Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Nettle (Urtica species)

The leaves can be used in cooking just like spinach, and lose their sting when exposed to heat.

Use the highly nutritious leaves for tea - fresh or dried.

I've received this recommendation for nettle tea from mother of five, Cynthia Skagen:
Stinging nettle tea is an excellent tonic for promoting milk production and uterine tone. It's rich in vitamins and minerals, especially potassium and vitamin K and is high in calcium. After drinking it regularly during pregnancy and breastfeeding five children I highly recommend it.

Some people seem to have developed a technique for picking nettles with their bare hands, but I would always wear gloves!

(Thanks to Maryanne for her inspiring enthusiasm for nettle's nutritional and medicinal properties.)

Nettle links:
Google Images
Plants for a Future database