Supplements and Herbs

Wild herbs

Free food and powerful "medicine" from meadow, balcony, and lawn

Wild herbs and plants, often referred to as "weeds", are actually the most perfect and effective food supplements—as well as food much superior in nutritional value to cultivated vegetables. What's more, they grow for free on your doorstep, balcony or garden.

“Nature's pharmacy” on your doorstep

When spring has sprung, the green darlings aren't waiting in the wings! The first stinging nettle vines are peeking cheekily out of the foliage in the hope that no (stinging) hairs will be bent on them, goutweed, the most unloved “weed”, has once again resisted all eradication efforts of the gardener, as have the dandelions in the lawn that had so carefully been pruned out...

Before anyone is starting to make battle plans again, I would like to introduce you to the most perfect and effective dietary supplement—or rather a real food—that grows on your doorstep for free.

Yes, you read that right: the arsenal of an entire pharmacy of multivitamins, minerals and medicines is hidden in your garden, on the meadow, on your balcony, in the vegetable patch, and between the bushes: unloved, fought to the (lawnmower) knife, scolded as weeds: let's affectionately call them “wild herbs”!

Vitamin and mineral content of various plants

Species	Water (%)	K (mg)	P (mg)	Mg (mg)	Ca (mg)	Fe (mg)	Vitamin C	Provitamin A*
Chinese cabbage	95.4	202	30	11	40	0.6	36	13
Lettuce	95.0	224	33	11	37	1.1	13	130
Spinach	91.6	633	55	58	126	4.1	5.2	700
Nettles	84.8	410	105	71	630	7.8	333	740
Ground elder	87.2	510	88	67	230	4.3	201	684
Dandelion	89.9	590	68	23	50	1.2	115	384

*) in micrograms of retinol equivalents per 100 g edible portion

Unrecognized vitamin and mineral bombs

Let's take a look at the "sunny" side of dandelion, stinging nettle, ground elder and the like:

Green herbs in all their diversity contain all the vital substances useful to the human organism, namely all vitamins, minerals, trace elements, enzymes and amino acids, the valuable chlorophyll as well as fiber in perfect balance.

Chlorophyll, the green found in leaves, is very similar to the hemoglobin in our blood. It has a powerfully detoxifying and revitalizing effect and supplies our cells with an extra portion of oxygen. It also counteracts any unpleasant body odors and the fibres literally "sweep" the intestines, binding toxins and inflammatory substances and thus counteracting intestinal diseases.

Due to their high mineral content, wild plants are highly alkaline and therefore an ideal means of deacidifying, detoxifying and purifying the body.

Eating wild herbs very effectively supports any desired weight loss. Eaten several times a day, they prevent cravings and especially “sweet cravings”. The bitter substances encourage the flow of digestive juices, stimulate the entire metabolism and help regulate blood sugar levels.

The concentration of vital substances in wild plants is so high that we don't have to worry about any deficiencies if we eat them regularly (see tables).

Wild herbs contain a lot of absorbable calcium and high-quality protein that can be utilized by the human organism without leaving any residue (in contrast to animal protein).

Wild plants are a first-class elixir of life, as they contain subtle energy fields (biophotons / light particles) and therefore have a direct energizing effect on the body.

As far as the seasons permit, we can always harvest them fresh and young.

Wild plants grow without chemical pesticides, provided you collect them in an unpolluted place so are naturally "organic".

Vitamin and mineral content of wild plants versus cultivated plants: comparison chart

Mineral content (in milligrams per 100 g plant)

Cultivated plant	Magnesium	Iron	Wild plant	Magnesium	Iron
Lettuce	11	1.1	Chickweed	39	8.4
Chicory	13	0.7	French cabbage	56	14.0
White cabbage	23	0.5	Coltsfoot	58	3.8
Red cabbage	18	0.5	Knotweed	69	3.9
Cauliflower	17	0.6	Wild mallow	58	5.1
Mean values	16.4	0.68	Mean values	56	7.04

Recognize: Superiority of wild plants for magnesium: 3-fold, for iron: 10-fold! The same applies to the calcium content.

Vitamin C (in milligrams per 100 g of plant)

Cultivated plant		Wild plant
Endive	10	Hogweed	291
Chicory	10	Stinging nettle	333
Lettuce	13	Willowherb	351
Green beans	20	Green meadow button	360
Asparagus	21	Cinquefoil	402
Mean values	14.8

Provitamin A (carotene content) (in micrograms per 100 g of plant)

Cultivated plant		Wild plant
Red cabbage	2.5	Goutweed	114
Cauliflower	1.73	Meadow kelp	119
Savoy cabbage	6.5	Stinging nettle	123
White cabbage	7.0	Meadow knot	151
Chinese cabbage	7.83	Wild mallow	101
Mean values	5.11	Mean values	121.6

Amazingly, wild plants are 23 times superior!

(Source: FRANKE, W., Institute for Agricultural Botany at the University of Bonn, Ernährungswiss. Umschau 28.6.1981)

Health through “weeds”

Many wild plants are also “medicinal herbs”, allowing you to make use of their respective healing principles in a preventative or curative way.

The following gives but the barest idea of the therapeutic potential of a number of wild plants. For an eye-opening overview of what some of these true medicines can do for our health, read Stinging nettle medicinal effects and Taraxacum (dandelion) medicinal effects: Scientific studies show wide-ranging therapeutic potential.

Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica)
Unjustly feared: Stinging nettle has a blood-purifying and draining effect, cleanses the entire digestive tract, activates the immune system and calms the nerves. It is very rich in silicon, purifies the blood, detoxifies, strengthens the skin and bones, is rich in iron, vitamin C, A and K and, according to recent studies, is very effective against rheumatism, gout and osteoarthritis. Only harvest very young leaves, the stinging hairs break off if you crush them between your fingers or when cutting.

Goutweed (Aegopodium podagraria)
The tender, just unfolding leaves taste very spicy and can be eaten in large quantities. They contain many minerals, a lot of beta-carotene and—as their Latin name suggests—are effective against gout (podagra) and rheumatism because they provide a lot of alkaline substances and can help eliminate acids such as uric acid.

Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
has a particularly healing effect on the liver and kidneys due to its bitter substances, is blood-purifying (chew 5–10 stalks daily for a spring makeover!), is useful for rheumatism and gout, skin diseases, obesity, gallstones, cartilage degeneration. The herb is rich in vitamin C and many minerals. Use young leaves, but also the petals.

Hop shoots (Humulus lupulus)
Young hop shoots taste very pleasant and crunchy, almost asparagus-like. They are effective against liver congestion, gout and rheumatism, nervous restlessness and depression, perhaps due to their choline (lecithin) content. Hops also have a slight phytoestrogenic effect and alleviate any menopausal symptoms.

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
The very small, delicate leaves taste very spicy and contain many healing substances for the respiratory tract, stomach, intestines and heart. It is a first-class remedy for all women's ailments.

Other edible "green treasures":

Wild carrot, field horsetail (very tender shoots), sorrel, wood sorrel, ribwort plantain, nasturtium, marigold, fennel, cinquefoil (silverweed), ground ivy, willowherb, chickweed, milkweed, cowslip, violet, May shoot of spruce and larch, lime blossom and leaves, elder blossom and shoots, lesser celandine (before flowering), meadow buckbean, watercress, wild garlic, garlic mustard, evening primrose.

Always only very young shoots/leaves and not too much of any one variety! More tips for harvesting and cooking with wild herbs

An overview of issues to be aware of before applying plants for any healing purposes can be read under Medicinal herbs in healing: Introduction, general advice, considerations and caveats.

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