Chickweed

Once we've talked about chicory, can chickweed be far behind? I say this with a touch of amusement, as most people just can't seem to separate these two similar sounding weeds' It reminds me of that delightful Hoffenstein poem: "Some people can/Some people can't/Tell the difference between/Gary Cooper and Cary Grant."

Chickweed has half inch whitish flowers and is like a creeper. It is called chickweed because the chickens and birds love it so much!

Food This lowly plant found along waysides and on so many lawns is an excellent herb of many uses. A Swiss herbalist says that fresh chickweed can be prepared like spinach, is a wonderful heart strengthener, and also brings back vigor and strength to those who are recovering from an illness. As children, we were sometimes given drinks of chickweed to cleanse the system and overcome a fever.

Inflammation Chickweed can be crushed and applied to wounds and has the virtue of taking away the heat in any inflammation. There is one other important use chickweed has in addition to the benefits just named: its efficacy as a poultice. The fresh leaves can be applied to the skin for any sort of swelling or skin problem. In the case of intense heat caused by an inflammation, crush the leaves, attach them to the heated area, and place a large cabbage leaf or romaine lettuce leaf over this poultice. The chickweed will soon absorb the heat of any inflammation. Keep on replacing the poultice with fresh chickweed.

Ointment I like to make up a chickweed ointment, just as my grandmother did, by melting the leaves in a quarter pound or so of anhydrous lanolin. I bake it in the oven for several hours, then skim off the burnt herb. My grandmother used this ointment on sore legs and for rheumatic pains.