It’s that time of year again! It seemed like one day there was hardly anything green and the next the lane was covered in fresh young nettles, assuring me that, despite some cold evenings this week, spring has well and truly sprung.
I have written a few posts on nettles in the past and do excuse me if I repeat myself a little, but this time I wanted to go into a bit more detail on why nettle is so fantastic, as both food and medicine.
This is the time of year when we are both a bit deficient and a bit stagnant as we reach the end of the long winter months. Our bodies slow down during the cold weather, fluids thicken and we are generally less active as well as tending to eat more rich or stodgy meals and less fresh foods. I wrote in my post on January detox recently that often the foods we think of as either ‘cleansing’ or ‘nourishing’ can be just the same thing- and there is no finer example of this than the lovely nettle herself.
For a start nettle is one of the most nutrient dense wild foods that we have readily available to us. High in calcium, chromium, magnesium, zinc, iron, selenium, potassium, trace minerals, protein and many vitamins including A and C, nettle is a very good all round nourishing tonic herb. Nettle has a good reputation as an iron tonic, not just because it contains relatively high levels but because it also contains amino acids and vitamin C which are both required as co-factors for iron absorption. This is the beauty of our nutritive herbs, unlike the average vitamin and mineral supplement, the constituents are presented in a balanced way which allows for greater assimilation and absorption but also prevents excessive build-up. Nettle contains tannins which will tone the mucus membranes of the digestive tract and also prevent too much iron absorption. Nature is so much cleverer than we think!
Nettle is also high in flavonoids, including quercetin and rutin, as well as chlorophyll, both of which help to improve the health of the blood and circulatory system. All this and more has led to nettles reputation as a blood tonic. In traditional Western herbal medicine nettle was considered specific for pale, tired, anaemic people and has been used by practitioners of Chinese medicine to treat what is called blood deficiency. This is not just what we think of as anaemia but a more complex picture of the health of the blood as a whole. If, like me, you are vegetarian or vegan then nettle is one of the best things you can include in your diet to ensure your blood stays healthy and vital. Nettle has long been used as a hair tonic as it feeds the follicles through increasing the health and nutrient content of the blood and I always notice how quickly and strongly my hair and nails grow when taking it regularly.
Through its nutritive action on the blood and body fluids, its cleansing action via the organs of elimination and its tonifying action on the mucus membranes, nettle will have an effect on the whole body and this is one of the reasons that, like so many of our herbs, it is hard to put into rigid categories. The effects of having well nourished blood will include more energy, better circulation, improved mental clarity and better sleep. Effects on the mucus membranes might include improved digestion, increased kidney function or relief from chronic lung symptoms such as coughing wheezing and phlegm. It can be very tempting in today’s climate to look for a more reductionist explanation of how herbs work – the ‘this chemical constituent has this action’- approach to treatment, but herbs are, by their very nature, holistic in the way the act and that is part of their wonder.
Nettle is a prime remedy for treating fatigue and blood sugar balancing. Nettle can help to regulate body metabolism and has been used for the entire endocrine system, from balancing the thyroid, strengthening adrenal function and restoring the reproductive organs. According to Chinese herbalist Peter Holmes, ” Nettle herb provides excellent support for complex metabolic disorders, especially when they involve the connective tissue and/or endocrine glands and metabolic toxicosis – insufficient breakdown of metabolic wastes.” I think it works on blood sugar levels both directly and also indirectly as, by energising us and increasing vitality, it reduces cravings for artificially stimuating foods like sugar and caffieine.
Nettle has astringent, toning and cleansing properties that enable the liver, kidneys, skin and lungs to all work more effectively, thus increasing natural detoxification. It helps to drain damp, or excessive and stagnant fluids in the body, and has been used to help oedema, resolve problems of chronic phlegm and reduce accumulations in conditions such as arthritis and gout. It is a herb we commonly turn to for atopic conditions such as eczema, asthma, allergies and hayfever. Though it is useful for most people with these conditions, in a very few others it can actually cause allergies. Because of its astringent nature it is considered a haemostatic and can help to check excessive bleeding in the body when taken internally.
The energetics of nettles have been somewhat disputed over the centuries. Because of it’s stimulating and moving qualities it was once considered hot, notably by Culpepper who considered it a herb of Mars- hot and dry. Most modern herbalists however consider it cooling and drying. At the risk of being a non-committal fence sitter, I tend to think of it as fairly neutral in temperature, mostly because of it’s nutritive and balancing properties. Being astringent, it is certainly towards the drier end of things but again, how much so will depend on numerous other factors such as environment and climate. In Ayurvedic medicine nettle is considered to increase Vata, because it is cooling and drying, and decrease pitta and kapha. However in the Western tradition it would have been considered mostly quite specific for Vata type people who are often thin, pale, emotionally scattered and dreamy, though it would have been used with more moistening herbs if the person was overly dry. I often think that these kinds of discrepancies are to do with the climate in different areas. For example in northern Europe the climate tends to be very damp so the drying aspects of nettle would not be so problematic but some parts of India may be much drier so people with dry conditions would be more easily aggravated.
There are many ways to include nettle in your diet and here are just a few ideas:
- Raw from the hedgerow – just like this.
- Juiced – mixed with other fruits and veggies such as apples, celery, fennel. ginger, lemon or other greens.
- Tea – One teaspoon of dried nettle herb or two teaspoons of fresh per cup of boiling water makes a nice refreshing and nutrient rich tea.
- Nourishing infusion- Like a very strong tea, this utilises 25g of herb to about a pint of boiling water. Allow it to steep over night in a cafetierre then strain out in the morning and drink throughout the day, providing an abundance of vitamins and minerals. Teas made in this way used to be known as ‘standard infusions’ and were considered both more nutritive and more therapeutic than normal teas. In recent years they have been popularised by Susun Weed as ‘nourishing infusions’ which I think is a lovely way to describe them. After drinking I always use the spent plant material from my nettle infusions as a mulch around my roses.
- Infused vinegar- Loosely fill a jar with fresh nettle tops, cover in apple cider vinegar, cap with a plastic lid and leave to infuse for a month to six weeks. Strain and bottle then add to salads and other dishes. We add a few mls of nettle infused cider vinegar to our hens drinking water to increase their nutrient intake.
- Soup- See my recipes for nettle soup here and here. You can also add powdered nettle or nettle infusions to the stocks of other soups.
- Stir fries, bakes and curries – Slice the nettle tops finely and cook them up just like you would spinach.
- Hair washes and baths- make a strong tea as above and use as a final hair rinse after washing or add to bath water.
“Our doctors and pharmacists are ashamed of fetching such a common weed from behind the fences to include in their formulas, even though in both cookery and medicine it has proven its mightily impressive effects.” Hieronymus Bock, 1532.
“Nettle is one of the most widely applicable plants in the materia medica. The herb strengthens and supports the whole body.” David Hoffman, 2003.
References:
Medical Herbalism – David Hoffman
The Energetics of Western Herbs – Peter Holmes
The Book of Herbal Wisdom – Matthew Wood
The Yoga of Herbs – D.Frawley and V.Lad
Hi Lucinda, thanks for such an informative post…I’ve just come across your blog in the last couple of months and have been loving reading your back posts. You have such a wonderful way of describing plants that feels like you are warmly talking about old friends! Nettle can never be written about too much 🙂 looking forward to reading more!
Green blessings,
Clara
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Hi Clara, thank you so much for your lovely comment. They do feel like friends to me so I’m very glad if that comes across.
Many blessings to you too x
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Great Blog, Lucinda : )
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Thanks Christine!
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Excellent!
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🙂
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I have been writing and broadcasting the tenets of Nettle for ages… am even considering creating a ‘Nettles for Dummies’ kind of book among all the other books I want to write someday. Just wanted to say thank you for your comprehensive article. I wanted to add a few things…
1) Nettle can’t be ingested if picked after it fruits. It creates a caustic chemical that becomes very hard on our liver / kidneys… It can be used as a hair rinse if picked later, and the cord that can be twisted from the stems has longer fibers than flax or cotton so can make a very strong fabric, harvested in the fall…
2) Nettles picked after the dew has set dry rapidly. Just flip your herb around on their drying mats once a day and in a week, you’re ready to stuff em into glass jars and store out of daylight. I keep a jar on the counter for teas and also to add about a quarter’s dimension worth into every soup, stew, sauce, gravy, batter, dough I make… keeping my family’s immune system primed and adds a bass note to the food, not unlike bay leaves.
3) When I tore my ACL, nothing would stem the pain like brushing the insulted joint with raw fresh nettle leaves. The stings would be minimal, but the pain relief would be instantaneous and long lasting. As a city dweller, I got tired of driving to my nettle patch every time I needed some and finally put a big planter of nettle by the front door that I transplanted. It didn’t do that well but being that it was knee high, when I passed it, I would hunker down a bit to draw my knee across the living leaves, evoking INSTANT painfree relief. I think it might just help if you have arthritic issues as well.
4) Nettle can be eaten raw! Amaze your friends! Pinch off the top bud firmly between thumb and forefinger and press immediately to defuse the little tubules that release the sting… then roll roll roll it into a little bead and pop it into your mouth for a big green taste of spring. No stinging! The kids that grew up on Saltspring along with my daughter call these Nettleberries… and eat em like candy.
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Hi Tina, thanks so much for sharing your experiences with nettle. I was particularly interested in hearing your experience with the healing power of the stings as this is something I have never tried. A few people have told me it worked for them though and I have read in old books that it was used for arthritis. So many dimensions to this wonderful plant!
Do let me know if you ever publish that book. 🙂
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I tried to take Nettle for allergies, however I experienced nightmare dreaming all night long. Not really sleeping, just sort of resting. Have you heard of anyone having these problems before?
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Hi Rozetta,
I have heard many people report such experiences when taking the seed but not the leaf. How were you taking it? As tea? Nettle is stimulating in it’s way but this does sound like a strong reaction. Were you taking it just before bed?
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Hi Rozetta, I have been taking a quercetine/nettle supplement for allergies, and have been having terrible nightmares for years. I recently ran out, and noticed I wasn’t having nightmares anymore. I resumed the supplements, and the nightmares returned!! Hearing that you had this problem too corroborates my suspicions. I’m going to stop taking it, and rely more on my neti pot to deal with allergies.
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Nice article about Nettles, best wishes for You and blog
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Thank you.
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You write so beautifully Lucinda, I just want to rush out and pick a bunch of nettle leaves.
I drink a cup of nettle tea most days…..I pick it fresh from the garden during Spring and Summer. Chopping it back here and there gives me a constant supply of fresh young leaves.
I have learnt a lot from you about said herb over the last couple of years……it is wonderful for insect life and a great tonic for me.
I have a patch in the copse, a fairly large pack. Friends often ask ‘why on earth have you left the nettles’
I don’t really answer, as I find most people would not understand…..I know that you do 🙂
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Hi Cheryl,
So many of these wild plants are wonderful for us and wonderful for insects too aren’t they. I often don’t understand why people sacrifice plants with so many functions for ones whose only function is ornamental.
That’s wonderful that you keep a patch in your garden and get to enjoy fresh tea.
It’s true that many people don’t understand. Some think I’m quite eccentric with my nettle harvesting but a few people I know now invite me round to cut their nettles back for them!
xx
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Great informative post! I do use Nettles every year. In soups, teas etc. I did’nt know about the hair tonic, I will try that.
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Thanks Bridget, do you ever give them to your animals? They make great additions to animal feeds.
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I am so enjoying this.I have tons of nettle in a large patch. My daughter is always wanting to harvest it. I will start this year to actually use it instead of buying it. I guess taking off the seed heads before they mature would help control the patch? thank you for the info!
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Hi Donna,
Yes just keep cutting it back and it should stay manageable! The seeds can be used in food and medicine too so when you cut them off you can dry them and use them. i have written about them elsewhere on this blog (under the nettle category) if you haven’t used them before and would like more guidance.
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Is nettle and “burning” nettle the same thing?
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Hi DeDe,
I’m not completely sure about this as burning nettle is not a term we use in the UK but I think that it is used sometimes in the US to indicate Urtica urens, a closely related species to Urtica dioica, the common stinging nettle. Both species are used in medicine and both grow in Europe and the US. Where do you live?
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I like nettles both as a cooked green and herbal tea. They have a peculiar taste which can be a bit of a barrier to people who think of them as something you can substitute for spinach or other familiar greens, but this unique flavor can make them a culinary asset as well, when you’re looking to produce something with a different flavor!
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Hi Alex,
I use nettle very freely when young but you are right, some people are not massive fans of the taste, depending on how well I disguise it with other things!
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Thanks for sharring with us Lucinda.
I like nettle tea, and I’ll try your Classic Nettle Soup.
Have a nice day,
Rita
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Hi Rita,
I hope you like it! Nettle soup is such a classic of our spring kitchen. 🙂
Take care xx
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A most excellent and beautifully written post! I will never tire of reading about nettles, especially when you are the writer. One of the most abundant and giving plants I can think of – I find that I feel so vibrant when I drink nettles each day, like I am deeply and more completely nouished. I can’t wait to try the nourishing infusion and you have filled me with the happy anticipation of spring and all the nettles I soon will be picking and eating 🙂
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Isn’t nettle great! I get so excited at this time of year when I see it popping up all over the place. I hope yours arrive soon, is it still cold and snowy with you?
Lots of love and spring shoots to you xxx
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I remember the first time I had a “nourishing infusion” of nettles and I thought wow this is better than coffee (said the former coffee addict.) And for a couple of weeks I was just loving having it every day.
Black gold!
Michael
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That’s great, I am trying to convince my sister of this at the moment. We’ll have to see if it can grow on her!
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[…] Getting excited about nettle season after reading this […]
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Hi everyone, what a great place to be. I’m kind of new to this:-) I have used nettles in my soup on and off for years but I didn’t realise that there was a cut off time for the harvest 😦 yicks.
My son and I went today and harvested some seed from new shoots as the seed from the older plants had gone! but now I’m confused to whether they are the right nettles? As you mentioned that there is 2 kinds! We took from stinging nettles, is this right? Sorry for the ramble but I’m a wee bit scared that I’ll poison myself now hehehe.
Love what you’re doing.
Mx
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Both types of stinging nettle that are common in the UK are edible so don’t worry! If you have any doubt then be sure to check with a good plant id guide. 🙂
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Dear Lucia,
I am so grateful to have come across your blog tonight.
Two years ago, my sister and I were diagnosed with a very rare blood disorder called Acute intermittent porphyria. It is a metabolic disorder that effects heme production in the blood. The symptoms are widely spread and the pain is intense.
My older sister (28) has had attacks for two years now in and and out of the hospital in excrusiating pain monthly. I have symptoms but no attacks as the disease worsens with age. I’m 24. The drugs that they pump through her in the hospital barely do anything except knock her out for days and are very damaging to the liver. Since the disorder is so rare there’s no funding for research.
Anyways, the main point of my comment is that I have a feeling herbs can have unimaginable results for the both of us. I am done watching her suffer, and im determined to learn everyhing that I can. I feel like your blog is a start to a less invasive, more natural way of dealing with this nasty thing.
Bless you and the hard work you put into this, again I’m grateful for you. 🙂
Jenna
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Hi Jenna,
Thanks for your kind words and taking the time to comment, Where do you live? I may be able to find a recommended herbalist in the area who might have some good advice for you. It would be worth seeing a practitioner who can look at your individual case and find herbs suited to your constitution. In any case I hope you find the help and support you need.
With very best of healing wishes,
xx
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I too came across this blog looking up treatments for Acute Intermittent Porphyria, which my husband has recently been diagnosed with. I live in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Is there anyone in the area you could think of to recommend? Thanks for your time.
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Hi Andrea, if you go to The American Herbalists Guild you can search in your country and state. I had a look and could see three practitioners in Alberta. Good luck.
https://www.americanherbalistsguild.com/member-profiles?country=1039&state_province=1100&display_name=
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