Plantain, The First-Aid Weed

Plantain growing by my raised beds

It’s true - I actually cultivate some weeds.  Plantain is a weed that grows almost anywhere.  It’s commonly seen in lawns and sidewalk cracks; many gardeners hate it.  Plantain arrived in North America with the early colonists, and it was brought here intentionally.  For early American settlers, plantain was a valuable medicinal herb.  The Native Americans, wise in herbal ways, soon learned to use this newcomer, too.  Plantain is both a hemostatic and a vulnerary herb: it stops bleeding and it helps tissue regenerate while easing the pain associated with injury. Plantain can be prepared as a tincture, infused oil, salve or poultice.  I remember my grandfather making spit poultices with plantain leaves to soothe my itchy mosquito bites when I was a child and I still use this method for on-the-spot relief of bites, scrapes and stings.

Infusing plantain oil & finished salve

Our favorite preparation is plantain salve, made by gently warming a mason jar of chopped plantain leaves and olive oil in a mini crock pot full of warm water for several hours, straining the leaves out, thickening the infused oil with beeswax, and adding Vitamin E as a preservative.  Essential oils and flower essences can also be added.  My partner and our son have neosporin allergy (as does 5% of the population) so plantain salve has been a wonderful alternative for them.  This is our family’s go-to first aid salve, and it’s helped us heal lots of everyday scrapes and some significant injuries.

An injured toe heals with plantain salve

A couple of years ago, I burned my palm on a frying pan, raising large water blisters on several of my fingers.  After cooling my injured hand with ice, aloe vera and a bit of  lavender essential oil, I applied plantain salve several times daily to treat the burn.  The blisters receded and my palm healed in about a week’s time with no scarring.  Most recently, our 23-year-old son, training for the TaeKwon-Do World Championships, tore a thick callous off the bottom of his big toe.  He applied plantain salve several times daily to ease the pain and help it heal.  The plantain helped stop the initial bleeding, and by the next day he reported that the pain was significantly reduced and the wound had stopped seeping.  By day 3 it showed the first regrowth of tissue.  In a little over a week it was completely healed over. He has no scarring.  Plantain salve was all he used to treat this injury.

When we take time to know the plants that live nearby, they can both simplify and enrich our lives.  I am so grateful for our relationship with the plantain in our yard.  Welcome some plantain into your life, and see how it helps you grow.