else, mentions you are treating yourself. You take full responsibility for your health. Humans are individuals and no two are identical. What works for me may not work for you. You may have an allergy, sensitivity or underlying condition that no one else shares and you don't even know about. Be careful with your health. By continuing to read my blog you agree to be responsible for yourself, do your own research, make your own choices and not to blame me for anything, ever.

Sunday, November 5, 2023

Show 158: Celandine and a good pasta sauce made with sardines

Listen to "Show 158: Celandine and a good pasta sauce made with sardines" on Spreaker.




In this episode, I discuss the medicinal properties of Celandine.  This is a classic herb in European herbalism, with a 2000+ year documented history, that is considered a weed in America. Its medicinal properties are fairly mind blowing, but it must be used with care. I also tell you about a very good pasta sauce I came up with while injured and sick, using a few items from the pantry.



New today in my Woodcraft shop: https://judsoncarrollwoodcraft.substack.com/p/cooking-spoon-4


Read about my new books:

Medicinal Weeds and Grasses of the American Southeast, an Herbalist's Guide
https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2023/05/medicinal-weeds-and-grasses-of-american.html

Available in paperback on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47LHTTH

and

Confirmation, an Autobiography of Faith
https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2023/05/confirmation-autobiography-of-faith.html

Available in paperback on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47Q1JNK


Visit my Substack and sign up for my free newsletter: https://judsoncarroll.substack.com/

Read about my new other books:

Medicinal Ferns and Fern Allies, an Herbalist's Guide https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/11/medicinal-ferns-and-fern-allies.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BMSZSJPS

The Omnivore’s Guide to Home Cooking for Preppers, Homesteaders, Permaculture People and Everyone Else: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/10/the-omnivores-guide-to-home-cooking-for.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BGKX37Q2

Medicinal Shrubs and Woody Vines of The American Southeast an Herbalist's Guide
https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/06/medicinal-shrubs-and-woody-vines-of.html

Available for purchase on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B2T4Y5L6

and

Growing Your Survival Herb Garden for Preppers, Homesteaders and Everyone Else
https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/04/growing-your-survival-herb-garden-for.html

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09X4LYV9R


The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Bitter Herbs: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/03/the-encyclopedia-of-bitter-medicina.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B5MYJ35R

and

Christian Medicine, History and Practice: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/01/christian-herbal-medicine-history-and.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B09P7RNCTB


Herbal Medicine for Preppers, Homesteaders and Permaculture People: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2021/10/herbal-medicine-for-preppers.html

Also available on Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B09HMWXL25

Podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/show/southern-appalachian-herbs

Blog: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/

Free Video Lessons: https://rumble.com/c/c-618325

Wednesday, November 1, 2023

Medicinal Shrubs and Woody Vines: Ilex, Holly

 


Twenty-one varieties of Holly have documented use in Herbal Medicine:  Ilex aculeolata, Ilex aquifolium - Holly, Ilex asprolla, Ilex cassine - Cassine, Ilex coriacea - Large Gallberry, Ilex cornuta - Horned Holly, Ilex crenata - Japanese Holly, Ilex glabra - Inkberry, Ilex chapaensis, Ilex integra - Mochi Tree, Ilex latifolia - Tarajo, Ilex macropoda, Ilex opaca - American Holly, Ilex pedunculosa, Ilex pubescens, Ilex purpurea, Ilex rotunda, Ilex verticillata - Winterberry, Ilex vomitoria - Yaupon Holly, Ilex x altaclerensis, Ilex yunnanensis


Native to my region are: Ilex glabra (Inkberry), Ilex laevigata (Smooth Winterberry) and  Ilex verticillata.  One variety is naturalized, Ilex crenata (Japanese Holly).  But, most every ornamental Holly is also grown throughout the southeast.  Ilex vomitoria (Yaupon Holly) is native to regions a bit further south than my home state of NC - it is a remarkable plant!  Yaupon Holly is our only native caffeine containing herb.  Its leaves make a very nice tea.  That makes Yaupon the only Holly still commonly used in Herbal Medicine, while several others have historic and folk use,


Gerard wrote of Holly:


A. They are good against the colic: for ten or twelve being inwardly taken bring away by the stool thick phlegmatic humours, as we have learned of them who oftentimes made trial thereof,


B. The birdlime which is made of the bark hereof is no less hurtful than that of Mistletoe, for it is marvellous clammy, it glueth up all the entrails, it shutteth and draweth together the guts and passages of the excrements, and by this means it bringeth destruction to man, not by any quality, but by his glueing substance.


C. Holly beaten to powder and drunk is an experimented medicine against all the fluxes of the belly, as the dysentery and such like.


Culpepper wrote:


Government and virtues. The tree is Saturnine. The berries expel wind, and therefore are held to be profitable in the cholic. The berries have a strong faculty with them; for if you eat a dozen of them in the morning fasting when they are ripe and not dried, they purge the body of gross and clammy phlegm: but if you dry the berries, and beat them into powder, they bind the body, and stop fluxes, bloody-fluxes, and the terms in women. The bark of the tree, and also the leaves, are excellently good, being used in fomentations for broken bones, and such members as are out of joint. Pliny saith, the branches of the tree defend houses from lightning, and men from witchcraft.


Mrs. Grieve tells us:


The Holly is a native of most of the central and southern parts of Europe. It grows very slowly: when planted among trees which are not more rapid in growth than itself, it is sometimes drawn up to a height of 50 feet, but more frequently its greatest height in this country is 30 to 40 feet, and it rarely exceeds 2 feet in diameter. In Italy and in the woods of France, especially in Brittany, it attains a much larger size than is common in these islands.


Holly, the most important of the English evergreens, forming one of the most striking objects in the wintry woodland, with its glossy leaves and clusters of brilliant scarlet berries, is in the general mind closely connected with the festivities of Christmas, having been from very early days in the history of these islands gathered in great quantities for Yuletide decorations, both of the Church and of the home. The old Christmas Carols are full of allusions to Holly:


.......'Christmastide

Comes in like a bride,

With Holly and Ivy clad.'


History---Christmas decorations are said to be derived from a custom observed by the Romans of sending boughs, accompanied by other gifts, to their friends during the festival of the Saturnalia, a custom the early Christians adopted. In confirmation of this opinion, a subsequent edict of the Church of Bracara has been quoted, forbidding Christians to decorate their houses at Christmas with green boughs at the same time as the pagans, the Saturnalia commencing about a week before Christmas. The origin has also been traced to the Druids, who decorated their huts with evergreens during winter as an abode for the sylvan spirits. In old church calendars we find Christmas Eve marked templa exornantur (churches are decked), and the custom is as deeply rooted in modern times as in either pagan or early Christian days.


An old legend declares that the Holly first sprang up under the footsteps of Christ, when He trod the earth, and its thorny leaves and scarlet berries, like drops of blood, have been thought symbolical of the Saviour's sufferings, for which reason the tree is called 'Christ's Thorn' in the languages of the northern countries of Europe. It is, perhaps, in connexion with these legends that the tree was called the Holy Tree, as it is generally named by our older writers. Turner, for instance, refers to it by this name in his Herbal published in 1568. Other popular names for it are Hulver and Holme, and it is still called Hulver in Norfolk, and Holme in Devon, and Holme Chase in one part of Dartmoor.


Pliny describes the Holly under the name of Aquifolius, needle leaf, and adds that it was the same tree called by Theophrastus Crataegus, but later commentators deny this. Pliny tells us that Holly if planted near a house or farm, repelled poison, and defended it from lightning and witchcraft, that the flowers cause water to freeze, and that the wood, if thrown at any animal, even without touching it, had the property of compelling the animal to return and lie down by it.


Description---It sometimes sends up a clean stem furnished with a bushy head, or it may form a perfect pyramid, leafy to the base. The trunk, like that of the Beech, frequently has small wood knots attached to it: these are composed of a smooth nodule of solid wood embedded in bark, and may be readily separated from the tree by a smart blow. The bark is of a remarkably light hue, smooth and grey, often touched with faint crimson, and is very liable to be infected with an exceedingly thin lichen, the fructification of which consists of numerous curved black lines, closely resembling Oriental writing.


The leaves are thick and glossy, about 2 inches long and 1 1/4 inch broad, and edged with stout prickles, whose direction is alternately upwards and downwards, and of which the terminal one alone is invariably in the same plane as the leaf. The upper leaves have mostly only a single prickle. The leaves have neither taste nor odour. They remain attached to the tree for several years, and when they fall, defy for a long time the action of air and moisture, owing to their leathery texture and durable fibres, which take a long time to decay.


Professor Henslow says:

'It has been gravely asserted that holly leaves are only prickly on trees as high as a beast can reach, but at the top it has no spines; that spiny processes of all sorts are a provision of Nature against browsing animals. The truth is that they are the result of drought. A vigorous shoot of Holly may have small leaves without spines at the base, when vigour was beginning; normal, large leaves in the middle when growth was most active; and later on small spineless leaves again appear as the annual energy is declining. Moreover, hollies of ten grow to twenty feet in height, with spiny leaves throughout, and if spineless ones do occur at the top, it is only the result of lessened energy. A cow has been known to be partial to some holly bushes within reach, which had to be protected, just as another would eat stinging-nettles: and the camel lives upon the "Camel-thorn." This animal has a hardened pad to the roof of its mouth, so feels no inconvenience in eating it.'


In May, the Holly bears in the axils of the leaves, crowded, small, whitish flowers, male and female flowers being usually borne on different trees. The fertile flowers are succeeded by the familiar, brilliant, coral-red berries. The same tree rarely produces abundant crops of flowers in consecutive seasons, and Hollies sometimes produce abundance of flowers, but never mature berries, this barrenness being caused by the male flowers alone being properly developed. Berries are rarely produced abundantly when the tree is much clipped, and are usually found in the greatest number on the upper part of the tree, where the leaves are less spiny.

The berries, though eaten by birds, are injurious to human beings, and children should be warned against them. Deer will eat the leaves in winter, and sheep thrive on them. They are infested with few insects.


The ease with which Holly can be kept trimmed renders it valuable as a hedge plant: it forms hedges of great thickness that are quite impenetrable.


It has been stated by M. J. Pierre, that the young stems are gathered in Morbihan by the peasants, and made use of as a cattle-food from the end of November until April, with great success. The stems are dried, and having been bruised are given as food to cows three times daily. They are found to be very wholesome and productive of good milk, and the butter made from it is excellent.


It is also well known to rabbit-breeders that a Holly-stick placed in a hutch for the rabbits to gnaw, will act as a tonic, and restore their appetite.


The wood of Holly is hard, compact and of a remarkable even substance throughout. Except towards the centre of very old trees, it is beautifully white, and being susceptible of a very high polish, is much prized for ornamental ware, being extensively used for inlaying, as in the so-called Tunbridge ware. The evenness of its grain makes it very valuable to the turner. When freshly cut, it is of a slightly greenish hue, but soon becomes perfectly white, and its hardness makes it superior to any other white wood. As it is very retentive of its sap and warps in consequence, it requires to be well dried and seasoned before being used. It is often stained blue, green, red or black; when of the latter colour, its principal use is as a substitute for ebony, as in the handles of metal teapots. Mathematical instruments are made of it, also the blocks for calico printing, and it has been employed in wood engraving as a substitute for boxwood, to which, however, it is inferior. The wood of the silver-striped variety is said to be whiter than that of the common kind.


A straight Holly-stick is much prized for the stocks of light driving whips, also for walking-sticks.


The common Holly is the badge of the Drummonds.


Cultivation---The Holly will grow in almost any soil, provided it is not too wet, but attains the largest size in rich, sandy or gravelly loam, where there is good drainage, and a moderate amount of moisture at the roots, for in very dry localities it is usually stunted in its growth, but it will live in almost any earth not saturated with stagnant water. The most favourable situation seems to be a thin scattered wood of Oaks, in the intervals of which it grows up at once. It is rarely injured by even the most severe winters.


Holly is raised from seeds, which do not germinate until the second year, hence the berries are generally buried in a heap of earth for a year previously to being sown. The young plants are transplanted when about a foot or 18 inches high, autumn being the best time for the process. If intended for a hedge, the soil around should be previously well trenched and moderately manured if necessary. Holly exhausts the soil around it to a greater extent than most deciduous trees. At least two years will be needed to recover the check given by transplanting. Although always a slow grower, Holly grows more quickly after the first four or five years.


The cultivated varieties of Holly are very numerous: of these one is distinguished by the unusual colour of its berries, which are yellow. Other forms are characterized by the variegated foliage, or by the presence of a larger or smaller number of prickles than ordinary.


In winter the garden and shrubbery are much indebted to the more showy varieties for the double contrast afforded by their leaves and berries. They are propagated by grafting on four- or five-year-old plants of the common sort and by cuttings.


The best time to cut down Holly is early in the spring, before the sap rises. A sloping cut is preferable to a straight one, as moisture is thus prevented from remaining on the cut portion, and as an additional precaution the wound should be covered with a coating of tar. The side growths should be left, as they will help to draw up the sap.


Part Used---The leaves and berries, also the bark. The leaves are used both fresh and dried, but usually in the dried condition, for which they are collected in May and June. They should be stripped off the tree on a dry day, the best time being about noon, when there is no longer any trace of dew on them. All stained or insect-eaten leaves must be rejected.


Medicinal Action and Uses---Holly leaves were formerly used as a diaphoretic and an infusion of them was given in catarrh, pleurisy and smallpox. They have also been used in intermittent fevers and rheumatism for their febrifugal and tonic properties, and powdered, or taken in infusion or decoction, have been employed with success where Cinchona has failed, their virtue being said to depend on a bitter principle, an alkaloid named Ilicin. The juice of the fresh leaves has been employed with advantage in jaundice.


The berries possess totally different qualities to the leaves, being violently emetic and purgative, a very few occasioning excessive vomiting soon after they are swallowed, though thrushes and blackbirds eat them with impunity. They have been employed in dropsy; also, in powder, as an astringent to check bleeding.


Culpepper says 'the bark and leaves are good used as fomentations for broken bones and such members as are out of joint.' He considered the berries to be curative of colic.


From the bark, stripped from the young shoots and suffered to ferment, birdlime is made. The bark is stripped off about midsummer and steeped in clean water; then boiled till it separates into layers, when the inner green portion is laid up in small heaps till fermentation ensues. After about a fortnight has elapsed, it becomes converted into a sticky, mucilaginous substance, and is pounded into a paste, washed and laid by again to ferment. It is then mixed with some oily matter, goosefat being preferred, and is ready for use. Very little, however, is now made in this country. In the north of England, Holly was formerly so abundant in the Lake District, that birdlime was made from it in large quantities and shipped to the East Indies for destroying insects.


The leaves of Holly have been employed in the Black Forest as a substitute for tea. Paraguay Tea, so extensively used in Brazil, is made from the dried leaves and young shoots of another species of Holly (Ilex Paraguayensis), growing in South America, an instance of the fact that similar properties are often found in more than one species of the same genus.


I. Gongonha and I. Theezans, also used in Brazil as tea, and like I. Paraguayensis are valuable diuretics and diaphoretics. The leaves of I. Paraguayensis and several others are used by dyers; the unripe fruits of I. Macoucoua abound in tannin, and bruised in a ferruginous mud, are used in dyeing cotton, acting something like galls.


Brother Aloysius wrote:


Who does not know holly with its prickly leaves which one can hardly touch without receiving scratches?... The white flowers grow on racemes along the stems; they are followed by red berries with a strongly purgative effect.  The leaves are used medicinally… (for) gout, colic and fever.  The fruit also has a medicinal use: if 10 to 12 berries are taken, they will have a very purgative effect and are a powerful remedy for colic.


The Lumbee used Holly:


Lumbee herbal experts viewed holly leaves as a diaphoretic, and an infusion of the fresh leaves was prepared to treat measles, pleurisy, and smallpox.  Lumbee healers also prepared the leaves to treat intermittent fevers.  … Lumbee healers considered the berries to be violently emetic and purgative.


King’s American Dispensatory of 1898 states:


The holly is found growing throughout the United States from Maine to Louisiana, in moist woodlands, and flowering in June. It is quite common to the Atlantic states, especially New Jersey. The viscid substance of the inner bark, like the mistletoe berry, furnishes an adhesive material known as birdlime. The berries are about as large as a whortleberry, of a red color, and an acrid, bitterish taste. The leaves are the medicinal parts. They have a bitter, somewhat harsh taste, but no odor, and yield their virtues to water or alcohol. They are believed to contain ilicin (see Related Species), wax, gum, salts, etc. (For the preparation of Rousseau's ilicin, see this Dispensatory, last revision.) Mr. D. P. Pancoast (Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1856, Vol. XXVIII, p. 315) prepared from the leaves of American holly an aqueous decoction from which the bitterness was removed by charcoal, and subsequently abstracted from the latter by alcohol. An amorphous, non-hygroscopic, intensely bitter mass resulted upon evaporation of the solvent, partially soluble in water, and completely soluble in alcohol and ether. It could not be obtained in the crystallized state. By the same process the author isolated from the berries a crystallizable, very bitter principle, soluble in ether, water, and alcohol. Acids precipitate it from aqueous solution. The fruit contains tannin. Mr. Walter A. Smith (Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1887, p. 230) obtained from the leaves, by extraction with benzin, a volatile oil of an acrid, mustard-like odor, and also identified a glucosid. The leaves contained 4.5 per cent of ash.


Action, Medical Uses, and Dosage.—Holly leaves are tonic and febrifuge; said to be very efficient in the treatment of intermittent fevers, in doses of 60 grains of their powder administered 1 or 2 hours previous to the chill. The infusion has also proved beneficial in icterus, pleuritis, catarrh, variola, arthritis, etc. The berries are said to be emeto-cathartic and cholagogue; from 8 to 15 of them will act as a hydragogue. According to Dr. Rousseau, ilicin acts decidedly upon the spleen, liver, and pancreas, producing a sedative effect, and is a cheap substitute for quinine. Its dose is 10 grains in pill form, gradually increased to 30 grains.


Photo: Ilex aquifolium 12.Related Species.—Ilex aquifolium, Linné, European holly, together with several other species in this country, possess properties similar to those of American holly. Dr. F. Moldenhauer has found in the leaves a crystalline yellow coloring matter, which is scarce in the leaves when they are collected in January, but abundant when gathered in August. It is soluble in alcohol or hot water, but insoluble in ether of cold water, loses its color at 185° C. (365° F.), and fuses at 197.7° C. (388° F.), decomposing slightly above this temperature. He gave it the name ilixanthin (C17H22O11). He also isolated from the aqueous extract the crystallizable calcium salt of a syrupy acid, ilicic acid. Ilicin is the bitter principle upon which the febrifuge properties of the leaves depend; it has not been obtained as yet in a pure state. The leaves have been used in intermittent fevers and rheumatism, and the berries in dropsy. The leaves produce gastric heat, nausea, and colic. The berries have emeto-cathartic properties.


Ilex Cassine, Walter (Ilex vomitoria, of Aiton), or South Sea tea, an evergreen shrub, growing in the southern states, is the Cassine of the Indians. It is also known as Cassena, Yaupon or Youpon. A liquid, called black drink, is prepared by boiling the toasted leaves in water; in the performance of their religious rites, and on great occasions when in council, the men only are permitted to drink this, for the purpose of cleansing their systems. The leaves have a rough, aromatic taste, no odor, and in large doses their decoction causes active emesis, catharsis, and diuresis; in small quantity it greatly increases the urinary discharge. A few leaves of this plant lessen the injurious influence of saline water, and it is used for this purpose by persons along the sea shore in North Carolina. According to the analysis of Dr. F. P. Venable (Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1885, p. 390), the dried leaves contain 0.32 per cent of caffeine, 7.39 per cent of tannin, and 5.75 per cent of ash. Mr. Henry M. Smith (Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1872, p. 216) found 0.011 per cent of a volatile oil, 3.4 per cent of resin, and 0.122 per cent of caffeine. (For a detailed and exhaustive article on Ilex Cassine see monograph by Edwin M. Hale, M. D., Bulletin No. 14, Division of Botany, U. S. Department of Agriculture.)


Fig. 143. Ilex glabra.Ilex glabra. Ink berry.—Sandy grounds from New England to Florida. Employed chiefly for ornamentation, and was at one time used in intermittent fevers.


Ilex Dahoon, Walter; Dahoon holly, and Ilex myrtifolia, Walter; both of southern states, are also known as Cassena.


Photo: Ilex paraguariensis 2.Related entries: Caffea.—Coffee - Thea.—Tea - Theobroma.—Cacao - Guarana (U. S. P.)—Guarana - Kola.—Kola


Ilex paraguayensis, St. Hilaire; Argentine Republic, and Brazil.—This tree yields Paraguay tea or Yerba maté, St. Bartholomew's tea or Jesuit's tea, which is consumed in immense quantities in South America in place of Chinese tea. Its effects are said to more nearly resemble coca than tea. The plant grows along water courses, and from December to August collecting parties gather the leaves which, after a preparatory torrification to enhance their aroma, are powdered and enter into commerce and are sold to be prepared by infusion like common tea. Their chief constituent is caffeine, which exists in quantities varying from 0.2 per cent to 1.8 per cent, the average yield (Peciolt) being 0.64 per cent. Tannin (matetannic acid) is present in amounts of from 10 to 16 per cent (A. Robbins, Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1878, p. 273). The leaves are most aromatic just before the fruit is ripe. Volatile oil, a stearopten, and a crystallizable acid, mateviridic acid, have also been obtained from the leaves. The infusion of Paraguay tea is diuretic and sudorific, and in excessive doses acts as a drastic purgative. (For an interesting article on maté or Paraguay tea, see Th. Peckolt, Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1883, p. 570.)


Plants for A Future states:


Medicinal use of Holly: Holly is little used in modern herbalism. The leaves are diaphoretic, expectorant, febrifuge and tonic. They can be use fresh at almost any time of the year or can be harvested in late spring and dried for later use. They are used in the treatment of intermittent fevers, rheumatism, catarrh, pleurisy etc. The juice of the fresh leaves has been successfully used in the treatment of jaundice. The berries are violently emetic and purgative. They have been used in the treatment of dropsy and as a powder they have been used as an astringent to check bleeding. The berries are toxic, especially to children, and should not be used medicinally except under professional supervision. The root has been used as a diuretic, though there are more effective diuretics available. The plant is used in Bach flower remedies - the keywords for prescribing it are "Hatred", "Envy", "Jealousy" and "Suspicion".


Peterson Field Guides Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants tells us:


American Holly, Ilex opaca: American Indians chewed berries for colic, indigestion.  Leaf tea for measles, colds, flu, pneumonia; drops for sore eyes; externally, for sores, itching.  Thick syrup of berries formerly used to treat children’s diarrhea.  Chewing only 10-12 berries acts as strong laxative, emetic, and diuretic.  Bark tea once used in malaria and epilepsy.  Warning: Fruits considered poisonous, inducing violent vomiting.


Youpon Holly, Ilex vomitoria: American Indians used a very strong leaf tea as a ceremonial cleansing beverage, drinking large amounts to induce vomiting or act as a purgative.  This may be the only caffeine containing plant native to North America,


PS. New in my Woodcraft Shop:

https://judsoncarrollwoodcraft.substack.com/p/cooking-spoon-4


This article is an excerpt from 

Medicinal Shrubs and Woody Vines of The American Southeast An Herbalist's Guide

Read about Medicinal Shrubs and Woody Vines of The American Southeast An Herbalist's Guide: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/06/medicinal-shrubs-and-woody-vines-of.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B2T4Y5L6: by Judson Carroll

His New book is:



Read About:  The Medicinal Weeds and Grasses of the American Southeast

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2023/05/medicinal-weeds-and-grasses-of-american.html

 Available in paperback on Amazon: 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47LHTTH


His new cookbook is:



Read About The Omnivore’s Guide to Home Cooking for Preppers, Homesteaders, Permaculture People and Everyone Else"

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/10/the-omnivores-guide-to-home-cooking-for.html


Available for purchase on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BGKX37Q2


His other works include:

Confirmation, an Autobiography of Faith

Read about Confirmation, an Autobiography of Faith

Available in paperback on Amazon: 


Ferns and Fern Allies, an Herbalist's Guide 

Read About Ferns and Fern Allies, an Herbalist's Guide 

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/11/medicinal-ferns-and-fern-allies.html

Available for purchase on Amazon:


Growing Your Survival Herb Garden for Preppers, Homesteaders and Everyone Else

Read About Growing Your Survival Herb Garden for Preppers, Homesteaders and Everyone Else: http://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/04/growing-your-survival-herb-garden-for.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09X4LYV9R


The Encyclopedia of Bitter Medicinal Herbs:

southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/03/the-encyclopedia-of-bitter-medicina.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B5MYJ35R


Christian Medicine, History and Practice:

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/01/christian-herbal-medicine-history-and.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B09P7RNCTB


Herbal Medicine for Preppers, Homesteaders and Permaculture People

southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2021/10/herbal-medicine-for-preppers.html

Also available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09HMWXL25


Look Up: The Medicinal Trees of the American South, An Herbalist's Guide

http:///www.amazon.com/dp/1005082936


The Herbs and Weeds of Fr. Johannes Künzle:

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2021/05/announcing-new-book-herbs-and-weeds-of.html


Author: Judson Carroll. Judson Carroll is an Herbalist from the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.

His weekly articles may be read at judsoncarroll.com

His weekly podcast may be heard at: www.spreaker.com/show/southern-appalachian-herbs

He offers free, weekly herb classes: https://rumble.com/c/c-618325


Disclaimer

The information on this site is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease or condition. Nothing on this site has been evaluated or approved by the FDA. I am not a doctor. The US government does not recognize the practice of herbal medicine and their is no governing body regulating herbalists. Therefore, I'm just a guy who studies herbs. I am not offering any advice. I won't even claim that anything I write is accurate or true! I can tell you what herbs have "traditionally been used for." I can tell you my own experience and if I believe an herb helped me. I cannot, nor would I tell you to do the same. If you use any herb I, or anyone else, mentions you are treating yourself. You take full responsibility for your health. Humans are individuals and no two are identical. What works for me may not work for you. You may have an allergy, sensitivity or underlying condition that no one else shares and you don't even know about. Be careful with your health. By continuing to read my blog you agree to be responsible for yourself, do your own research, make your own choices and not to blame me for anything, ever.

From The Omnivore’s Guide to Home Cooking: Broth and Stock

  Until recently, I think most folks knew the difference between a stock and a broth.   But then came the “Bone Broth” fad.   So called Bone...