Nettles

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Lately, more and more people have begun to understand just how limited — in both variety and nutritional value — our "modern" diets hove become. This realization has sparked a new and widespread interest in the culinary and therapeutic uses of herbs . . . those plants which — although not well-known today — were, just one short generation ago, honored "guests" on the dinner tables and in the medicine chests of our grandparents' homes. In this regular feature, MOTHER examines the availability, cultivation, and benefits of our "forgotten" vegetable foods and remedies . . . and — we hope — helps prevent the loss of still another bit of ancestral lore.

Contrary to popular opinion, the common nettle is more than a pesky, stinging weed. It has — since ancient times — been an important source of food, fiber, and pharmaceuticals. Although the nettle tribe (members of the family Urticaceae whose name is derived from the Latin uro, to burn) includes more than 500 species worldwide . . . the bright green to gray green stinging or common nettles (genus Urtica ) are the most prevalent throughout the U.S. and Canada.

This single-stemmed perennial, a plant that spreads by way of both seeds and creeping roots, can sometimes reach a height of seven feet. Its paired leaves are heartshaped and coarsely veined, sharply toothed, and covered with fuzzy bristles. The herb likes moist ground, and its presence is frequently an indicator of rich soil.

Before flax was introduced to northern Europe, fiber from the thick, square, hairy stems of nettles was woven into "linen". In Scotland, the material was used well into the seventeenth century, and was claimed to be one of the most durable of fabrics. Europeans and native Americans also utilized nettle fiber to make strong ropes and superior fishing nets, and — during World War I — Germany and Austria found the fibers to provide a good substitute for cotton.

For over 2,000 years, doctors have recognized the herb's ability to stop all kinds of internal and external bleeding, and considered it a good blood purifier. Taken as a tea, it has been found to help cure mucus congestion, skin irritations, water retention, and diarrhea. The beverage is also said to help nursing mothers produce milk . . . and stimulate the digestive glands of the stomach, intestines, liver, pancreas, and gall bladder. Applied externally, nettle tea — it is claimed— relieves rheumatism in both people and animals . . . makes a first-class gargle for mouth and throat infections . . . helps to clear up acne and eczema . . . and promotes the healing of burns.