Wild celery Apium graveolens

Native to Europe, the Mediterranean region, and western Asia, celery has long been cultivated
as a vegetable and cooked or used raw in dishes such as Waldorf salad (celery, walnuts, and
apple). Medicinally, the seeds and essential oil of celery are used mainly for urinary and arthritic
disorders, and also to help clear uric acid from joints affected by gout.

LEAVES
Also known as smallage, wild celery is a more leafy plant than cultivated varieties,
with divided, wedgeshaped leaves

STEM
The fleshy stems can be juiced as a detoxifying remedy.

PARTS USED Seeds, stalks, essential oil
MAIN CONSTITUENTS Volatile oil (incl.limonene, apiol, selinene, and phthalides),
coumarins, furanocoumarins, flavonoids,minerals (incl. iron, phosphorus,and potassium)

ACTIONS Antirheumatic, sedative, urinary antiseptic, diuretic, carminative, hypotensive,
antispasmodic, galactagogue, antiinflammatory,encourages elimination
of uric acid, antifungal activity reported.




HOW TO USE

DECOCTION Use 1⁄2oz (15g) of seeds to 1 pint (600ml) of water, simmer for
10 minutes and take in 1⁄2–1 cup doses 3 times daily for rheumatic disorders,
gout, rheumatoid arthritis, and urinary tract inflammations.

MASSAGE OIL Use 20 drops (1ml) oil in 4fl oz (120ml) of almond oil and massage
into the abdomen for indigestion,flatulence, and liver congestion. Use also
for sciatica, rheumatism, and arthritis.


FOOTBATH Add 20 drops (1ml) oil to a bowl of warm water to soak feet or toe
joints with very painful gout.

JUICE Liquidize the stalks (ribs) and leaves and drink in 1 cup doses as a remedy for
debility and nervous exhaustion.

HOW TO SOURCE

GROW Prefers moist, well-drained soil in full sun. Plant the seeds in seed trays in
spring, cover with a thin layer of compost,and place in a heated propagator or on
a warm window sill. Transfer to 3in (7.5cm)pots, and when 4in (10cm) tall plant in
final growing positions 12in (30cm) apart.

FORAGE Grows wild in coastal areas.
HARVEST Pick the cultivated variety as a vegetable in the first year; collect the
seeds when ripe in the second summer.

CAUTION Do not use seeds if pregnant.Do not use cultivated seeds medicinally,
as they are often treated with fungicides.Do not take the essential oil internally
unless under professional supervision.

Marshmallow Althaea officinalis

Originally found in coastal areas of Europe, marshmallow is now widely naturalized. The plant’s
botanical name comes from the Greek verb, altho (to heal), and it has been valued for its soothing
and healing action, both internally and externally, for at least 3,500 years. As well as being used
medicinally, both the root and leaves can be eaten as vegetables.

FLOWERS
The pale pink flowers bloom in summer: a traditional French recipe combines them with the
flowers of corn poppy (Papaver rhoeas), sweet violet (Viola odorata), and mullein in a
tisane des quatre fleurs.

LEAVES
The leaves can be cooked and eaten like cabbage,or the leaf tipseaten in salads.


PARTS USED Root, leaves, flowers
MAIN CONSTITUENTS Root: asparagine,mucilage, polysaccharides, pectin, tannins
Leaves: mucilage, flavonoids, coumarin,salicylic, and other phenolic acids
ACTIONS Root: demulcent, expectorant,diuretic, wound herb
Leaves: expectorant, diuretic, demulcent
Flowers: expectorant


HOW TO USE


MACERATION Soak 1oz (30g) of root in 1 pint (600ml) of cold water overnight and
strain: the result can often be very thick and mucilaginous and may need further
dilution. Take 1⁄2–1 cup 3 times daily for acid reflux, gastric ulceration, cystitis,
and dry coughs.


POULTICE Make a paste from 1 tsp of powdered root mixed with a little water
and use on boils, abscesses, ulcers, or poorly healing infected wounds.

OINTMENT Use to draw pus, splinters,or thorns.

INFUSION Drink 1 cup (1–2 tsp dried leaves per cup of boiling water) 3 times daily for
bronchitis, bronchial asthma, or pleurisy.

SYRUP Make a syrup by combining 1 pint (600ml) of a standard infusion of fresh
flowers with 1lb (450g) of honey or syrup;bring to a boil and simmer gently for
10–15 minutes. Take 1 tsp (5ml) doses as required.

HOW TO SOURCE

GROW Prefers fertile, moist, well-drained soil in full sun; tolerates other conditions.
Sow seed in trays of compost in midsummer and transplant to 3in (7.5cm) pots when
large enough to handle. Plant the following spring. Alternatively, divide plants in
autumn. Can self-seed enthusiastically in ideal conditions.

FORAGE Likely to be found in ditches,riversides, tidal zones, and pond margins,
especially in coastal areas. Gather the flowers in summer to make a cough syrup,
or the leaves during the growing period.The root can be boiled as a vegetable.
HARVEST Dig the root in autumn. Cut the aerial parts as the plant starts to flower.