Everlasting Gardener
Joanie Lapic
|
|
|
Nasturtium Tropaeolum majus
This popular flowering, vining garden plant is an annual in temperate areas. It is native to Peru, and likes sun. It can be planted in a large hanging basket, or left to ramble around 2 to 3 foot spaces on garden soil. The trumpet-shaped flowers come in shades of yellow, orange, pink and cream. USES: CULINARY ~ Its pretty round leaves taste peppery, as do the flowers, which can be stuffed with fruited cream cheese to make an elegant appetizer. The leaves and flowers are often combined with salad greens, where they not only add flavor, but also vitamins, minerals and therapeutic value. MEDICINAL ~ Nasturtium has traditionally been used as a powerful anti-microbial (antibiotic), especially when the fresh leaves are used as a poultice or compress as an antiseptic wash, and for bacterial infections of the skin. Drunk as a tea, the aerial parts help the body rid itself of bacterial infection, especially useful for respiratory infections like bronchitis. It helps get rid of colds and flu, and infections of the female reproductive organs. It can also be taken as a tincture.
(some information obtained from "Holistic Herbal" by David Hoffmann, and from “The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants” by Andrew Chevallier) |
