Plantain- The Sacred Herb under our feet.

And thou, Waybread (Plantain), mother of worts
open to the east, mighty within;
over thee carts creaked, over thee queens (women) rode,
over thee brides cried out, over thee bulls snorted.
All of them thou withstood and dashed against;
so may thou withstand venom and that which flies
and the loathsome that yond the land fareth

From the Saxon Sacred Nine Herbs charm

I’m stood in an ancient place. The grass is high and nettle grows deep in the ruins of cottages. Somewhere in the grass a cricket chirps and crows settle on the willow by the stream. I disturb a roe deer which scuttles away from the undergrowth, startled by my presence and horses graze silently in the next field. I’m not far from the public footpath but no one seems to come through this meadow. Scanning my eyes over whats left of the small holding of Buckley fold, I look to see whats growing here and put my basket on the ground. I’ve been coming to this place since I was a small child and remember when you could see the brick and stone ruins of the cottages in the corner of the field. As kids we always wondered where the capped well was buried, and it was only in later years when I found an old map, and I learned that the well was in the corner of the field now marked out by changes in vegetation. The new housing estate is close by and soon it will cover this meadow with new homes and so this lovely place is not forever. But for now its my main place to harvest Nettle and Plantain.

I move through the long grass and crouch down parting it with my fingers. The Plantain is well hidden, but still abundant and I carefully pick the blade like leaves that so many mistake for grass. Ribwort plantain Plantago lanceolata is easy to identify from the strong fibre ribs that mark the full length of the lance shaped leaf. Its very similar to its cousin Broadleaf Plantain Plantago major, which has much broader leaves and grows on the footpath and in the corner of the field. Both plants are inter-changeable in their medicinal uses and can grow alongside each other; The Broad leaf Plantain on the path and the Ribwort in the long grass. Both are tough inconspicuous plants that can withstand a lot of standing on. A month ago when it was in flower it was easy to see. The small corona like flowers of Ribwort reminded me of little lamps indicating where it grew, which was all over this meadow. One of my friends said it reminded him of the corona virus! Now there’s a thought if you consider the principle of the doctrine of signatures that states that a plant can give you a indication of what its good for by the clues of how it can look, its colour or shape. I’ve not found any research to show that it can affect the virus directly but it might be deemed as one of the herbs that could help support healing in the lungs in recovery from the virus. Now that the Ribwort have turned to seed, I nibble them as I fill my basket with leaves. They taste nutty and are very nutritious full of omega 3 fatty acids and many other nutrients.

Ribwort plantain - Plantago lanceolata

If I was given the choice of having use of only one herb to have access to then it would be Plantain. Plantain has so many uses and it was the herb that introduced me to herbal medicine, and I feel solely responsible for me training to be a Medical Herbalist. Many years ago I had a bad cough that lasted for months and would not go away. I had a chest X-ray, antibiotics and a whole host of pharmaceuticals that did nothing to alleviate this very dry and irritating cough that was getting me down. I went on a herb walk and the Medical Herbalist who led it, introduced me to Ribwort plantain. Feeling I had nothing to lose, on his advice I picked Ribwort from an ancient meadow that had never been sprayed and made it into a cough syrup. Within a week the cough had gone and I was hooked on learning more. (Herbal medicine can get very addictive). Plantain is an excellent medicine for coughs of all kinds particularly those dry, irritating, hacking coughs that benefit from a cooling, soothing, moistening remedy that can help to expectorate phlegm . Plantain seems to have the knack of drawing towards it things that are stuck, infected or stagnant, so its a great herb for moving congested mucous whether that be in the lungs or sinuses, as well as toning and healing mucous membranes. I think Plantain works well if too if you have a cough that seems to linger long after the virus has gone. The Allantoin, one of the healing constituents in Plantain is great for healing that damaged, irritated tissue of the lung and respiratory tract. Plantain is also anti viral, anti fungal and anti bacterial with research showing its effectiveness against the herpes virus.

Plantain’s healing action extends to other systems of the body. Its antibacterial, healing and soothing action mean its a good herb for managing urinary tract infections, clearing the heat from the burning pain of cystitis and it is soothing too. I think it works best in a tea for urinary tract infections and would combine well with other herbs such as Bearberry, Pelitory of the Wall, Yarrow, Bilbery leaf and Marshmallow.

Ribwort plantain in seed

Plantain is a digestive herb too. Its soothing action is excellent for gut irritation and inflammation in the stomach and bowels, being helpful for gastritis, ulcers, colitis, IBS, stomach and bowel infections. It reduces spasm and colic and can help expel parasites from the gut. It’s astringent action makes it also good for diarrhoea . What I love about plantain is its ability draw toxins towards itself and expel them from the body. This is an ideal herb for food poisoning both in terms of helping to expel the toxins, reducing the discomfort of gut spasm and diarrhoea.

I find some Broadleaf plantain and pull the leaf to break it from the stem. The fibres are tough and it feels slightly resistant to my hand. I think of the ancestors and how they viewed this plant not only as sacred but as an essential herb to have around when travelling or working outside. I muse for a moment on the Ancestors, after all this is a very old place and very close to the Roman road and a very small, almost ploughed out hengiform tumulus is only a few fields away. Plantain was one of the nine sacred herbs of the ancestors and I think of why they called it “Way Bread”. Of course you can eat the leaves and they can be a bit stringy; but this was only one of the reasons why it was a herb revered by Travellers. Not only does the Broad leaf plantain grow under your feet and the Ribwort on the grassy verges, but its the very plant you want with you for any form of first aid on your travels. Chewed up into a spit poultice, this is a fantastic herb for putting on insect bites. Buckley Fold is abundant with horse flies in the warm, damp of summer. I know from experience how bad my body responds to a bite from these little buggers, and have had to have antibiotics and antihistamines in the past for cellulitis after some particularly nasty bites on my legs. I was bitten on my face here by a horse fly a few years ago and after the initial panic I used copious spit poultices on the bite and despite a green chin, the bite was only a small pimple when I got home. The anti histamine, antiseptic and drawing action of the Plantain did its job. I have heard of countless stories of people using it for dental abscesses and infected wounds. It is also an excellent wound healer and used in salves and creams and as well as an antibacterial action, it can heal a wound pretty quickly even dirty wounds. I like to use it with Daisy, or Self Heal; which ever one I can get access too. There is nowt as good as keeping your medicine local and sustainable! Plantain is also a good medicine for healing broken bones, ligaments, and as a muscle rub. It contains Allantoin which is also in Comfrey. Ancestors would have used mashed up roots where the Allantion concentration is higher or just the leaves. This would be excellent medicine combined with Knit bone/ Comfrey - Symphytum officinale or Bugle - Ajuga reptens to ease the pain.

Broad leaf Plantain - Plantago major

So back to ancestors and travelling; Plantain, especially the Broad leaf plantain would have been put in shoes to ease aching feet and to heal blisters. Katrina Blair in The Wild Wisdom of Weeds suggests it can be used to purify water and whilst I don’t know how effective this is, and I wouldn’t like to risk it with out looking at some good research, it is an interesting concept given Plantain’s effectiveness as a herb that draws toxins towards it.

One of the ways I like to use Plantain is as a Succus. Putting plantain leaves through a juicer has made me realise it is surprisingly juicy. I should have known this as I have chewed it up for spit poultices enough times.

Picking lots of healthy looking fresh plantain from clean places free from doggy wee and car exhaust fumes, I take them home to wash and dry. I use a hand macerating juicer and extract as much of the thick, vibrant juice as I can.

Juicing plantain

Then putting the juice through a fine sieve to remove any bits of plant debris, I measure and add equal amounts of vegetable food grade glycerine. Then put it into a sterillised bottle and label. To use this take 5 - 10 mls up to 3- 5 times a day in water. This will last for a year.

Plantain juice

Photos by Peter Yankowski

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