Let’s talk Prunella vulgaris.
Prunella is a genus of herbaceous plants in the family Lamiaceae (Mint). Some call P. vulgaris self-heals, heal-all, heart of the earth, woundwort or allheal.
In my studies of this overlooked beautiful medicinal plant, I will call her Heal-All. Heal-All reminds me of the wonderful presence of Jesus and how He Heals All.
Let’s take a moment, pause and focus on the physical attributes of Heal-All. Heal-all’s unique inflorescence resembles a honey dipper. Does that just bring sweetness to your mind? My J eats p. vulgaris like candy. He will pick every single irregular flower off until bare cone-shaped inflorescence is all that is left. If you sit a moment you will quickly notice Bees love Heal-All. Instead of cutting Heal-All down I encourage you to leave this rich purple perennial to feed our Bees.
What about the stem? It is sparsely short-haired along the edges and the shape is square.
The leaves are opposite on the stalk. If you take a close look you will find they are blunt-tipped, hairy, with margins that are shallow and blunt-toothed.
How have Heal-Alls medicinal properties been applied through History? Let’s take a look at the Pharmaceutical Journal. Heal-All has been used often as an astringent and was identified as the herb used by the ancient Greek physician, to cure inflammation of the throat and tonsils. Its common name stems from its popularity as a plant used according to the old belief in the “Doctrine of signatures”, whereby a plant’s medicinal use to mankind was gauged by aspects of its appearance. In the case of Heal-All, the mouth-like structures of its flowers led to it being used as a remedy for sore throats and mouth ulcers. Makes sense doesn’t. Check out the pics. It looks like an open mouth to me. There are many plants on my property that I can apply the method of Doctrine of Signatures. God our Creator is communicating with us through these plants. I see His glory everywhere. In TCM research studies have shown anti-mutagenic properties. I don’t want to forget to mention the 2007 study on Heal-all for its ability to help with diabetes.
Heal-All is antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, astringent and antimicrobial. Think Vitamin C. Hello face serum! Think sore throat. Hello, throat spray! Think Cold Sore/Fever Blisters. Hello Lip Balm! Think cuts, stings, bug bites. Hello Salve!
Let’s make a salve!
Gather flowering tops and dry completely.
Infuse the herbs into the olive oil by heating the Heal-All and olive oil over low heat in a double boiler until the oil is very green. Careful not to burn the oil. Once, I fried Plantain. Really low heat. Strain the Heal-All out of the oil by pouring through a cheesecloth or any clean thin cloth. Squeeze the cloth getting all of the oil out. Discard the herbs into the compost bin.
Heat the infused oil in a double boiler with the beeswax until melted and mixed. Then pour into small containers with lids. Let cool.
You could add many other skin healing herbs like Plantain, Lemon Balm and Chickweed. Whatever you have on hand.
Here’s to the amazing Spring weed, Prunella vulgaris!
Yes, I get excited about plants
