Northern Root Medicine; Angelica
Sitting listening to Lila, a Sami medicine woman in Jokkokk, Swedish Lapland, a few years ago had a major impact on my relationship with Angelica, and since then Angelica (Angelica archangelica) and I have become firm friends. I had once grown it in my garden, crushed the leaves between my fingers to smell its aroma and dug the dark aromatic roots and tasted the aromatic medicine on my tongue, that made it tingle. My elderly neighbour had queried the tall majestic plant with its large green umbrella like flowers (Umbrels) and I told her it was Angelica. “The one you buy candied?” she asked and I nodded in response. Dorothy, my neighbour was a prolific baker but this was as far as our conversation about Angelica went.
Years later, north of the Arctic circle in Swedish Lapland, I sat with a big group of women mainly from the UK and drank every delicious word of wisdom about Angelica and other Sami medicines such as Birch, Spruce, Pine and Rhodiola with a hunger an afternoon couldn’t satisfy. I wanted to know more about these herbs, especially about Angelica, the tall plant that had any years ago grown in my garden. My third encounter with Angelica was in healing a deep chesty cough I had, it was the Angelica that made the difference in clearing it up.
Angelica, the herb of angels and sacred to the people of the north. I loved encountering it growing wild in Orkney last summer, A herbalist who was my guide around Skara Brae told me it had been planted by the Vikings when they settled as they revered both its medicine and its sacredness. Even today this Norse grown Angelica found growing in Orkney, is put in Kirkjuvagr gin, distilled in Kirkwall. No wonder it tastes amazing.
Angelica (Angelica archangelica) is native to parts of Northern Europe and grows wild in damp places and is often found in gardens. Here in the UK it tends to be wild Angelica (Angelica sylvestris) that we often find, still with that beautiful aromatic aroma, so distinctive of Angelica and with many of the same properties.
Wild Angelica - Angelsey
Angelica has always been associated with the sacred, as well as being a valuable lung and digestive medicine as well as a nerve tonic.
One of the Old Northern European names for Angelica is “Chest wort”, work with it and you will soon feel its medicine. It dries and warms the lungs, improving pulmonary circulation. It’s good for nourishing lung tissue and can help with expectorating sputum, that may be deeply embedded in the lungs, infected or being produced in copious amounts. Its decongesting and also good for sore throats and fevers too. Its warmth is great in a hot tea for those with fevers when you just can’t get warm as it increases the circulation and opens the pore to help a person sweat, cool the body and bring down a fever naturally. On teaching Weeds and Wild Medicine we did a guided tasting with Angelica, it was amazing to see how readily people were feeling Angelica’s deeply penetrating lung clearing affects as well as it decongesting sinuses. I’m not sure how traditional it would be in Lapland, but Angelica certainly makes an amazing chest or sinus rub made with leaves and seeds to which essential oils can be added.
Wild Angelica stem -
Like many superb chest herbs, Angelica is also a magnificent, stimulating, digestive tonic. Being a warming, aromatic bitter, its good for a weak digestion, encouraging the production of stomach acid and for enhancing other digestive functions. It’s particularly helpful when stomach acid is low which is often seen in people as they get older. Low stomach acid is common and gives very similar symptoms to elevated levels of stomach acid. Angelica is also an anti spasmodic so great for wind, colic and bloating. Angelica is also a key ingredient in Swedish bitters which are renown tonic for improving general health
Its good to learn that Angelica improves circulation through the Liver, protecting hepatic cells from injury. I find it interesting to learn that in the cold, dark, northern lands where alcoholism is seen as a problems, Angelica is traditionally used to help people come off alcohol, as whilst it is protective to the liver, it can also help to stop the craving. Traditionally the seeds are chewed when the craving occurs.
Other traditional uses for Angelica are in regulating periods, for gout and arthritis, urinary infections and for increasing the circulation.
Often when I feel low in energy, I sip a teaspoon of Angelica tincture or just chew on pieces of dried root. Angelica can be a great pick me up, and good for helping promote mental clarity as it apparently increases circulation to the head. It’s a strengthening nerve tonic and good for elevating low moods and depression. Its also great adrenal support too.
American Herbalist Jim Macdonald says its good herb to use when you are“ so despondent you cant even pray.” I put Angelica flower essence in some of my medicines for patient who feel low and floored by life’s tough challenges, it seems to help.
Matthew Wood (2008) likens Angelica it to “Bear Medicine.” as according to Native American medicine traditions, the root is brown, furry, oily and pungent. He says that bears eat such roots in spring after hibernation to start building up their body mass. Angelica’s oiliness supports the adrenal cortex to increase energy, appetite, digestion and nutrition . I find it effective in medicines for people that are fatigued and run down. I like Mathew’s analogy of Angelica and Bear medicine, he says; “As the bear goes into hibernation in the winter, Bear Medicine can help calm the mind, open up the imagination and bring people into the dream time” Its interesting to learn that Angelica and has been used for shamanic work with the Saami people, traditional saunas in Scandinavia and also in some native American sweat lodges. Traditionally the roots are burnt and The aromatic smoke can open up the peripheral circulation to help perspiration and also open up the mind and imagination for more spiritual work.
All parts of Angelica can be used. Leaf, seeds, root and stem. A medicine available all year round and in winter the roots would have been readily available, and dry well for winter use. Easy to carry in a pouch and travel with, being a preventative medicine as well as being used for medical problems. As well as being chewed Angelica was also smoked in a pipe made from its own stem or put in coffee. Its interesting to learn that the stem of angelica was also used as a musical instrument called a Fadno.
Angelica tea.
For every 1 teaspoon of angelica root use 1 cup of hot water. Place in a pan, cover bring to the boil, simmer for 10 minutes. Leave to steep for half and hour to and hour, strain and drink. It might be time effective to make all doses for the day in one go. Take one cup 3 times day.
Cautions: Not to be given in pregnancy and can cause photosensitivity so avoid using when sunbathing or when using sun lamps. Also stop using 1 week before planned surgery.
Thanks to Nikki Darrell for her kind permission for use of the Angelica archangelica photograph - http://veriditashibernica.org/
Bibliography
Edwards, Gail Faith (2000) Opening our Wild hearts to the Healing Herbs. Ash Tree Publishing, New York
Fischer-Rizzi, S. (1996) Medicine of the Earth; Rudra Press; Portland
McIntyre, A (2010) Herbal tutor; A structured course to achieve professional expertise, London: Octopus publishing.
Robertsdottir: A.R. (2016) Icelandic Herbs, and their medicinal uses. North Atlantic Books, California.
Wood, Matthew (2008) Earthwise Herbal; A Complete Guide to Old World Medicinal Plants: North Atlantic Books, California
http://www.norrshaman.net/Saami%20Ethno%20Medicine.htm
