Weeds For Health On Gozo

By Helena Szöllősy

So a 'weed' is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, 'a plant in the wrong place'. Examples commonly are plants unwanted in human-controlled settings, such as farm fields, gardens, lawns, roadsides, parks and construction sites.

But are they really good for nothing?

Weeds For Health On Gozo is a collection of the most common and frequently found wild plants on Gozo which one can see by the road side, in the fields, country and coastal walks. It consist monographs of 40 wild plants with photos and description of the plants, their usage, some historical information and even recipes. Most of them are considered as common weeds but they are actualy medicinal plants. with pharmacological properties.

Nature provides us with everything. Food, medicine, tools, everything we need in daily life we can find around us and at our feet. Most plants are good for something even if they are troublesome weeds. In the old days people knew their uses and respected them better. Nowadays all that knowledge is forgotten. Lost for ever?

Reading this book, ”Weeds for health on Gozo” will I hope, awaken the reader's interest in plants, with a different view of our environment and the weeds.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Helena Szöllősy
• Release date: Dec 18, 2016
• ISBN: 9781370270194

Helena Szöllősy

I am a qualified Naturopath, specialised in Phyto-therapy. My passion for plants from my early childhood led to a deepened knowledge and specialisation in Herbal medicine, following a professional career in pharmacy and naturopathy.In past 5 years I offer specialist private consultations, group seminars, workshops on Phyto-therapy, teaching pharmacognosy and herbal pharmacology on base of my Pharmacy knowledge, and also organising and leading seasonal walking workshops on medicinal plants.I started my career as a pharmacy technician and worked for 26 years in pharmacy. I completed homeopathy training. I have finished my study of general Naturopathy and specialised Phyto-therapy, including herbal medicine, aromatherapy, api-therapy, Bach flower therapy, spices, healing nutritional plants, nutrition, herbs growing, and organic horticulture.I have over 35 years professional experience working in Slovenia, Serbia, Hungary and Malta. I moved to UK and live in London at present.

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PREFACE

When I was a 6-year-old little girl I used to play as any child imitating the adults. I picked grass, some leaves and flowers, some earth, mixing with water and stirring eagerly. Our neighbour asked me: „What are you cooking sweety? and I was replaying wisely: I’m not cooking, I’m making a medicine." In school days my favorite subject was of course Biology and I loved plants, spending most of my spare time out in the fields and the forest edge identifying plants, picking flowers, making Herbarium. A little botanist was hidden in me already.

I think it started in that time and it was not a surprise that I have chosen pharmacy for my profession.

My passion for plants from my early childhood has never abated and it led to a deepened knowledge and specialisation in Herbalism, following a professional career in pharmacy and naturopathy.

I was born and raised in Ljubljana in Slovenia, where I finished my primary school and Vocational College of Pharmacy and Health. Further education courses I have achieved in Novi Sad in Serbia and later in Budapest and Szeged in Hungary. I sailed the seas of life calm and stormy waters.

Of course, in my working life I was busy, I gave the priority to my family and had less time for roaming, although we often had trips with my kids to the nature, collecting herbs for kitchen use. There were always tea blends ready if needed.

I lived for 15 years in Serbia and worked in a pharmacy. I was an active member of humanitarian organization of voluntary charity during the war years.

I spent 15 years in Hungary, working in the field of analytical chemistry and pharmacy, meanwhile I was raising my three children on my own and train myself. There was a time when we were all studying at the same time, taking exams each of us.

I had complemented the knowledge and graduated in homeopathy, phytotherapy-herbal medicine, and natural holistic therapies.

Now after my children grew up and I fulfilled my mission as a mother I returned back to my love for plants again.

Gozo

A lovely little island full of amazing natural beauty. I love this island. I found here what I like most: beautiful, unspoiled nature and peace.

I arrived in Gozo in May 2013 when summer was on coming. On Maltese islands summer is the time when plants dry out, the landscape becomes bare, and the country looks lifeless. But in autumn when the rains come everything incredibly changes.

The plants, the freshness of greens and abundance of colourful wildflowers; yellow and more yellow of cape sorrel; crown daisy and giant fennel; white of asphodel on the cliffs; the pink of mallow and I could list more and more.

My walks during my first autumn; after the first rains; then in winter and spring made me enthusiastic.

On my walks with my friend, I was passionately showing and describing to him plants we saw on the way.

I thought they are only weeds, my friend said.

Yes, they are but they are medicinal plants too.

Once he said to me, You know so much about plants, you should write a book about them.

Then I heard a story about Frenċ Mercieca (1892-1967), popularly known as Frenċ ta' l-Għarb, a saintly ‘wise man’ who cured many people with a mix of medicinal herbs and prayer. I read a book by Dr. Joseph Bezzina to learn more about him and visited the place he used to live and heal.

I found an article about folk healers on the internet in which Sunta Apap, who knew Frenċ personally, says: ‘There used to be many people, they came from every village for remedies against ills and pains. He was very much known for healing but also to hear and counsel people. He also used to perform as a veterinary as well as advisor on matters of body and soul [...]. In his use herbs for medical purposed Frenċ ta’l-Għarb would compound a delicate mixture of, for instance, fourteen herbs, to be used against traumas .... His sister learnt this herbal mix and used to do it also, but it was he who fixed other herbal medicine and especially creams against bone pains and arthritis…and more. Frenċ kept on compounding medicine from plants and herbs for a very long time till his death."

I was inspired by this „holy man of Gozo". I started to think seriously, and I conceived the idea of writing a book. I was said I should write a book on medicinal plants.

So, I did and here it is.

This book is an attempt to introduce a tiny part of the neglected treasures of our Mother Nature briefly and simply. It is not a scientific writing. It is a small collection of common wild plants.

Nature provides us with everything. Food, medicine, tools, everything we need in daily life we can find around us and at our feet. Most plants are good for something even if they are troublesome weeds. In the old days people knew their uses and respected them better. Nowadays all that knowledge is forgotten. Lost for ever?

Reading this book, Weeds for health on Gozo will, I hope, awaken the reader's interest in plants with a different view of our environment and on weeds.

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INTRODUCTION

Why a book on 'Weeds’’?

By ’The New shorter Oxford English’ dictionary on historical principles, a weed is:

’A herbaceous plant not valued for use or beauty, growing wild and regarded as cumbering the ground or hindering the growth of superior vegetation... Applied to a shrub or tree, especially to a large tree, on account of its abundance in a district... An unprofitable, troublesome, or noxious growth.’

So, a weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, ’a plant in the wrong place’. Examples commonly are plants unwanted in human-controlled settings, such as farm fields, gardens, lawns, roadsides, parks, and construction sites. The term is also applied to any plant that grows or reproduces aggressively or is invasive outside its native habitat.

This book consists a collection of most frequent and common wild plants which are considered as troublesome weeds.

But are they really good for nothing?

Why’’Weeds for health"?

While most people consider a weed to be nothing more than a nuisance, some of the most common weeds are actually beneficial herbs. The term ’weed’ generally has a negative connotation, many plants known as weeds can have beneficial properties. A number of weeds are edible and their flowers, leaves or roots may be used for food or herbal medicine. Plants which, in many cases, could be used to ease indigestion, fight the flu, treat rashes, and even make a tasty meal. Many weeds are full of vitamins, minerals, and surprising healing abilities.

This book contains a collection of most frequent and common ’weeds’ with valuable pharmacological properties. Let us see what they are good for.

Why’’Weeds for health on Gozo"?

The research on ’weeds’ was carried out in Gozo. Photos of the plants were taken on the excursions and walks on the Ta Ċenċ cliffs, on Saguna cliffs, on the North coast to Daħlet Qorrot, to the valley of Wied il-Mielaħ and all over the island.

This book is a small collection of the most common and frequently found wild plants on Gozo which one can see by the roadside, in the fields, country and costal walks. It consists of 40 wild plants with detailed description and photos. Most of them are considered as common weeds but they are actually medicinal plants with pharmacological properties.

back to the content

Information on the traditional uses and properties of herbs are provided in this book for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Every attempt has been made for accuracy, but none is guaranteed. This information is not intended to be used to diagnose, prescribe, or replace professional medical care. If you have any serious health concerns, you should always check with your health care practitioner before self-administering herbs.

ALEXANDERS

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Botanical Name:Smyrnium olusatrum – L.

Synonyms:none

Family:Apiaceae

Maltese Name:Karfus il-ħmir

Common Names:Alick, Alisanders, Black Lovage, Hell Root,Horse Parsley,MacedonianParsley, Megweed, Skit, Wild Celery

Meaning of the Name:

Smyrnium, from Greek, myrrh, from smell. The plant, and especially the leaves have a smell and flavour similar to myrrh,

olusatrum, from Latin, olus, potherb or vegetable, atrum, gloomy black, because of its seeds being notably large and utterly black.

DESCRIPTION:

Alexanders is a biennial growing to 1.2 m. The plants are stout, with a solid stem which becomes hollow with age. The leaves are large, doubly, and triply divided, bluntly toothed, the segments ternately divided the segments flat, not fleshy. The flowers are yellow green in colour and produced in numerous close, rounded umbels without involucres.

On Gozo it flowers from February to April. The fruit is formed of two nearly globular halves, with prominent ridges. When ripe it is almost black. The whole herb is of a yellowish-green tint.

Habitats:Hedges and waste places, often near the sea.

Range:Europe to Asia. Native to theMediterraneanbut is able to thrive farther north.

Status for Malta:Indigenous.Originating from Maltese islands. Common in the wild.

Parts Used:flowers, leaves, root, sterns.

Herbal Actions:Antispasmodic, Analgesic, Aphrodisiac, Antiseptic, Bitter, Carminative, Deodorant, Diaphoretic, Digestive, Lipolytic (fat and weight loss action), Stimulant, Stomachic.

Main Active Constituents:angelic acid, bitter extractive, fructose, glucose, minerals (iron, magnesium, potassium, zinc), resin, riboflavin, sucrose, thiamine, vitamin B12, volatile oil (β-phellandrene, β-caryophyllene, curzerene, furanodiene, germacrene B, isofuranodiene, myrcene)

USAGE:

Internal Use:The whole plant is bitter and digestive. It has been used in the past in the treatment of asthma, menstrual problems, and wounds, but is generally considered to be obsolete as a medicinal plant. The root is a diuretic. The seeds were often soaked in wine to create a tonic for scurvy when other sources of vitamin C were not available and also to promote menstruation. The results from recent study showed that isofuranodiene protects GalN/LPS-induced liver injury in SD rats and suggested that it may be a potential functional food ingredient for the prevention and treatment of liver diseases. The essential oils showed cytotoxic effects on tested human tumour cell lines, related to the furanosesquiterpenoid content (colon carcinoma, glioblastoma, and breast adenocarcinoma cells) Isofuranodiene and 1β-acetoxyfuranoeudesm-4-ene resulted the most active constituents. The essential oils possessed also radical scavenging activity.

External Use:Externally it is used as a medicinal gargle for sore throat and as a medicinal poultice for broken bones, swellings, itching and rheumatism. The crushed leaves or their juice have a soothing and healing treatment for cuts and minor abrasions.

Edible Use:flower buds, leaves, root, seed, stem.

The plant comes into growth in the autumn and the leaves are often available throughout the winter. The whole plant has a strong warm celery-like taste and can be eaten either raw, as a salad among other herbs, or boiled.

Flower buds - raw, steamed, or pickled. They can be added to salads and go well with fish or with a strong, hard cheese. The flower buds can also be steamed and eaten in place of broccoli. The unopened flower buds can be pickled and when this is done, they look like mini cauliflowers.

Leaves and young shoots - raw in salads or cooked in soups, stews accompanying meat and fish. They have a rather strong celery-like flavour and are often blanched (by excluding light from the growing plant) before use. Leafy seedlings can be used as a parsley substitute.

Root - cooked. Boiled and used in soups, its flavour is somewhat like celery. The root is said to be more tender if it has been kept in a cool place all winter.

Seed - the spicy seeds are used as a pepper substitute. Seeds can be used to add flavour to stocks, stews, soups and to flavour rice.

Stem - raw or cooked. It tastes somewhat like celery but is more pungent. The stem is often blanched (by excluding light from the growing plant) before use.

Other Uses:none known

Precautions:none known

CURIOSITY:

-Alexanders used to be called the herb of Macedonia, where Philip of Macedon, Alexander the Great’s father had ruled. It could be that this is why it was called Alexander’s herb, although some sources claim that the Alexander in question was actually Alexandria. It was called ’pot herb of Alexandria’, because every part of it is edible. It is sometimes called Alexander’s parsley.

-There is documentation on its cultivation in Belgium in the fifteenth century and on its abundance in English gardens in the sixteenth century. The Italians also traditionally used this plant. Alexanders was falling into disuse as from the seventeenth century, in direct competition with the ’celery of the Italian’, an improved form of wild celery (Apium graveolens). This is a case of marginalization in which one plant, doubtless widely used since prehistory, is replaced by another one improved later.

FROM OLD BOOKS:

Nicholas Culpeper, writing in the 17th century has this to say about Alexanders -

„Government and virtues: This plant is under Jupiter, therefore friendly to nature. The whole plant has a strong warm taste and was more used in the kitchen than in the medicinal way, having been either eaten raw, as a salad among other herbs, or else boiled and eaten with salt meat, or in broths in the spring season. The root pickled was deemed a good sauce, but its use in the kitchen has been entirely superseded by the cultivation of celery.

It is reckoned to be of the nature of parsley or smallage, but stronger, and therefore may be assist in opening obstructions of the liver, spleen, provoking wind, and urine, and consequently good in the dropsy or stranguary. For this purpose, half a drachm of the seeds powdered, and taken in white wine, every morning, is seldom known to fail. It is likewise good for bringing on the courses, and expelling the after-birth, notwithstanding it is seldom used in medicine."

„The Condite, or Pickled Roots: They are Eaten raw as a salad, with oil, vinegar and pepper: they strengthen the stomach, create a good appetite, cause digestion, resist crudities, and expel tartarous and viscous juices from the stomach."

The Pouder from the Seed: Being taken from half a dram to a dram in white port or Rhenish Wine, or distilled Water of the Plant, it powerfully provokes the terms, expels the birth, moves urine, helps the Strangury and Cholick, breaks wind, and is good against the bitings of serpents, mad dogs, or other venomous creatures.

The Decoction. It opens obstructions, provokes urine, and cleanses the blood admirably: it is good also for such as have stoppages in their urine, or are troubled with the Strangury. Dose from IV. to VIII. ounces.

The Expressed Juice. Given from III. to VI. ounces mixt with Rhenish Wine, or white Port, it is a specific against stone and gravel, eases the Strangury, and brings away Urine or Matter obstructing the Urinary passages, when almost all other things fail."

(By William Salmon, M.D., in1710.)

RECIPE

STEAMED ALEXANDERS

Ingredients:

200g prepared alexanders stems or shoots (i.e., from around 8-10 stems)

Knob of butter

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

With a small, sharp knife, peel away the outer membrane and stringy fibres from the alexanders stems. Trim the ends, then cut the stems into 10-12cm lengths. Put in a steaming basket or sieve suspended over a pan of boiling water, cover