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 | Hounds Tongue Other Names: Lindefolia spectabilis. Dog's Tongue
Botanical Name: Cynoglossum officinale
Family: N.O. Boraginaceae |
Description: |
Hound's Tongue is a rough, bristly perennial, belonging to the Borage tribe. Its scientific name of Cynoglossum is derived from the Greek, and signifies ' Dog's Tongue,' from the shape and texture of the leaves, under which name, and still more frequently as Hound's Tongue, it is properly known.
It is a stout, herbaceous plant, found occasionally in this country on waste ground, though more frequently on the Continent, especially in Switzerland and Germany.
The stem, hairy and leafy, 1 to 2 feet high, branched above, arises from amidst large, narrow, radical, stalked leaves.
In Culpepper's days, the root was also used in decoction and as pills for coughs, colds in the head and shortness of breath, and the leaves were boiled in wine as a cure for dysentery. He also tells us:
'Bruising the leaves or the juice of them boiled in hog's lard and applied helpeth to preserve the hair from falling and easeth the pain of a scald or burn. A bruised leaf laid to a green wound speedily heals the same. The baked roots are good for piles, also the distilled water of the herb and root is used with good effect for all the aforesaid purposes, taken inwardly or applied outwardly, especially as a wash for wounds or punctures.'
Gerard says of this plant: 'It will tye the tongues of Houndes so that they shall not bark at you, if it be laid under the bottom of your feet,' and in his days the ointment and decoction were very generally reputed to be a cure for the bites of mad dogs.
In modern medicine it is often used internally and externally to relieve piles. It is soothing to the digestive organs. |
Ancient Lore: |
HOUND'S TONGUE
GYNOGLOSSUM OFFICINALE
The root baked under the embers, wrapped in paste and a suppository made thereof, and put into or applied to the fundament, does very effectually help the painful piles or haemorrhoids.
A perennial about three feet (90 cm) high with large, woolly leaves and clusters of sullen, red, funnel-shaped flowers.
Where to find it: By hedges and roadsides.
Flowering time: Early to midsummer.
Astrology: The plant is governed by Mercury.
Medicinal virtues: The root is cold, drying and binding and useful for catarrhal defluxions. It is excellent for all kinds of fluxes and haemorrhages as well as for gonorrhoea. It is a vulnerary and helpful in scrofulous tumours, taken inwardly, and applied outwardly as a cataplasm. It cures the bites of mad dogs, if some of the leaves are applied to the wound. The bruised leaves or their juice boiled in hog's lard and applied to the scalp helps the failing away of the hair. It is also applied to any part that is scalded or burnt.
The distilled water of the herb and roots can be used as a wash to heal all manner of wounds and all foul ulcers due to venereal disease.
Modern uses: The herb is soothing and relieves pain, but it is not in current use among herbalists. An ointment can be made from the powdered root and used to relieve piles. An ointment made from Pilewort is, however, more popular. A homeopathic medicine made from Cynoglossum officinale is available. |
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