You must be sure to wear gloves, long sleeves and pants, and not contact it with your skin at the time of harvest. If it contacts your skin you will get an itchy rash caused by the itch-inducing needles on the bottoms of the leaves. After harvest you can make a tea or tincture from the fresh leaves. The stalks can also be hung to dry and the leaves stored for making tea in the winter season.

To make a fresh tea, you need to infuse or steep the leaves for at least 10 minutes to avoid the sting from staying in and causing an irritation to the body. The tea is wonderful and usually you do not even need to add a sweetener. The tea can be consumed hot or iced. You should never consume more than three cups per day as this will give you bad diarrhea. Do not drink the tea if you get any kind of allergic reaction, such as hives, swelling or difficulty breathing.

To make a tincture you can use dried nettle leaves. Chop the leaves and place into a glass jar. Add ¾ cup vodka and ¾ cup water to the jar. Seal the jar and shake well. Allow the nettle to infuse for two weeks. Shake the tincture daily as it infuses. After two weeks has passed, strain the nettle from the tincture.

Place the tincture into a dark-colored glass jar with a dropper. Be sure to label it and put the date of preparation on the jar. Nettle tincture can be stored for several years if done properly.

Use 2 ml of tincture three times daily as an adult dose for such conditions as hay fever, seasonal allergies, gout, rheumatism, and arthritis.

This herbaceous perennial grows in moist woods from sea level to mid-elevations west of the Cascades.  Pacific bleeding heart grows 10-20 inches tall in full to part shade.  The seeds have a small fat deposit (white) that encourages ants to harvest and thereby transport the seeds around the forest floor. Try pinching the flowers to encourage summer long blooming.  If you are lucky enough to live in the Cascade foothills there are plenty of alpine hikes to be taken where you can enjoy these native beauties first hand.  But you better get out quick!  You will enjoy their light pink to purple hues.  On one very special family hike along the I-90 corridor from Seattle I spotted a super rare white patch. That was neat. If you find them please remember the “look but don’t touch” rule. And tell them I said hi!

MY HEART BLEEDS FOR YOU

If your mother would break out the worlds tiniest violin and play this song for you then raise your hand. If you want some of these beauties in your garden then raise your green thumb! You can contact the Washington Native Plant Society (wnps.org) and ask where you can get some. A Gardenview™ encouragement is to become a native plant specialist (for your local) and learn how to cultivate native species and get them back into people’s yards and gardens. Spread the love with Native Plants.

Pete Skenandore

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