CROP

LINGONBERRY (Vaccinium vitis-idaea)

Common names: cowberry, foxberry, quailberry, bearberry, beaverberry, mountain cranberry, red whortleberry, lowbush cranberry, cougarberry, mountain bilberry, redberry

Description:

Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis idaea) is a dwarf evergreen shrub belonging to the heather (Ericaceae) family. The ovate leaves are 1-3 cm long with slightly wavy margins, glossy surface and black spots on the backside. The flowers are bell-shaped, white to pale pink, composed of four petals. The fruits are round red berries which are a little larger than blueberries.

Lingonberry is native in Europe, Asia and North America. In Europe, the species grows in pine woods, wetlands and in acidic soils, reaching altitudes even above 2000 m.

Collection:

Both lingonberry leaves and fruits can be collected for medical purposes. It is important to be careful during collection to cause as little harm as possible to the shrubs. The leaves are shade dried, freshly picked fruits can be processed or can be preserved through drying.

Active substances:

The plant is very rich in antioxidants which protect the body from degenerative oxidation processes. It also contains vitamins A, B, C and E, a large number of minerals and flavonoids. The leaves contain tannins and arbutin.

Uses:

Lingonberry leaf tea is used to treat kidney problems and urinary tract infections.

Fruits and fruit products or extracts are recommended to treat urinary tract infections, prostate and kidney problems. They are also recommended in case of overweightness, hyperglycaemia, lipid metabolism problems, atherosclerosis or high blood pressure. We should mention that some studies show that prolonged consumption or large amounts of cranberry might increase the risk of kidney stone formation.

Lingonberries have antioxidant properties, strengthen the immune system, protect the body against infections, have vasoprotective properties, aid cell regeneration, detoxification, prevent stone formation and the development of inflammatory or neoplastic diseases, therefore, one can say that they have significant preventive effects.

Berries can be consumed as such, in shakes, fruit salads or as delicious cake ornaments. Due to their sour taste, they are often used in sauces or jams. The fruits are suitable for syrups or jams or they can be preserved for the cold days by freezing or drying.

EUROPEAN CORNEL (Cornus mas)

Common names: Cornelian cherry, Cornelian cherry dogwood

Description:

The European cornel (Cornus mas) is part of the dogwood (Cornaceae) family. Most dogwood species are native to the northern hemisphere. It is a shrub which prefers light and is resistant to drought, reaching a height up to 2.5 – 4 m. The leaves are 4-8 cm long, they have a glossy green colour and ovate shape. The small, yellow flowers form groups of 10 to 25, blooming in early spring, before the leaves appear.

The flowers contain large quantities of nectar and pollen, the plant being one of the first honey-bearing plants of the year.

Cornel fruits ripen in August-September, they are 2-cm-long oval drupes having a bright red colour when ripen. The plant grows in rare shrubbery areas, rare woods, on hill and mountain sides, especially in soft soils. It grows slowly but in good conditions it will have a very long life. High-quality tool handles can be made from cornel wood.

European cornel spreads from Central Europe to the Black Sea. The plant is cultivated in many countries, especially in parks, as the early flowers are very beautiful and the plant tolerates well the urban environment.

Collection:

Cornel fruits are consumed since the ancient times. They are collected in August and September.

Active substances:

Fruits contain a large amount of vitamin C, sugars, malic acid, pectin and colouring agents.

Uses:

The sour cornel berries were already consumed by our ancestors. Raw fruits are tastier if they are overripe. They have antioxidant properties and a high vitamin C content, therefore they improve our body’s resistance. The fruits can be preserved by drying, being a substantial source of vitamin C during the winter days. Berries can be turned into jam, syrup, canned fruit or even wine or brandy. As olives, unripe fruits are preserved in brine or vinegar. In folk medicine, cornel berries or cornel jam are used mainly to treat diarrhoea.

EUROPEAN BLUEBERRY (Vaccinium myrtillus)

Common names: common bilberry, blue whortleberry blaeberry, hurtleberry, huckleberry, winberry, fraughan.

Description:

The European blueberry is a small shrub of 25-50 cm belonging to the heather (Ericaceae) family. Its branches are angular, the ovate leaves are 2-3 cm long and narrowing towards the top, with fine serration on the margins. The flowers have reddish-green, round petals which are welded together Blackberry fruits have a blue-black colour and 6-10 mm in diameter.

Blueberry is widespread throughout Europe, besides Northern Europe it is generally found on high hills or in mountain areas. It prefers fresh, acid soils and avoids the calcareous ones.

Collection:

Both the leaves (Myrtilli folium) as well as the berries (Myrtilli fructus) contain drugs. The leaves collected are shade dried. From 4 to 5 kg of fresh leaves about 1 kg of dry drug can be obtained. The fruits ripen in August. Raw, freshly-collected fruits can be processed for food or pharmaceutical purposes or they can be dried, which allows them a longer storage period.

Active substances:

The leaves contain tannins, catehic tannins and proanthocyanidin. Compared with cranberry, blueberry leaves do not contain any arbutin whatsoever. The blue colour of the fruit is due to mirtilene, an anthocyanin. In addition, the plant contains tannins, fruit acids and anthocyanin glycosides.

Uses:

Bilberry leaf tea has carminative and diuretic effects, due which it can be used in case of kidney or bladder problems. It is also suitable to cover the daily fluid intake of people with diabetes. It is assumed that leaves reduce blood sugar, but this effect has not yet been scientifically proven.

The fruits can be consumed as follows: 1 tablespoon of dried or bottled fruit or fruit extract daily. Blueberry extract can prevent subconjunctival haemorrhage by people suffering from diabetes and is beneficial for those susceptible to vasculitis. It improves eye adaptation to low light conditions. Blueberry tea cures problems such as gastritis, enteritis and diarrhoea. It also has beneficial effects in case of stomatitis or pharyngitis.

Blueberry jam, syrup and wine are all are very popular and delicious products, the latter improving the strength of the human body.

COMMON NETTLE (Urtica dioica)

Traditional names: stinging nettle, common nettle

Description:

The common nettle belongs to the genus of Urticales and to the family of Urticaceae. It is native to Eurasia, but abundant in the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. It grows on wet and green areas, forest cuttings and waterside greenwoods, together with other weeds, next to human settlements, in rich and limy soil.

Nettle is a dioecious, perennial, herbaceous plant. Its long, cylindrical and branchy rhizome is tawny. The oval leaves are born oppositely on the stem, are heart-formed with a tapering peak and serrated margins. The stem and the leaves are covered by hair (trichomes) which causes a painful stinging sensation and small rashes when contacted by skin. The paniculate grow axillary to the leaves and on the top of the stem. In case of both, stamened and pistillate, the inflorescence is composed of green tepals. It blooms from May to the end of September. The fruit is oval and peaky with only one seed.

History:

The nettle was first used as a fiber for weaving, just later as a medicinal plant. In graves revealed form the metal age there were found shrouds made of nettle. During wars, cotton was substituted by fabric made of nettle stem. The ancient Greeks used nettle externally for snake- and scorpion-bites, internally as a treatment for vegetal poisonings. Roman soldiers in cold areas used nettle to warm up their skin and body by beating themselves with fresh nettle and for treating joint gout. Medicine men in early Europe used nettle smoke against asthma.

Collection:

The drug can be gained from the dried leaves (Urticae folium), sprout (Urticae herba), root (Urticae radix), and rarely from the fruit (Urticae fructus) of nettle. The leaves and the plant (the upper 30-40 cm) can be picked from spring to autumn. In order to gain drug, the leaves must be scarfed from the stem immediately. The roots can be dug out either in spring or in autumn.

Active Substances:

The drug gained from the roots contains sterols, coumarin, tannins, lignan and phenylpropan-derivates. Nettle leaves and stem contain flavonoids, triterpens, sterols, vitamins (B, C, K, U), carotenoids, amino acids (histamine, serotonin, choline) and minerals.

Use:

The leaves and the plant are the mostly used drugs of nettle. It is used for inflammations of the urinary tract, in depurant diets, against goat and as an additional treatment for rheumatic pains. In traditional medicine nettle was also externally used: for instance in alcohol is used to rub the rheumatic body part or on head skin against dandruff or fat hair. Skin contact with the fresh plant was used against rheumatic pain and lumbago. The fruit of nettle was used exclusively in traditional medicine: as an unguent for rheumatic pains and skin diseases, or its oil internally as an invigorator. The drug of the roots is contained in several pills used against prostate problems.

Tea: Pour boiling water on 3 teaspoon of drug to gain one cup of tea, then strain it in 10 minutes. As an infusion of herb nettle has a wide use: general invigorator, depurant, diuretic, and its positive effect has also been proved in case of bladder inflammation, rheumatic pains, goat, skin diseases, hair loss, hypertension or gastritis. In spring is mostly used as part of a depurant cure, since it washes through the veins, the kidney and removes kidney sand and stones. It is also good to prevent the latter.

Bath: nettle bath is recommended for pimply skin. The hip bath is used for treating hemorrhoid and as a poultice for rash. Nettle infusion can be used externally against hair loss and dandruff or as a bath against rheumatic pains.

Unguent: nettle unguent made of the leaves has positive effects on eczematous skin.

Nettle has a main role in beauty salons. Young nettle leaves are used for facial steaming, while the cream made of them is a good skin cleanser. Especially for fat and scaly skin it is a very effective remedy. Through industrial methods there is chlorophyll extracted from nettle leaves, which is used as dye. Thanks to its silica content it strengthens the connective tissues, nails and hair-bulbs.

The young and fresh nettle leaves can be used for a vegetable-dish or offered as a side dish to meat menu. It is also good for animals.

Nettle is not recommended in case of edema due to inadequate heart- and renal insufficiency!

BLACKTHORN (Prunus spinosa)

Description

Blackthorn belongs to the family of Rosaceae and to the subfamily of Prunoideae. This dense and spiny shrub grows up to 1-2 m on fringe of forests, clearings and pastures. Its small white flowers appear before the leaves come out, the fruits (called sloe) are 10-12 mm large, blue, cindery stone fruits to be harvested after the first frosts. Small song-birds prefer building their nests inside the spiny branches, while sloe serves as food for small wild animals during winter time. Blackthorn is native to Europe and the Middle East, and it is very widely spread also in Transylvania.

Dried fruits, among them wild fruits and blackthorn have always played an important role in traditional nutrition, especially during Lent. In the 17^th century Transylvania, during the rule of Apafi Mihály, dried blackthorn was as valuable that peasant had to pay tenth after the produced quantity.

Collection

The flowers must be picked before the leaves come out, around March-April. The sloe is harvested after the first frosts, when it loses its acerbic taste.

Active Substances

The flowers (Pruni spinosae flos) contain flavonoids (kempferol and quercetin glycoside, rutin) and procyanidines. The fruit (Pruni spinosae fructus) contain organic acids, glycose, proteins, iron, vitamin-B1, -B2- and L-ascorbic acid, as well as tannins.

Use

In traditional medicine the dried flowers are the mostly used parts. Its tea has antihypertensive, slightly laxative and diuretic effects. Infuse 1 spoon of dried drug with 2 dl boiling water, macerate it for 20 minutes, and then strain it. Drink 2 dl of tea 3 times daily. In case of kidney and bladder problems mix it with milfoil, tutsan or golden-rod.

The flower infusion has spasmodic effects on stomach, it is an effective fat burning and fat-reducing remedy to be used during slimming diets. The infusion can be made of 2 spoons of dried blackthorn flower boiled in 250 ml of water for 1 minute. It also can be used for kidney and bladder problems. In order to rest your tired feet pour the infusion into a basin, add one handful of salt and one handful of ash to it and bathe your feet.

Distillated blackthorn flower is used in the cosmetic industry as cover material, invigorator, while the juice of the fruits as invigorator and skin conditioner. Thanks to its high mineral, vitamin and tannin content it tightens, nutrifies and regenerates loose, tired, pale, oily and scaly skin. The sloe can be used for jelly, syrup, wine or spirits.

DOG-ROSE (Rosa canina)

Common names

Penknife tree, hip, dog lace, hedge-rose, dog-rose; its berry-like fruits are called rose-hips, lace etc.

Description

It is a perennial shrub growing up to 2-3 m height. The arched branches are full of thorns. The leaves are composed of 5 small leaves. It has white or light red flowers. It has egg, pear or globe, eventually spindle formed, 1.5-3 cm long, fleshy fruits with little juice, which are at the beginning light red, becoming dark red when ripe, with sour but aromatic taste. Inside the fruit there are stingy and hairy seeds.

Occurrence

Dog-rose grows on scrublands, fringe of forest, along roads, but it also appears in karst forests and on karst scrublands, dry oak forests, abandoned vineyards and orchard, untidy fields. It usually likes warm, loose and sandy soil and prefers lime.

Gathering period

Rose hips can be collected from the end of August, when they start getting red. The fruits contain the most L-ascorbic acid when they are half-ripe, and they can be seeded easier. Later, when they are completely ripe, we cannot remove the seeds, but use the fruits only dry.

Active substances

Beside the L-ascorbic acid the fruits of dog roses contains lots of useful substances for our organism: pectins, flavonoids, sugars, malicand citric acid, tanin and vitamin A.

Use

Due to its high L-ascorbic acid content it is widely used both in gastronomy and the traditional medicine for making tea, gem, syrup, soup, sauce, vinegar, liqueur, wine etc. It is important to remove the seeds and hair from the berries before using them; otherwise they might cause nasty itchiness. It is also used for itching powder. Be careful, wear rubber gloves while removing them.

Already the ancient nations have recognized the curative power of rose hips, first of all in case of tabescent diseases. The L-ascorbic acid enhances the resistance of our organism, the flavonoids have antiseptic and antibiotic effects on our immune system. The tea made of the fruits is very useful and must be consumed regularly in case of a flu or a cold. It is also good for kidney and bladder disorders, enteritis and bronchitis. It also improves digestion and is slightly diuretic. Rose hip can also be used for strengthening, refreshing and for enjoyment purposes. Thanks to its good taste it is also used in mixtures of medicinal plants and in fruit teas.

BLACK ELDER (Sambucus nigra)

Black Elder (Sambucus nigra)

Origin, botanical description

This 6 m high shrub in the family Caprifoliaceae is native to Europe and Asia, also widespread in our country. The elder branches change to coarse grey with furrowing. The elliptical leaves are arranged in opposite pairs and have serrated margins. The flowers are born in flat corymbs with a diameter of 15-25 cm, having 5 main petals. Some flowers are very small not growing over 6 mm. The fruit is a glossy black berry.

The black elder might not be confused with the lower danewort or dwarf elderberry (Sambucus ebulus), which has smelly flowers with dark purple stamens. The latter is not a medicinal plant.

Active agents

The flower contains flavonoids, a bit of volatile oil, saponins and mucilage.

The color of the berry is due to the substances with phenol content (for instance cyanidin).

Histroy

The black elder was known and used already in the ancient times (by Hippocrates and Galenos). The latter has recommended elder for catarrhal colds and irritations of the mucous membrane. There are lots of legends about black elder: it is a symbol of the witches, the magic wand is made of elder tree. Another legend says that on elder trees live fairies and we need to sing under the blooming tree so that the fairies have plenty of time to escape. The elder tree was never cut out, since it protects our home from the evil spirits, but it was never used for a cradle, because it would not leave the baby growing. According to the German legends the magic flute was made of elder tree.

In the Hungarian traditional medicine it is the mostly used medicinal plant next to the chamomile. Gipsy women used every part of the tree for healing: flower, fruits, leaves, bark and roots.

Collection

Pick the jonquil flowers with pleasant smell with a short stem in May and June, when the sides of the umbrella start blooming. Dry them on dry and warm place, otherwise it will get brown and loses active substances. From 6-7 kg fresh flowers we will get 1 kg dry drug. When it get dried, pick the flowers from the stem and use them for medicinal tea. The fruits are dark berries with currative power. The latter can be collected at the end of the summer, in August or September.

Curative effects

The elderflower tea is a well-known diuretic with digestive and cough relief effects. In case of a cold or bronchitis it can be used as a sudorific and it stimulates the immune system. The fresh elder sprout and flower is a strong laxative. It is also used for blood purification, earache or huskiness. The elderberry is a sudorific, in a large quantity works as laxative but it is also recommended as a remedy for oedema and rheumatism. Its fresh juice or the jelly made of the berries is a proved remedy for tuberculosis. The bark of the elder tree has expelling effects, works as a vermifuge. It is a diuretic, used for kidney inflammation and recommended for oedema.

The leaves are diuretic and laxative, relief for rheumatic pain. It is also used against fever. In case of populous fever (rubeola, scarlat) and rheumatic fever, as well as in case of catarrhal infection (bronchitis, flue) it can be used as an effective sudorific. It is rarely recommended for oral use. It is mostly used for bleeding and flash burn.

Use

Medicinal tea: in case of a cold drink 2-3 cups of very hot elder tea daily. It is even more efficient if you drink elder tea while taking a footbath, then go to bed. This way you „sweat” the cold, detoxify your organism and quicken the healing.

In case of stuffy nose, cough elder is ideal for inhalation, since it clears well the respiratory tract and works as a good expectorant.

One cup of elder tea in the morning has diuretic effect.

Elder tea is also used in order to lose weight. Drink 5 cups of tea daily for a whole month or until you reach the weight wanted.

It is one component of cough syrups made of: elderberry, plantain, blackcurrant, liquorice, anise, candy, honey and a little bit of salmiac.

External use: Thanks to its sedative effect it can be used as a compress in case of pleurisy, hematoma, gout, frost-bite, psoriasis and eczema. Use it as a wash lotion for ophtalmia and stye.

THE HAWTHORN (Crataegus monogyna)

Description

The hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) belongs to the family of Rosaceae and to the subfamily of Maloideae; it is a thorny shrub with white and scented flowers blossoming in rich clusters, with red pome fruits with one large seed and yellow flesh. The leaves have deep lobes. Making part of the Eurosiberian flora, hawthorn is widely spread. It is a shrub of the plain and hill, it grows in mass on fields and in devastated oak-woods.

It is the herb of the heart, but also called ’’Fruit of God’’. In traditional medicine it is one of the mostly used herbs.

Active substances

It contains yellow and transparent flavonoids, as well as triterpenes.

Wildcrafting

We usually collect the bearings, but the leaves and flowers are also valuable. The end (approx. 2 cm) of the blossoming stems must be collected. The crops are collected before they grow ripe, already red, but not soft yet (before the first frost). The flowers must be dried in the shadow, at an airy, but dry space, protected from the direct sunlight. Before processing, put the crop into the freezer to make them softer.

Curative effects:

It has a very smooth calming effect, so it can be used long-term. Stronger medication can be reduced if used simultaneously.

It is a ’’heart friend’’, strengthens and calms heart, it has antihypertensive effect, its tea prevents arteriosclerosis and reduces the level of cholesterol.

It can also be used for sleep disorders, arthritis and it is digestive and a good appetite enhancer (it does not have fat-reducing, but diuretic effects).

Usage

Herb tea: infuse one teaspoon of dried leaves with 2 dl boiling water for 15 minutes, then strain and drink 3-4 cups daily.

The tincture is made of the flower, leaves and crops.

Legends

The first notice about hawthorn originates back to 1305. It has been registered that hawthorn was used against heartache and gout.

There are several legends related to hawthorn. The Romans placed this plant in the cradle in order to lay the evil spirits. In Christianity it is the symbol of death, because the thorny crown of Jesus Christ was made of hawthorn.

According to the Germanic myths the hawthorn arose from the flash of lightning and it was used on stake in order to help the spirit getting through to the heaven.

The Celts consider hawthorn as being the tree of winter and darkness.

THE RASPBERRY (Rubus idaeus)

Description

The raspberry (Rubus idaeus) belongs to the family of roses (Rosaceae), is native to Europe, North-Asia and Japan. The fruits and leaves of raspberry were known already in the ancient times and used for its curative effects.

It grows spiny shoots and propagates from rhizomes. It has characteristic white flowers and red succulent fruits with a special beloved flavor. It has serrated leaves.

In our region it grows on hills and highland, in clearings appear first the wild strawberry, than wild raspberry and last the blackberry bushes.

Active substances

The leaves contain aromatic substances, organic acids, L-ascorbic acid and tanning substances. Its high level of magnesium, phosphor, calcium, and vitamins A, B, C, D and E remedy anemia and strengthen teeth, nails and bones.

The fruits have a strong antioxidant and tumor inhibitor effect.

Wildcrafting

The leaves are harvested at the beginning of summer, before bloom, since they have more active substances than after ripening of the fruits. Let the leaves dry in the shadow, spread over, protected from the direct sunshine, then store in paper or canvas bag.

Curative effects

The substances extracted from the leaves are used by diabetics, against kidney- and bladder diseases, for those suffering from auricular gout.

Thanks to its constricting effect it is used from time immemorial both in the ayurvedic and traditional medicine for gynecological problems.

Its muscle-tone intensifier effect holds the uterus-, vagina- and rectal-prolapse, attenuates incontinence of urine, varicose and rectum problems. It might also help in case of diarrhea or nausea.

Gynecological effects:
It urges ovulation and shorten the period, this way it is useful for teenagers with irregular period or later against menstrual cramps and pains, especially in the first part of the period.
2 cups daily helps in conception, ovulation and impregnation, improves the quality of the ovum.
Mixed with dandelion tea, it helps conception delays caused by insulin-problems.

Regulates the function of uterus-muscle – a raspberry leaf tea cure (1 cup daily) for 12 weeks is recommended after impregnation and for 2-3 weeks around giving birth.

In case of inflammation in urinary tract and kidney we need to consume lots of liquid – leach – or a mixture of herb tea: ¼ raspberry leaves, ¼ blueberry leaves and ½ urinative tea.

Gout – ½ raspberry leaves, ½ blueberry leaves tea cure for 3 weeks, repeated several times, keeping a pause in-between. It reduces urine acid.

Raspberry tea is recommended daily for invigoration and refreshment.

Use

Tea – 1 teaspoon of dried leaves infused with one cup of hot water, sieved after 8-10 minutes.

Face tonic – for acne must be combined with tea (internal use also).

Irrigation – in case of white discharge.

The fruit is very tasty for jelly or syrup and it also has antioxidant effect.

Long time ago the stem was cooked for a soup in the spring, having a very pleasant reddish color, or together with other spring herbs growing around the house was prepared a herb soup on Holy Thursday.

The fresh leaves and shoots can be also used in salads.

Attention!

Not recommended:
– for children,
– for nursing mother,
– for pregnant women until the 36^th week of pregnancy,
– for people with constipation.

THE COMMON MISTLETOE (Viscum album L.)

Description

The common mistletoe (Viscum album L.) is a hemiparasite, evergreen plant, native to Europe, North Asia and North Africa. It should not be mixed up with yellow mistletoe or Loranthus europaeus that grows on oak trees and can be recognized from its yellow color. That one is not an herb and is a deciduous plant. The common mistletoe is hanging on the guest tree in different forms and its diameter can reach 3m, its height 1m and it lives up to 70 years. The flowers appear at the bottom of the leaves between March and May and are yellow color. The fruit of mistletoe is a white, semitransparent berry that appears in November-December. It is toxic for us, but the titmouse and the throstle like it very much. The fruit has one large seed embedded in the very sticky, glutinous fruit pulp. It sprouts only on branched, but not in water or soil. The sticky juice was used to make birdlime, an adhesive to trap small animals or birds.

Active substances

Flavonoids, caffeic acid, saponin, alcaloids, resin, choline, acetylcholine, lectin, polipeptide, viscotoxin and in the fruit polysacharides. The lectin and the viscotoxin in large dosis are toxic substances. Do not exceed recommended daily dosis!

Legend

The mistletoe is one of our first plant. The Celts respected it as a sacred plant, cut its branches with golden sickle so that the rust won’t hurt its miraculous effect. In order not to touch the ground, it was picked into a white canvas held by virgin girls. The rare mistletoe gathered from oak tree had a very high value among Celts, it was collected on the 5^thday of Celtic New Year, in January. It made Germanic warriors invulnerable; if hanged over the craddle it protected new-born babies from evil fairies who meant to exchange the child. Young girls hid mistletoe under their pillows on midsummer night in order to find out the identity of their future husbands. It was the symbol of eternity of the world and imortality of the soul. According to the anglo-saxon tradition people meeting under a mistletoe must kiss each other. This is a gesture of forgiveness and love, based on Scandinavian legends.

Wildcrafting

Leaves and twigs thinner than 5mm can be collected from November to February. Its active substances depend on the time of picking and on the guest tree. For instance the mistletoe picked from an apple tree or hawthorn is more effective antihypertensive and against uric acid. Wildcrafting mistletoe is a hard job. It need to be cut, then dried without berries. The woody parts dry slowly. In order to avoid mold, keep it in a dry and airy space.

Do not collect mistletoe from maple, linden, walnut, willow or poplar tree.

Curative effects

Mistletoe can be widely used, first of all as a remedy for congestion, hypertension, arteriosclerosis and heart arrythmia symptomes. Mistletoe improves the permeability of veins, that is why we use it against vertigo, tinnitus, varicose and to improve concentration skills. It also has a diuretic effect. It tempers any kind of bleeding from wounds, nose, uterus or lungs. It can be used for coughing, whoop, asthma or for any other cramp. Due to its tranquillizer effect it might prevent epileptic fits or headaches. Mistletoe strengthens the immunity system. It strengthens the musculature of the uterus and increases the chance of conception. In a small dosis mistletoe is recommended to diabetes, since it decreases the sugar level in blood.

Use:
Herb tea: do not prepare hot tea form mistletoe. Macerate 3 g of dried plant in 2,5 dl distilled or lime-free water for 12 hours. Steep it in the evening, strain in the morning and drink it cold or tepid before breakfast.

For hypertension or arteriosclerosis 1 cup daily on empty stomach is recommended. Those suffering in cardiovascular diseases should drink 1 cup before going to bed, 1-3 times a week. For unsteady blood pressure drink mistletoe tea 2-3 times a week on empty stomach. In order to strengthen you uterus, make a 4-week-cure and consume 3 times daily 1 spoon of mistletoe tincture. To prevent any diseases and to strengthen your immunity system, is enough to drink 2-3 cups monthly, which needs to be prepared and consumed in the way explained above. Mistletoe is a medicinal plant, but its use demands special attention.

Medicinal wine: 40 g fresh mistletoe macerated in 1 l sweet white wine for 10 days at room’s temperature. Drink one glass twice a day before meal. Make a 15-day-long cure twice a year.

External use: warm boultice made of mistletoe leaves and mashed berries is used for vasoconstriction, varicse vain or arthralgy.

Researches:
Already the famos Swiss doctor, Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925) has used mistletoe for treating cancer. According to the newest German researches the mistletoe has citostatic (cell protecting) and immune system strengthening effects and prevents formation of metastasis.