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 | Bedstraw Other Names:
Botanical Name: Galium molugo
Family: N.O. Rubiaceae |
Description: |
Galium molllgo, the Hedge Bedstraw, another closely allied species, with white flowers, very common in this country, has much the same properties as Lady's Bedstraw.
An American species, G. tinctorum (Linn.), is closely allied in properties to G. verum. It is said to be useful in cutaneous diseases, and the root is employed by the Indians for staining their feathers and other ornaments red.
Besides the above, there are also four other British species, i.e. G. palustré (Water Bedstraw), common in watery places; G. uliginosum (Rough Marsh Bedstraw), smaller than the first-mentioned, the stem being rarely more than a foot high, slender and brittle; G. saxatile (Heath Bedstraw), a small species with dense panicles of white flowers; G. tricorué which is tolerably common in some of the English counties and in the Isle of Wight. The stems of this species are about a foot long and rough, as well as the leaves, with prickles pointing backwards, the flowers grow in threes and the first is reflexed. About seven or eight other species have been described by British botanists; they are, however, of rare occurrence.
See also:
CLIVERS
CROSSWORT
WOODRUFF |
Ancient Lore: |
CLEAVERS GALIUM APARINE
It is familiarly taken in broth, to keep them lean and lank that are apt to grow fat.
An annual herb also known as Goose-grass, Catchweed and Bedstraw, it has prickly stems which grow from two to six feet (o.6 to 1.8 m) high. The flowers are small, white and scattered.
Where to find it. I t grows by hedges and ditches and in the edges of woods. It chokes whatever grows near it. Flowering time: Summer.
Astrology: Under the dominion of the Moon.
Medicinal virtues. The juice of the herb and seed together, taken in wine, helpeth those bitten by an adder by preserving the heart from the venom. The distilled water drunk twice a day helpeth the yellow jaundice. The decoction of the herb stayeth laxes and bloody fluxes. The juice of the leaves, or the bruised leaves, applied to a wound stayeth the bleeding. Boiled in hog's grease, it helpeth all sorts of hard swellings or kernels in the throat when anointed.
Modern uses: An important remedy in modern practice, Galium is a soothing relaxing diuretic and is therefore employed as an infusion in cystitis in doses of two to four tablespoonfuls, three or four times a day. It can also he combined for this purpose with demulcents such as Marsh Mallow in equal parts. It is extensively used in the internal treatment of skin diseases, such as psoriasis and eczema. It acts on the lymphatic system. The juice is a powerful diuretic and useful in dropsy. Dosage varies from 1/6 -1/2 fl oz (5 -15 ml). The herb is considered to have anti-tumour properties, but there is as yet insufficient evidence to support this. Tinctures and fluid extracts are usually obtainable from herbalists. |
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