Herbal Medicine for Preppers: Dock

[00:00:00] Hey y'all, welcome to this week's show. I hope you are enjoying this beautiful late August weather. It has finally dried off a little bit. We have probably had more rain this summer than I've ever seen in my life. And my birthday being this week, it was really nice to get a special gift of some really beautiful weather. It's cooler than it has been. It's drier than it has been by like, I mean, anything would be drier than it has been.

[00:00:30] And so I've been out getting ready for bow season. It's already archery season for deer here in North Carolina, but it's way, for me, in my opinion, and y'all may have different opinions on this, but in my opinion, it's way too warm. You know, I only care about the meat and I am not going to take a chance of spoilage, especially when it comes to organ meats. You know, you want, in my opinion, again, I want the temperature to be at least

[00:01:00] the temperature it would be in my refrigerator before I go out. But, you know, um, it's, it's just enjoyable right now to be out just shooting some stops, just taking a little practice, you know, I've always been a, um, well, I shouldn't say always. I started out, I guess, on a compound bow and, um, you know, great old bear compound bow, nice, good weight for a kid. I don't know what it was, maybe 40 pounds, 35, not too, too heavy.

[00:01:29] Uh, in fact, I actually had a smaller one before then when I was younger, also a compound, probably no more than 15, 20 pounds. But, you know, I was up to like, you know, maybe a 35, 40 pound bow in my teens. And, um, by late teens, early twenties, I switched over to a long bow. And, uh, of course, I mean, 40, 45, 50 pounds is nothing on a compound bow. I mean, the way those little wheels turn, I mean, you just pull it back and I mean, it's just as easy as can be once you get it halfway back.

[00:01:58] Um, so it may have been a little heavier. I'm just going by memory. I, um, actually sold that one, I guess. And when I was in my teens and I think bought a mandolin or something, you know how you do. But anyway, um, I switched over to a long bow sometime around, uh, age 20. And it was really nice. An old one, old one that was in my family. Good 75 years old and, um, probably about a 75 pound drawback weight.

[00:02:26] The thing was a beast. I mean, really, uh, now, you know, with a long bow, the limbs are longer. So it doesn't, it's not as hard as a shorter bow to manage that much weight. And I shot that thing for years. And just, uh, last time I shot it, it got a weird bend, you know, it's like it was, the wood was finally starting to break down a little bit. It was lemon wood, really good quality bow. Um, uh, Pearson. It was a Ben Pearson, if I remember correctly.

[00:02:53] Uh, but anyway, um, it started getting a little off in one of the limbs. I thought, well, I better go ahead and retire this bow. It's still a beautiful wall hanger. You know, real antique, honestly. And the string's doing great shape, believe it or not. After all these years, I can still use the string. And I got real lucky. I found a, um, there was a closeout, I think, on a, uh, sporting goods store. And they put up some of their stuff on eBay. And I ended up getting a, um, Sage Samick take down recurve bow.

[00:03:22] 50 pounds. 50 pounds draw weight. Uh, for really less than 50 bucks. So, I mean, I jumped on it. So, this week I've been breaking in the Sage Samick. And I am loving it. It feels, actually, 50 pounds. It feels heavier than my old longbow did it. You know, 75 pounds. Uh, but of course the longbow was wearing out. You know, maybe the limbs were getting a little, uh, a little too broken in, so to say, so to speak.

[00:03:51] So, you know, the first few days, it was like, wow, this thing's kicking my butt. And now, you know, I'm starting to get consistently good grouping. I'll start at, like, 15 yards. Take a few shots. You know, like a wooded rabbit or something. Nice, you know, low, good, you know. Uh, try to get them nice and tight. Back up to 20. Do the same thing. Back up to 25. Um, at 30 yards, I'm getting decent grouping.

[00:04:18] I mean, we're talking, like, you know, um, no tighter than, like, a pie pan in diameter. Which, you know, you can get by with that. Um, you're going to get more shots at a deer at 30 yards than you are at 20. So, I like to work up to there. I'm not going to, probably not going to take a shot at a critter, uh, beyond 30 yards with a bow. That's just me. You know, maybe you're, like, Ted Nugent or Fred Bear or something. And you can go out, you know, 50 yards and hit, uh, something the size of a dime. If so, that's awesome.

[00:04:49] But, anyway, yeah, I've been having a good time with it. Good time with it. And getting out, you know, I get to see a few herbs that are actually starting to get ready for harvest. Uh, prickly pear cactus is just starting to form its fruit. Um, one I'm going to tell you about soon, uh, maybe on my other show, though, probably Southern Appalachian Herbs Podcast, is a really interesting herb in the, um, in the, uh, belladonna family, I guess you would call it. That's also the tomato and potato family. Nightshade was the word I was looking for.

[00:05:19] It's called horse nettle. And it's a very poisonous plant, but it's excellent, uh, used topically for, uh, poison ivy or poison oak. So, so look forward to that. And, um, what else did I spot today? Sumac. The sumac berries are looking really nice this year, I guess, because of all the rain. They'll be ripe in another month or two. So, I mean, they're, they're looking really nice. Staghorn sumac was really, um, looking really full today. And, uh, so anyway, it's been enjoyable.

[00:05:46] Of course, you know, got cocky and didn't put a wrist guard on and popped my wrist with a string a time or two. So, uh, yeah, that's always fun. Uh, one of these days, you know, I'm going to learn. When you switch to a different bow design, you're going to hit your arm or wrist at some point. That's just the way it goes. And, um, so, uh, how that ties into herbal medicine. Well, arnica is excellent for bruising. So, as soon as I came in, I probably went too long.

[00:06:14] It actually, like, puffed up real big. So, I popped it with a string a few times and it's looking really nasty. So, I came in and put some arnica salve, uh, on it. And, um, um, the bruising's already dispersed like 50%. I'll probably be good to shoot again tomorrow. So, always, uh, keep some arnica on hand in some form. It's fantastic for soft tissue injuries. It disperses, uh, swelling. It disperses, uh, bruising.

[00:06:43] And, um, helps heal and recover a whole lot faster. And, um, it helps with the pain a lot as well. You know, it's not a big deal to, you know, whack your, uh, inside of your arm or your wrist with a bowstring. It just happens. It looks a whole lot worse than it ever feels. You know, it's one of those things like when you stub your toe or something. It's like, ah, you know. And then it kind of wears off and you're just like back to it. But, yeah, it swelled up real big. So, I had to stop shooting for the day. Because it, like, puffed out. You know what I mean? What do they call it?

[00:07:12] Hematoma or whatever. So, anyway, arnica will shrink that sucker back in. And by tomorrow morning, I'll be out back out there doing it. And, man, it's fun. You know, you forget when you don't, um, I didn't, I didn't do archery at all last year because of the hurricane. Uh, didn't go hunting. Didn't even take target practice. Nothing. Um, maybe a little bit with the blowgun. But even that, I didn't really stick with. Which I should. You know, if you've got any kind of lung issues. Um, I developed asthma as a child.

[00:07:41] A blowgun is fantastic for strengthening the lungs. And so, that's something I try to stick with. It's more of a hobby just for fun. You know, kind of like, what's that guy's name? Ken Fowler. Um, you know how he's into slingshots? Uh, Fowler's Makery and Mischief, I think, is his channel on YouTube. Funny guy. And I, really, I've actually picked up a few really good tips from his, uh, his videos.

[00:08:06] Uh, he had this design, like in one of his first videos for Ebola that he used to catch chickens running around the backyard. I'm like, that is an awesome idea. I'm so stealing that idea. So, um, and I did. And, uh, um, you know, it might work really good for game birds, too, if that wasn't illegal. Uh, but anyway, the, uh, the blowgun is, uh, really, really good for the lungs. I, I definitely, um, recommend that highly.

[00:08:35] So, let's go ahead and we'll get into the herb. Let's talk about our herbs here. And today, we're going to talk about one of the most common. Uh, this is one you're going to find just about everywhere. Let me grab a sip of water real quick. All right. Oh, I went down the wrong way. Uh-oh. All right, so, dock. Docks are really common. In fact, they're about 200 members of the Rumex family.

[00:09:04] That's Rumex, R-U-M-E-X. Rumex or dock are, um, really some of the most common so-called weeds in the United States. It's another one of those that our ancestors used to grow for food and medicine. Uh, wonderful edible grains. I don't know of any docks that don't have edible grains. Um, now some are very bitter, like a yellow dock. Maybe a little too bitter to eat.

[00:09:33] There are a lot of sorrels, which are actually a slightly different family. Um, at some points, they actually seem to be related. But they do have a different Latin name, a different classification. Um, there are sorrels that are called docks and docks that are called sorrels. And really medicinally, medicinally, we use them almost interchangeably. Even though, I mean, sorrels can look so different as, well, like sheep sorrel.

[00:10:03] Sorrel, we call it sour wheat as a kid. Has a very small leaf and a red stem. And it's got this, like, really nice, like, sour patch kids flavor to it. Lemon drops, that kind of thing. Loved chewing on it as a kid. Um, the garden sorrel. Well, the leaf is the same shape, but it's, like, ten times bigger. And it doesn't have that long stem. At least not until it bolts, you know.

[00:10:29] But, uh, actually what we call shamrocks are, are, are, are, in actually, in actuality, not a, uh, a four-leaf clover. Yeah, what is it? Four-leaf clover or three-leaf clover? Which one's supposed to be lucky? I have no idea. They're not clovers at all. Uh, they're actually sorrel. That's usually wood sorrel. There are a couple of sorrels that have that growth pattern. So, they can look wildly different. Docks can actually look pretty different. You have some that have leaves, some that's like spinach.

[00:10:58] You have some that have bigger, tougher leaves. You have some that have red veins through them, like bloody dock. A beautiful plant you can plant in your, um, ornamental beds and, and use as food and medicine. And what really, the main characteristic of all these plants, one, they have a bitterness, um, and a sourness. The sourness is oxalic acid.

[00:11:24] Uh, if you ate nothing but docks and sorrels, that oxalic acid could kind of build up in your system. And what it actually does is prevent the body from processing minerals. And it can cause kidney stones and such as that. It can also cause malnutrition because your body's not processing minerals. If I remember correctly, your body actually uses some of the calcium in your system to neutralize the oxalic acid.

[00:11:51] But that oxalic acid can also crystallize and, um, be kind of painful. So, you don't want to live completely off the docks and sorrels. But there's absolutely no reason not to enjoy them. I've told you many times, one of my absolute favorite campfire meals is trout. Uh, just, you know, good, clean-tasting mountain trout. Uh, you know, it doesn't have a lot of flavor. So, you want to add some flavor to trout. Give it some salt and pepper. Give it some creole seeds and whatever you like.

[00:12:20] But, uh, like stuff it with a little green onion or ramps and some sorrel or dock because it's got that lemony flavor. That's the thing about the, um, docks and sorrels is they all have that lemony type flavor. They kind of taste like spinach if you squirted lemon juice on it. So, fantastic with a mild-tasting fish, especially if you cook it up with some bacon and you get your good bacon fat in there. You're going to love that. If you haven't tried it, I mean, that's like the one recipe. Well, I have a lot of good recipes.

[00:12:49] If you haven't checked it out yet, I have a couple of good cookbooks. Not only the Spring Foraging Cookbook, which is all the wild plants you can harvest, but the Omnivore's Guide to Home Cooking, which is fairly popular these days. I mean, people, I'm talking chefs. People have gotten in touch with me and said, this is like one of the best cookbooks I've ever read. This is fantastic. So, if you haven't yet, definitely go to Amazon and do me a favor and buy the Omnivore's Guide to Home Cooking or the Spring Foraging Cookbook.

[00:13:17] And, you know, leave me a good review. I still don't have many reviews. I mean, it's amazing. I would say maybe one out of 500 people ever even thinks to leave a review on Amazon. But those matter a huge amount. If you've bought any of my books and you liked them, please leave me a review on Amazon because that's the main thing that drives book sales is reviews. And if you didn't like it, don't leave a review, please. You know, send me a nasty note.

[00:13:47] And feel free to just cuss me out. That's fine. But, you know, when you leave a review on Amazon for an author and it's a bad review or a neutral review, it kills book sales. Absolutely kills book sales. Last weekend, I presented at the Christian Herbalist Guild Conference. And a lot of people have bought my books, especially Christian Herbal Medicine. The Christian History of Herbal Medicine is the official title of that book. And they were like, it's such a great book.

[00:14:16] You've got to buy this book. You've got to read this book. And the irony of it is that book has more negative reviews on Amazon than anything I've ever written. I mean, pagans, neo-pagans, hippies, new age types hate that I've written a book about the Christian history of herbal medicine. And because the history of Christianity is essentially Catholic until about 1500.

[00:14:43] I mean, there was a little, you know, division with the Orthodox around 1050. But for at least the first 1,000 to 1,500 years of the Christianity, there was only one church and it was the Catholic Church. Therefore, if you write any book on Christian history, it's going to be predominantly Catholic history. Yeah, there's some anti-Catholic bigots that have gotten on there and just railed. I mean, one of them even said, this isn't a Christian book, it's a Catholic book and gave me like a one-star, you know, review.

[00:15:12] I mean, that's the lowest you can give. You can't give no stars. And I mean, it really, people from the pagans and the New Agers to the ones that just totally hate Catholics, it's killed my book sales. That should really be, I mean, I think it's one of my, maybe one of the most important books I've written. Because whenever people hear herbal medicine these days, they think like, oh, you know, woohoo, new age stuff.

[00:15:42] Truth is, herbal medicine was the only medicine there was until about 1920. And I mean, all the doctors pretty much went to medical schools, which were owned by a, and operated by a church. I mean, our founding colleges in America all had religious affiliation. I mean, people used to go to Yale and Harvard to go to seminary, you know, and I think they were Anglican affiliated.

[00:16:07] But I mean, a doctor went to a school that was sponsored by a Christian denomination, most of the history being Catholic, of course. And the hospitals were all funded by the churches. I mean, so, you know, anyway, like I said, if you can ever leave me a good review, it's very much appreciated. And if you have a bad review, just go ahead and send me an email. I got a thick skin.

[00:16:33] And I know I'm dyslexic, and there are probably a few typos in the book. Yeah, I got it. And there was one run through Amazon, like right, probably the second book I published. They did a printing run. Maybe 15 copies went out that were formatted just bizarrely. And they kind of recalled them and sent people replacement copies.

[00:17:01] And a couple of the bad reviews I got on Amazon were because of that. I mean, it's so hard to get people to give a positive review. But if they get a book that has no page numbers and the print's tiny and runs sideways, which is what happened, which was, wow, I don't even know. I mean, trust me, if I could sue Amazon over that, I would have. But that, you know, when people get a book like that, they give you bad reviews. They give you bad reviews real quick. They can return the book and get their money back.

[00:17:30] Like, you know, in my opinion, do one or the other. You know, I mean, they had an honest issue on that, I have to admit. But there was nothing I could do about it. That was Amazon. And, man, that sucked. That sucked bad. And I just had to say, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'll send you a free PDF. I'll send you three free PDFs. You know, I'll send you a PDF of every book I've written, plus my articles. And, you know, I'll make it up to you as best I can.

[00:17:59] But they're like, your book is... I'm like, oh, I got no control. You know, once it leaves my hands, that's it. That's all I can do. I mean, all I can do is my best. And once it's out the door, I have no control over it. Well, anyway, back to docs. Docs. So, docs have documented medicinal use. Well, I don't even really know how far back. I think they may actually go back to, like, ancient Sumeria.

[00:18:29] But the Greeks, the ancient Greeks, wrote a lot about docs. Both Hippocrates and Theophrastus described doc. They called it lapithum. And Pliny the Elder, and yes, an Italian person got in touch and said, pronounced it Pliny, not Pliny. Okay. So, okay. Pliny the Elder seems to have introduced the use of doc to prevent scurvy. Docs have vitamin C.

[00:18:59] And so that was really sort of a groundbreaking moment when the Greeks prescribed doc to prevent scurvy. And he included, he actually wrote it as rumix. Same name we get, rumix, the official name for it. And listed as pot herbs for food. So, it was known as food and medicine, at least by the time of Pliny the Elder.

[00:19:23] And the Ascorides described several different varieties of doc. And there are several. There are about 200, as I said. And he said, well, and he also speaks of oxalis, which is sorrel. And, you know, so these have been lumped together for over 2,000 years. He said, the herbs of all of these boiled soothe the intestines. Applied raw as a poultice with rose oil or saffron.

[00:19:52] It dissolves the, wow, melec. I'm not even going to try to pronounce that. A guy in my notes said it's essentially an affected tumor that actually has pus. It's really nasty. So, don't look that word up. Not if you're eating anyway. Anyway, yeah. So, he said the, well, he gets into the oxalis now.

[00:20:20] He really liked it for dysentery. It doesn't have a syringency. So, sorrel is actually better for diarrhea, whereas doc's better for constipation. He said the roots of these boiled with vinegar applies a poultice cures leprosy, empatigo, which is a skin infection, rough nails even. But, for that, you want to combine it with potassium nitrate or saltpeter. Also, once widely used in herbal medicine or vinegar.

[00:20:51] A decoction of sorrel applied with hot cloths mixed to the hot bath relieves itchiness. Yes, sorrel's very good for skin inflammation, itching. So, is doc in that regard, though. But sorrel's a little stronger. Let's see. Does he have anything else specifically on doc? I don't think so. Skip ahead a thousand years to St. Hildegard von Bingen. And a German told me it's pronounced bingen, not pingen. So, I'm trying on that one, too.

[00:21:18] She actually recommended black doc, and this is a quote, for one who has lost his sense or intelligence or is out of his mind. I have no idea. Yeah. She said that white doc is stronger than black doc and was actually better and also used for middle issues. She said that docs would be useful to bring on delayed menses, would infuse in oil and apply it to the abdomen topically.

[00:21:49] She did not like sorrel at all. She didn't think it was good for food or medicine. But she did like doc as a food. And also in the German folk medicine tradition, but going up to like 1920, so we'll skip ahead another thousand years. Brother Aloysius used Rumex acetosa, maybe red doc? I'm not sure. No, no, no. Anyway, one of the docs for stomach and chest complaints,

[00:22:18] scurvy as a diuretic, and stimulate the appetite. He recommended Rumex Crispus for skin complaints, eczema, and what was called a depurative, meaning it purifies and detoxifies in more like American or English herbal medicine would have been called a blood purifier. It's the vitamin C content, essentially, and that it helps, you know, with constipation and such. Now, in Central Europe, according to Dietrich Cohen and Adam Siegel,

[00:22:47] the Ashkenazi Jews made a drink with fresh doc combined with milk and used it for chest ailments, asthma, and hematopsis. And the coxswain of the plant, when it was in flower, was used for colds and coughs. They include the flower with the leaves. A whole plant, in that case, actually, I think. Um, Gerard, 1500s England, did not differentiate between docs and sorrels.

[00:23:13] The Rumex and the, um, oh, I just said the name of sorrel just a minute ago. What was it? Oh, it doesn't matter. You're going to look it up. But, anyway, he said these herbs are a mixture. Um, they can be mixed, and they were drying and, um, astringent. He said the powder of any kind of dox, drunken wine, stoppeth the lasc and bloody flux of diarrhea or internal bleeding, and easeth the pains of the stomach. The roots boil till they be very soft.

[00:23:44] Stamped with barrow's grease. I don't even know what a barrow is, but basically lard is what we're talking about here. Um, and made into an ointment, helpeth the itch and scurvy scabs and manginess. It's actually one of the primary uses throughout time, uh, for doc and sorrel, is against, um, anything from eczema to mange. And it's really good. It's very soothing. It's astringent, and it has the vitamin C, and actually the oxalic acid helps with itching as well.

[00:24:12] Um, you could, he said you could also use it in a bath for the same purpose. Um, in Culpepper's time, about a hundred years, uh, later, docs were so commonly harvested in the wild or grown in the garden that, um, he said he wasn't even going to bother to describe it. He said, I shall not trouble you with the description of them. My book grows big too fast, and I know the feeling.

[00:24:39] Uh, yes, um, I write long books. And did you know when you sell your books on Amazon especially, um, the longer your book is, the less money you make. That's right. More pages cost more to print, and more pages means heavier, which means it costs more to ship. So when you look at, like, my book, The Encyclopedia of, uh, Medicinal, um, Bitter Medicinal Herbs, which is somewhere around 800 and some pages,

[00:25:06] um, it sells for, I mean, it sells for, what, 20-some dollars on Amazon, I make about $1.50. And seriously, I mean, Amazon takes everything. Um, and then I've actually gotten reviews. This book's too long. I'm like, my word. I've never been to a restaurant and said, You fed me too much. Well, that's the way I look at it. But anyway, um,

[00:25:33] he said that, uh, docks, especially red dock, he liked, um, called Bloodwort in his time, cleanseth the blood and strengtheth the liver, but the yellow dock root is best to be taken, uh, when the blood or liver is affected by collar. Uh, so infection and inflammation, essentially. Um, yeah, the seeds, he said, were good for diarrhea and any kind of internal bleeding, whether menstrual or, uh, bloody diarrhea.

[00:26:02] The roots being boiled in vinegar help with the itch and the breaking out of the skin, if it be bathed therein. Um, all docks being boiled with meat make it boil the sooner. I don't know. I doubt that's true. Um, I mean, I don't think the leaves of dock would cause water to boil faster, but, um, very popular. Very popular food in 1600s England. And he said it was, um, really nutritious, strengthening to the liver, procures good blood,

[00:26:32] being as wholesome a pot herb as any that groweth in the garden. And, but even in 1600s England, people were getting away from it. He said, yet such is the nicety of our time, forsooth, that women will not put it into a pot because it can make the pottage black. Pride and ignorance. It's a couple of monsters in the creation preferring nicety before health. Colpever was a character. Um, but anyway, going on to the Irish tradition,

[00:27:02] John Kehoe wrote of three, three docks that were commonly used in Ireland in the 1700s. Sharp pointed dock. He said, made into an ointment with tobacco are a great cure for scabbier, itchy skin. May sound weird, but tobacco actually has some very strong topical anti-inflammatory properties. Uh, and it does help a lot with itching. A decoction of the roots in ale or whey taken internally is an excellent cure for scurvy. The seed is useful for stopping all hemorrhages or flow of blood.

[00:27:31] Great water dock is good against scurvy, ulcers in the mouth and gums, and all kinds of flow. Garden dock is somewhat purgative. It removes obstruction and is beneficial for the liver and spleen. Now getting up to the 1930s, Miss Greave listed a lot of docks. She also mentioned it's one of the best cures for being stung by stinging nettles. They had, they used to say nettle in dock or dock, I don't remember.

[00:28:01] They had a little rhyme they would use. Basically, if you get stung by a bunch of stinging nettles, it's no big deal unless you have allergic reaction, but you can take the leaves of dock and rub it in. The oxalic acid in the dock will actually neutralize the bee-like venom of stinging nettles. Pretty good. So she, she listed a ton of docks, but, let's see, pointed dock, that's Rumex acetus.

[00:28:31] Yellow dock is Rumex crispus. Red dock is Rumex. Aquaticus. That's the one I was trying to remember earlier. That's also known as water dock. Gosh. She, and so is Rumex. Hydro, Hydro, Pathum, I think, but, yeah, let's see if, oh, she talks about how the Iroquois, she was aware of the Iroquois at the time. No, wait a minute. This is from a different entry. Well, let me see. Did she say anything we haven't covered?

[00:29:01] No, I don't think so. Good for diarrhea. Let's see. Specifically, she had a recipe for a stomach tonic. Uh, the root of dock, put in three pints of water with a little cinnamon or, or licorice powder, boiled down to a quart, taken a wine glass full two or three times a day, was said to be good for diarrhea and stomach tonic. Um, no, another issue, uh, entry, I've got my notes.

[00:29:30] It's the Iroquois made a tea from the roots to treat upset stomach, kidney problems, general bowel problems. Many tribes, including the Blackfoot, Paiute, and Shoshone use the herb topically by applying the mash root to sores and swelling. Um, oh, it's also an ingredient in the, uh, in Essiac, which is an old Native American remedy, um, that traditionally has been seen, uh, as good for, um, cancer.

[00:29:59] I don't know if it is or not. Um, I don't endorse anything that somebody says is good for a cure for cancer because it's too serious. I say that in all my shows, but if, uh, anybody was looking for an herbal remedy, definitely Essiac is where to start looking. I mean, it's got hundreds of years of use and, um, you know, it's worth looking into. That's all I'm going to say. Um, the Aztecs use dox, um, as food and medicine. Um,

[00:30:30] wow. That was documented back as, uh, 1629, um, that, uh, yeah, used by the Aztecs. dox have been used to official American medicine. At some point, your doctor or your pharmacist would have, uh, prescribed him. Uh, King's Medical Dispensatory of 1898 says, uh, the doc roots are decidedly alternative tonic, mildly astringent and detergent, uh, alternative sort of like what we think of tonic now.

[00:31:00] Some of it kind of brings you gradually back to health and tonic being good for the digestion. Um, good for, um, scorbutic cases, uh, it's the vitamin C, you know, that's what we're talking. And cutaneous or skin issues, scrofulous conditions, it's, uh, infected, swollen, uh, lymph nodes, uh, syphilis, syphilis, leprosy, elephantiasis actually. Uh, I don't know, but wow. Um, actually said,

[00:31:29] they said the Rumex Crispus was especially good for that. Um, wow. Um, improves nutrition, uh, helps with blood and skin disorders, acting decidedly upon the glandular system, removing chronic lymphatic enlargements, and especially influencing those conditions in which there's a tendency to indolent ulceration and inflammatory deposits. yeah, wow.

[00:31:58] fresh root mixed with cream, uh, a lotion, they actually mean, or, or lard or even fresh butter was, uh, specifically good for itching and, and scrofula and eczema and, uh, glandular tumors and enlargements. Specific indication uses, uh, for bad blood with chronic skin disease, bubonic swellings, low deposits in glands and cellular tissues, a tendency to indolent ulcers, feeble, feeble recuperative power. Um, in other words,

[00:32:27] helps get you back on your feet after a bad, uh, illness, uh, irritative, dry, uh, tracheal cough, stubborn, dry summer cough, chronic sore throat, glandular enlargement, hypersecretion, nervous dyspepsia. That's a nervous stomach essentially. Um, uh, especially if that gas on the stomach causes pain in the chest and cough, uh, with a sense of, uh, yeah, same thing. Uh, basically pain in the chest caused by gas.

[00:32:58] Um, plants for future literally list too many ducks. I couldn't, I couldn't, I couldn't fit them all in. Like I said, there are some 200, uh, but here's one I haven't mentioned. Uh, and specifically it was crispus, uh, curled duck. Uh, curled duck has a long history of domestic, uh, herbal use. It is a gentle and safe laxative, uh, less powerful than rhubarb. So it's particularly useful in the treatment of mild constipation.

[00:33:24] The plant has a valuable cleansing property and it's useful for treating a wide range of skin problems. All parts of the plants can be used, though the root is most active medicinally. The root is alternative, anti-scorbutic, astringent, chologog, depurative, laxative, and mildly tonic. It used to be sold as a tonic and laxative. It can cause or relieve diarrhea according to the dose. Yes, you can, uh, it has some stringency, can stop diarrhea, but it can also, uh, take him, you know,

[00:33:54] if you eat a lot of it, it's, uh, pretty high in fiber. Let's just put it that way. Uh, good for piles or hemorrhoids, bleeding the lungs, various blood complaints, chronic skin diseases, externally root, uh, mash, use a poultice or salve, uh, or as a powder, um, good for sores, ulcers, wounds, other skin problems. The root has been used with positive effects, effect to restrain, well, I won't even get into that. Uh, I think we've covered everything. So, um,

[00:34:24] mainly I think of doc as food, salad, green, pot herbs, sheep's oral, um, is like I said, one of the first wild plants that you learned as a child, um, eat the leaves and chew the stems like a sour candy, but really very useful medicinally. And a lot of them are pretty plants. Even if you live in an HOA or whatever, you can probably, um, probably grow them in your garden. Um, like especially bloody dock and such a very popular as an ornamental plant. So y'all,

[00:34:54] I'm going to wrap it up there. Uh, as we've been talking, the swelling in my wrist is reduced by 50%. That's how quickly Arnica works. So remember that. Have a good one. And I'll talk to you next week. The information in this podcast is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease or condition. Nothing I say or write has been evaluated or approved by the FDA. I'm not a doctor. The U S government does not recognize the practice of herbal medicine,

[00:35:23] and there is no governing body regulating herbalists. Therefore, I'm really just a guy who studies herbs. I'm not offering any advice. I won't even claim that anything I write or say is accurate or true. I can tell you what herbs have been traditionally used for. I can tell you my own experience. And if I believe in herbs, help me, I cannot nor would I tell you to do the same. If you use an herb, anyone recommends you are treating yourself. You take full responsibility for your health. Humans are individuals and no two are identical.

[00:35:51] What works for me may not work for you. You may have an allergy, a sensitivity, an underlying condition that no one else even shares. And you don't even know about be careful with your health. By continuing to listen to my podcast or read my blog, you agree to be responsible for yourself, your own research, make your own choices and not to blame me for anything ever.