I adore your photo bomber.
Medicine plant of the Day
- Thread starter Peanut
- Start date
Help Support Homesteading & Country Living Forum:
- Joined
- Sep 4, 2020
- Messages
- 9,737
The deer never touch my fig tree.
Ben
Ben
A related side note... There is another plant that deer never touch. Wild lettuce, also loaded with latex sap. I think it's the latex they don't like.
Tall plants below are lettuce, they get 10/12ft tall at times. There are a dozen species of wild lettuce. I group them by bloom color, yellow lettuces and blue lettuces.
Tall plants below are lettuce, they get 10/12ft tall at times. There are a dozen species of wild lettuce. I group them by bloom color, yellow lettuces and blue lettuces.
Never had deer fool with our figs. Had both for 15 years at least
The Bible talks about applying a fig poultice. At the time that I read it I mistakenly thought it was the sugars that help promote healing. So I wondered what other fruits could be used. Now I see figs have anti inflammatory properties.
Some fruit tree leaves are very medicinal. Especially peach tree leaves. The great Tommie Bass used them for a wide range a ailments, very useful.
Most the fruit trees in the rose family contain hydrocyanic compounds. When ingested it converts to cyanide. Ever wonder why cough syrup is cherry flavored? Cherry trees, peaches, apples, pears, apricots et al, are all in the rose family and contain these compounds. Cherry trees have more than others but cyanide is present in all of them. It concentrates in the leaves in late summer and fall. Cherry tree leaves have been known to kill goats.
150yrs ago if you had a cough you went to the pharmacy and asked for cherry water or just as often, cyanide water. Cyanide in tiny doses suppresses involuntary muscle function. Great cough medicine, an expectorant. For generations people associated cherry water with cough medicine. Until the 1930's cyanide was used in commercial cough syrups. But 'cherry flavored' cough syrup is still with us today.
Inner bark from cherry trees is still used in cold and flu formulas made by herbalists. I would add it in a blink if i made a flu formula.
If you want an anti-inflammatory there are several other plants that are great. Turmeric and Poke Salad just to name two. I use poke for my arthritis, great medicine. Friends and family also. It has the added benefit of having and antiviral protein so powerful that when tested it killed the aids virus in mice. I no longer get full blown flu or colds. I feel them attack my body but it's usually over in a couple hours.
Most the fruit trees in the rose family contain hydrocyanic compounds. When ingested it converts to cyanide. Ever wonder why cough syrup is cherry flavored? Cherry trees, peaches, apples, pears, apricots et al, are all in the rose family and contain these compounds. Cherry trees have more than others but cyanide is present in all of them. It concentrates in the leaves in late summer and fall. Cherry tree leaves have been known to kill goats.
150yrs ago if you had a cough you went to the pharmacy and asked for cherry water or just as often, cyanide water. Cyanide in tiny doses suppresses involuntary muscle function. Great cough medicine, an expectorant. For generations people associated cherry water with cough medicine. Until the 1930's cyanide was used in commercial cough syrups. But 'cherry flavored' cough syrup is still with us today.
Inner bark from cherry trees is still used in cold and flu formulas made by herbalists. I would add it in a blink if i made a flu formula.
If you want an anti-inflammatory there are several other plants that are great. Turmeric and Poke Salad just to name two. I use poke for my arthritis, great medicine. Friends and family also. It has the added benefit of having and antiviral protein so powerful that when tested it killed the aids virus in mice. I no longer get full blown flu or colds. I feel them attack my body but it's usually over in a couple hours.
Last edited:
Mullein in my yard this morning. Another great medicine... the whole plant. The blooms mixed in oil is great for ear aches in little kids. The leaves are fantastic for spine issues, have been know to un-herniate, herniated discs and align the spine. They also speed the healing of broken bones.
The root is great for bladder control issues with new mothers and the elderly, (incontinence).
The root is great for bladder control issues with new mothers and the elderly, (incontinence).
Cherry trees can kill horses as well! A lady I knew years ago used to make an extract from peach tree leaves and rub it on her skin. She said it was better than any lotion for skin hydration!
Great info, @Peanut.
I knew that cherry trees shouldn't be near livestock - but if peach, apple, and pear are in the same family, should I be concerned about those around livestock, too?
And how would you utilize mullein to help support the spine? In a salve? I have degenerative disc disease and had herniated discs earlier this year. I'm interested in any herbal medicines that would help prevent reoccurrence.
I knew that cherry trees shouldn't be near livestock - but if peach, apple, and pear are in the same family, should I be concerned about those around livestock, too?
And how would you utilize mullein to help support the spine? In a salve? I have degenerative disc disease and had herniated discs earlier this year. I'm interested in any herbal medicines that would help prevent reoccurrence.
As long as cattle are getting other forage a few peach leaves won't harm them. In fact I used to turn my cows into the peach orchard each fall. I grew hay in between the rows of trees so the cows had plenty of grass and i let them clean up the field.
The only way that i know is to use mullein leaves is making a poultice. That's not to say a salve or ointment can't be used. Look up Jim McDonald, a herbalist in Michigan. He's used and written extensively on treating back problems with mullein. https://herbcraft.org/mullein.html . I just noticed on his website he has a video on using mullein.
My cows eating peach leaves in the fall... (miss the bull, he was a great one)
Thank you! 
So far we are just a chicken family, but will be branching out and have a lot to learn.
And I will definitely look into Jim McDonald's site. I'm not opposed to a poultice, either.
So far we are just a chicken family, but will be branching out and have a lot to learn.
And I will definitely look into Jim McDonald's site. I'm not opposed to a poultice, either.
Would mullein grown from seed be as viable, or at all? I've only saw 1 plant around the house in 30 years and that was probably 20 years ago
Mullein is biennial, puts up a seed stalk the second year. That said, this far south they can grow through winter in most years so the reproduction cycle is shorter, around 18months.
Blooming lasts a week or two. Only a few blooms on the stalk at any given time. Every bloom will produce one seed. Once blooms drop off... Break off the tall stalk and beat it on the ground where you want mullein to grow. Walk away...
That's all there is to it. Dozens of tiny mullein will sprout the next year.
Another method... break off 2 seed stalks and give them to a couple kids. Let them have a sword fight, seeds will fall in the process. Again, no planting or covering.... they will sprout without human help.
This one has multiple stalks forked off the main one. If you see a mullein like this one, wait a couple weeks then bring the stalk home. Toss it on the ground and walk away.
Lemons to lemonade...
I have several big water oaks in my yard. All of them are loaded with Usnea.
https://www.homesteadingforum.org/threads/usnea.1278/
This morning a big limb fell and blocked the highway completely. The way it fell made it very dangerous to cut up with a chainsaw. So I made a call, it took the county and hour to get a big track hoe here to remove it.
In the mean time... I grabbed a plastic bag and started harvesting usnea since I could reach it now!
I got enough for a quart+ of tincture!!!! Score!!!
I have several big water oaks in my yard. All of them are loaded with Usnea.
https://www.homesteadingforum.org/threads/usnea.1278/
This morning a big limb fell and blocked the highway completely. The way it fell made it very dangerous to cut up with a chainsaw. So I made a call, it took the county and hour to get a big track hoe here to remove it.
In the mean time... I grabbed a plastic bag and started harvesting usnea since I could reach it now!
I got enough for a quart+ of tincture!!!! Score!!!
Ive got that growing on an old partly dead maple. HMMMMM
Usnea is one of those hard to harvest herbs. It usually grows in trees and out of reach. In the first few years i'd to pick it off small branches that fell on the ground. Have to dry and store it as i find it. But it takes forever to get enough to make a batch of tincture.
I finally realized the easy way is to check logging operations. All I need is one tree on the ground that's loaded with usnea and i have several years worth of tincture.
Today was a good score. A quart of tincture to add to the quart i got last year. Don't have to harvest usnea for the next several years.
Last edited:
- Joined
- Dec 8, 2017
- Messages
- 10,427
Good to hear I have another twenty that I have rooted this year, well ten this year, the other two years old & need repotted or set out.
The eight are brown Turkey, the other two are Greek Green figs, the ten new one are mixed.
- Joined
- Dec 20, 2017
- Messages
- 13,385
I've read there are 300+ species of usnea world wide. It grows in a wide range of climates.
The species here likes rain. It has a lot of tars in it so when it's dry it feels course and brittle. A couple rains and suddenly it comes to life, feels very soft and pliable. It also reproduces with rains. It appears dormant most of the time. It's a lichen, they are weird in a lot of ways.
There was mistletoe in the limb that came down today. It's fairly common here. I remember years ago a relative would harvest a lot of it each winter. Then he'd take it to town and sell it out of his pickup truck just before christmas. Tie bundles in red ribbon. He'd have extra christmas money!!
- Joined
- Dec 20, 2017
- Messages
- 13,385
@Peanut ooooh, I like that idea of mistletoe money.
The usnea, all types basically can serve the same purpose for treating same ailments? I had tincture of it from a store where I worked years ago, you know, expiration dates or no interest, the owner would get rid of it and I always scavengered what I could. I don't recall using the usnea. I will research it, see what else i can find out about it.
Oh guess what I found in the yard today?!! A choice bolete but it was beyond use, split open.
The usnea, all types basically can serve the same purpose for treating same ailments? I had tincture of it from a store where I worked years ago, you know, expiration dates or no interest, the owner would get rid of it and I always scavengered what I could. I don't recall using the usnea. I will research it, see what else i can find out about it.
Oh guess what I found in the yard today?!! A choice bolete but it was beyond use, split open.
- Joined
- Dec 8, 2017
- Messages
- 10,427
Read an article in February about how you could not find Mistletoe anymore. So I started looking for it, no leaves on the trees, the dark green clusters
where every where. Maybe not in NYC or LA, but all over the country side, like ice tea & fried chicken!
where every where. Maybe not in NYC or LA, but all over the country side, like ice tea & fried chicken!
- Joined
- Dec 8, 2017
- Messages
- 10,427
My problem is climbing 30-50 feet up a tree to get it.
I read somewhere that it was the wilted leaves that contain cyanide. Not sure if it's true as I'm not an expert. If it's true though, a few fresh leaves would be nice problem.
No problem not nice problem.
- Joined
- Dec 8, 2017
- Messages
- 10,427
As kids, we climb every tree in the hedge line, father said not to break wild black cherry limbs off or make sure to remove them so the cows would not get them. So breaking a limb may be bad, but fresh leaves or leaves changing should be no problem.
They can be a big problem. Starting in late summer the the hydrocyanic compounds begin to concentrate in the leaves. The condition of the leaves is irrelevant. It's the time of year that can be dangerous. Just don't feed leaves, and only leaves, to livestock in the fall.
In my case i'd turn my cattle into the peach orchard each fall. They'd eat a few leaves but they also had 17acres of grass to eat. A few leaves isn't a problem.
But allowing livestock to gorge themselves on cherry leaves in the fall is a big issue. Fresh leaves, dry leaves, doesn't matter, it's the time of year that makes them dangerous, not their condition.
Of note... A friend cut down a bunch of scrub cherry brush one fall, cleaning up around his garden. He turned his goats in afterwards to help the process. The goats loved the leaves and had a feast. But they killed 3 of his goats. There was nothing left in the garden to eat, a few dried plants and dry grass. Green cherry leaves were more appealing.
The chemical make up of plants change throughout the year. Take poke salad for instance. Early spring before the stalk gets red the leaves can be eaten. A month later the leaves are more toxic and shouldn’t be eaten. A red stalk is an indicator of the increase in toxicity.
Cherry leaves become dangerous in the fall.
Last edited:
For clarification… both peach and cherry leaves are wonderful medicines most of the year. They can be used fresh or dried for later use and they treat a wide range of conditions. However, i wouldn’t harvest leaves from either tree in the fall of the year.
Most plants have a time during the year when medicinally speaking, they 'peak'. A best time to harvest and use them.
Most plants have a time during the year when medicinally speaking, they 'peak'. A best time to harvest and use them.
- Joined
- Dec 8, 2017
- Messages
- 10,427
"In my case i'd turn my cattle into the peach orchard each fall. They'd eat a few leaves but they also had 17acres of grass to eat. A few leaves isn't a problem."
I agree, this must be the reason that we had cherry trees all over the farm & no problem with the cow, horse or hog getting sick.
Of course, we had a little back yard farm of 30 acres, not a big farm, but still do not remember any animals getting sick from weed & tree leaves.
I would remember, I am one the guys who had to dig 6 foot cube grave for them, with a shovel & pick ax. Maybe that why my first tractor had a backhoe & loader. I used the loader to fill two 55 gallon rubber mate drums & load them on the truck today, I love my tractor.
I agree, this must be the reason that we had cherry trees all over the farm & no problem with the cow, horse or hog getting sick.
Of course, we had a little back yard farm of 30 acres, not a big farm, but still do not remember any animals getting sick from weed & tree leaves.
I would remember, I am one the guys who had to dig 6 foot cube grave for them, with a shovel & pick ax. Maybe that why my first tractor had a backhoe & loader. I used the loader to fill two 55 gallon rubber mate drums & load them on the truck today, I love my tractor.
Last edited:
The weight of the animal has a big part to play. A 1000lb cow eating a few pounds of cherry leaves probably wouldn't cause an issue. But a 100lb goat eating the same amount?
Loaders are handy huh? The older i get the more ways i find to use it.
I so wish I had got a loader when I got my tractor
