We stayed with my Uncle in Arundel over the weekend and went for a glorious walk on Sunday morning around the Arun valley. The autumn colours were spectacular, all red, gold, orange and yellow.
There were quite a lot of plants still flowering, the nicest of which was the White Dead Nettle.
It looks like a nettle but has a white flower a bit like an antirrhinum but it doesn’t sting if you touch it.
The flowering tops of the plant are used medicinally which contain saponins and tannins.
It is an astringent (toning) plant due to the tannin content, with anti inflammatory, healing, antispasmodic and menstrual regulating properties.
It is used internally in tincture form for painful periods, cystitis, diarrhoea and irritable bowel. Externally it may be used as a douche (wash) for vaginal discharge.
2 oz of fresh herb is steeped in 2 pints of boiling water until the water is cool. This is then strained and the liquid used as a vaginal douche.
If you have never used a douche before please do your research to find the correct way to use a douche so that you do not hurt yourself.
Linda Bostock
Medical Herbalist/Herbal Health Information
