Chickweed Stellaria media

Personality: Chickweed grows as a weed in many British gardens. It is a low, sappy, sprawling plant. It has very small and pretty white flowers.

Sources: Why not invest in a good field guide so that you can identify herbs in the wild (or your garden). You should have no trouble finding chickweed, once you know what it looks like. My grandfather first showed me the plant, when I was very young and suggested I pick it to feed to our budgie. Chickweed cream can be made at home, from the fresh or dried plant. The procedure is described briefly in the ‘herbal preparations’ section . The cream can also be bought from health food shops.

Anecdotes: One of my first patients, as a newly qualified herbalist, was a very attractive young woman, who had suddenly developed eczema on her face, in her twenties. There was little that I could suggest to improve her diet and there were no obvious changes to her lifestyle, that would help. She left the clinic with just a small jar of chickweed cream. The eczema disappeared almost immediately and to my knowledge, never returned. Sometimes it is best to keep treatment simple.

Uses: Reduces skin irritation, including eczema and psoriasis. Chickweed is sometimes taken internally to soothe irritated lungs or intestines.

Actions: Soothing and anti-inflammatory.

Preparations: As well as the cream, Chickweed is sometimes applied as a juice, or you could use the whole, bruised plant in a poultice. An infusion of Chickweed and a little Lavender oil can be added to the bath to soothe irritated skin. The bath water should not be too hot and if the skin is dry add a little almond oil.

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