Everlasting Gardener

  Joanie Lapic Herb Specialist
 

Cleavers
Galium aparine

            A straggling square-stemmed annual that can reach 3 or 4 feet high, it has whorls of lance-shaped leaves, and gets clusters of small white flowers. It is common in North America and Europe, and found in many other temperate areas of the world. The above-ground parts are gathered when about to bloom in late spring.

USES:

MEDICINAL ~          

Cleavers is a valuable diuretic, taken as a tea for skin diseases such as seborrhea, eczema and psoriasis, also for swollen glands. It has traditionally been used to treat ulcers and tumors which may be the result of lymphatic drainage, and is perhaps the best lymphatic tonic. It is a generally detoxifying Herb for serious illnesses such as cancer, in which case the plant should be made into a juice. The tea and juice can also be taken for kidney stones and other urinary problems.

 (some information obtained from "Holistic Herbal" by David Hoffmann, and from “The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants” by Andrew Chevallier)

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