roses

roses

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Wildcrafting herbs: Bedstraw

I have lots of bedstraw growing around the back deck. Galium aparine has a bad habit of taking over an area. I keep pulling it out and it just seems to keep proliferating in the same spots. Wikipedia says that this is edible. Some of the websites I have looked at give a bit of the history of the use of this herb. I know that the spot where it is growing is free of pesticides and similar toxins.

My only question is if the plant is too mature for me to use. I suspect it is. But it is something to consider for next year.

1 comment:

Jack Greeney said...

Bedstraw when mature can also be used as a diuretic. It can be used fresh or dried. Fresh you run it through a juicer (or use a food processor and cheesecloth). Dried it can be brewed into a tea.

The roots are useful as a dye for proteinaceous fibers premordanted in alum, such as wool, silk and alpaca. The color is a mild to hot pink depending on the concentration of the dye. Tin will brighten the color a little, but iron or copper renders it brickish.