2023-08-21 07:44:21
Dear friend, dear friend,
Have you heard of the Shepherd’s Purse? It is a wild plant. It is often the first to colonize bare soil(1,2).
It therefore renders a valuable service to nature and to gardeners.
Because this ability to adapt and regenerate makes it possible to fight once morest erosion and soil depletion.(1,2).
However, botanists and soil biologists are now unanimous: there is nothing worse for a soil than to find itself bare(3).
The sun and the wind then quickly exhaust the life that is installed there: bacteria and other living beings die by the shovel.
And the soil loses its nutritive qualities.
The pastor’s purse, or capselle pastor’s purse, or capsella bursa-pastoris for scientists, is therefore a blessing for nature.
With its 50,000 potential seeds per plant, it is remarkably fecund, which allows it to feed birds and spread quickly over waste ground or an abandoned garden.(1,2).
And for humans?
Its name alone seems to tell a story: that of the link that exists between the shepherds and this plant that they might pick along the paths.
On the reason for this name, explanations diverge.
Some believe that it is linked to the shape of the seed which resembles a shepherd’s purse or that, at the very least, the latter were supposed to wear on their belt.
Others think that the association comes mainly from the fact that the shepherds treated themselves, as well as their sheep or their goats, with this plant.
Useful for small and large cuts
The shepherd’s purse is recognized as having two great medicinal properties(4,5,6): it is a powerful antiseptic: it kills germs; it is hemostatic which means that it slows down bleeding.
It is therefore useful in case of cuts or wounds(4,5).
It was, moreover, used a lot during the First World War to treat the wounded at the front.(1).
It can also be used for nosebleeds.
To heal wounds, the easiest way is to apply a compress soaked in mother tincture which is a mixture of a plant extract and alcohol.(7).
Alternatively, you can use a liquid plant extract that you will find in pharmacies or herbalists.
Generally, the part used is the flowering top of the shepherd’s purse.
An action on the blood
Shepherd’s purse acts on coagulation.
That is why it is a solution for wounds.
But an infusion of this plant can also be useful in case of heavy periods or internal bleeding.
It would also have an action on blood circulation that it can improve. It can thus be used locally with compresses or as a poultice once morest heavy legs or varicose veins. It is also recommended in case of hemorrhoids.
In all these situations, the infusion of shepherd’s purse can be useful.
You must put 30 to 60 g of plants per liter of water that you will boil.
Then leave to infuse for 10 minutes.
Herbalists recommend taking two to three cups a day between meals for a cure of a few days(4,5).
Be careful, however, the shepherd’s purse is not recommended in case of heart problem, thrombosis or phlebitis, for example(4,5).
Does this mean that people vaccinated once morest covid 19 with an RNA vaccine cannot consume it(8,9) ?
Indeed, this injection can cause thromboses, myocarditis or pericarditis(8,9). This is to be discussed with your doctor…
A plant that accompanies all ages
of life
The action on the blood of the shepherd’s purse makes it useful to accompany epilepsy or nervous disorders(4,5).
It might soothe the nervous system.
But it is especially on the urinary system that it would be very effective(1,5).
It limits the risk of urinary tract infection due to its antiseptic qualities(1,5).
It is also used to dissolve kidney stones and accompany bladder diseases, especially in the elderly.(1,5).
And in the kitchen?
Young leaf rosettes are quite edible. They have a slightly sweet taste(1).
They can be taken raw, sprinkled in salads or cooked in a dish, especially with vegetables(1).
They are one of the spring herbs traditionally eaten in Japan.
The seeds are also edible and eaten as a condiment because they are slightly spicy.(1).
In Canada, the Nlaka’pamux of British Columbia soak the leaves overnight which they then eat spinach style(1).
It is a plant that has resources!
It is rich in potassium, alkaloids, flavonoids and active principles and vitamin K(4).
It belongs to the family of crucifers like broccoli or cabbage and like them it also contains vitamin C, so much so that it was once used once morest scurvy(1).
In short, the next time you go to your herbalist, do not hesitate to ask him for the shepherd’s purse!
Naturally yours,
Augustine of Livois
1692652535
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