A hedgerow plant growing wild in most parts of Europe, including Great Britain, flowering in May and June.

Astringent, styptic, tonic, febrifuge, stomachic. It has also been used for diarrhoea, and leucorrhoea, taken as an infusion, as a gargle for sore throats, and as a bath additive for haemorrhoids.

 Anti-inflammatory activity has been shown by inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis via cyclooxygenase, and platelet activating factor induced exocytosis in vitro.

Commonly found in woods in Britain and Europe as far as Siberia. The bark is a source of betulinic acid, an anti-tumor agent being developed for use in skin cancers and other tumors.

It has activity in several carcinoma cell lines including human melanoma, brain tumor cells including medulloblastoma and neuroblastoma, and prevents tumor promotion in a two-stage carcinogenesis model.

The bark is also used for the preperation of Birch Tar Oil, by destructive distillation, which has been used to treat psoriasis and eczema

Native of Arabia, cultivated in Europe and North America.

Expectorant, stimulant, antipyretic and analgesic. It is a common ingredient of cough mixtures and ointments used for rheumatic and other muscular pains and for skin disease. The phenolic glycosides such as salicin have antioxidant activity and the anti-inflammatory and antipyretic effects of the salicylates.

Flavonoids from P.nigra have been shown to have 5-alpha-reductase activity and the volatile oil constituents have the usual antiseptic and expectorant activity.

Blackhorehound has a long history of herbal uses, though is not widely employed in modern herbalism because of its unpleasent flavour, nonetheless, it does have a range of medicinal virtues, being especially effective in its action as an antiemetic.

In the past it was often used for treating problems connected with the respiratory system, convulsions, low spirits, and the menopause. The whole plant is antiemetic, antispasmodic, expectorant, stimulant and vermifuge. It is taken internally in the treatment of nervous dyspepsia, travelling sickness, morning sickness in pregnancy, arthritis, gout, menstrual disorders and bronchial complaints.

A wild plant indigenous to southern Europe and naturalized worldwide.

The leaves are stalked, with five to seven lobes, hairy and with prominent veins on the under surface. Flowers mauve, with darker veins

The infusion is used for colds and coughs, and a poultice of the leaves applied to insect stings and bites. The mucilage from the leaves has anti-complement activity.

Grows on marshy ground in Europe, Asia, and America.

Used as a bitter tonic, deobstruent, used also for rheumatism. Caffeic and ferulic acids have known choleretic action and it has been suggested that they may act as synergists to the iridoids.

The extract has a beneficial effect on renal faliure, thought to be due to inhibition of platelet activating factor. It is laxative in doses larger.

Native to Europe, including the British Isles, western Asia, North Africa and naturalized in North America.

Aromatic, bitter, stomachic, tonic. Centaury is widely used in disorders of the upper digestive tract, in dysepepsia for liver and gall bladder complaints and to stimulate the appetite in a similar manner to Gentian.

The xanthones are antimutagenic in vitro and exhibit diuretic activity.

Indigenous to most of Europe, widely cultivated.

Taken internally and applied externally as a lotion. It is used as a soothing and analgesic application in toothache, earache and neuralgia, and as a cream or ointment for wounds, sore nipples and nappy rash.

The sesquiterpene lactones have anti-tumor activity in vitro and the flavonoid apigenin is sedative

Native to West Africa and extensively cultivated in the tropics, particularly Nigeria, Brazil and Indonesia.

Cola extracts are an ingredient of many tonics for depression, tiredness and to stimulate the appetite; the main stimulant and diuretic ingredient is caffeine.

A preperation of cola nut with Ephedra decrease body weight and fat and increased HDL-cholesterol levels in a randomized double-blind placebo controlled study of 167 people. One of the major uses is as flavouring in the manufacture of soft drinks. Ingestion of cola nuts cause an increase in arterial blood pressure.

Garcinia cola has anti-microbial properties as well as anti-ulcer and gastric acid lowering  effects.

Cowslip has been used since ancient times to make wine, jam, tea and ointment. Indeed, cowslip wine, made from the "peeps' was thought to be a good sedative.

Its natural habitat is in meadows and woodland, with a particular preference for chalky soil. It has also been used as a sedative.

The whole herb/roots has also been used in the treatment of coughs, bronchitis, spasms, cramps, rheumatic pain and paralysis.

Originating in North America, as its name indicates cramp bark is most used to relieve cramps, including menstrual cramps, muscle cramps, and stomach cramps.

Although cramp bark contians small amounts of several different types of compounds, a chemical known as Viopudial is believed to provide cramp bark with its cramp relieving effects.

Viopudial is thought to relax muscles by partially blocking an enzyme involved with causing muscle spasms. It may also have direct effects on muscle tissue particularlt the muscles in the uterus.

Found around the world and in the U.S., especially in western states such as California. Feverfew may be beneficial for the prevention of migrain attack. It has also been used for reducing fever, treating arthritis, digestive problems and headaches.

By inhibiting the release of serotonin and prostaglandins,both of which are believed to aid the onset of migrains.

Feverfew limits the inflammation of blood vessels in the head. This stops the blood vessel spasm that many believe contribute to headaches.

Grindelia has antiinflammatory, antispasmodic, expectorant, and mild pain-relieving properties. It was formerly included in the United States pharmacopoeia as an internal remedy for asthma, bronchitis and other upper respiratory tract ailments.

It is often blended with Yerba Santa, marshmallow root, licorice, and other respiratory herbs. Grindelia is used topically for burns, poison oak, and other skin rashes. It has a mild pain-relieving effect but his main action is that of a protective barrier against inadvertently spreading the rash to other parts of the body. Grindelia also acts as an irritant aquaretic and antiinflammatory for chronic bladder infections.

Ground ivy is a creeping European perennial evergreen, naturalized in North America and found in moist shady areas, along paths, around hedges, and roadsides from Ontario to deep south, west to Kansas, and along the Pacific Coast.

Ground ivy is used in alternative medicine and is an excellent spring tonic, it is an appetite stimulant. It contains a volatile oil which aids in relieving congestion and inflammation of mucos membranes associated with colds, flu, and sinusitis

The fresh juice or a medicinal tea is use to treat digestive disorders, gastritis, acid indigestion, and diarrhea.

Holy Thistle also known as milk thistle contains several chemicals with possible medical effecs. Most current research focuses on one of them, silymarin, which may have specific protective effects on cells in the liver. Silymarin has antioxidant properties. Antioxidants are thought to prevent or lesson damage to body cells that is caused by a chemical process called oxidation. Silymarin and other chemicals from milk thistle have also been teasted involving various types of human cancer cells.

Most reasearch has centered on breast cancer and prostate cancer, it is also being teasted for treating other cancers such as leukemia

Found around much of Europe, including Britain, to W. Asia. Hops have a long and proven history of herbal use, where they are employed mainly for their soothing, sedative,tonic and calming effect on the body and the mind.

Their strongly bitter flavour largely accounts for their ability to strenghten and stimulate the digestion, increasing gastric and other secretions. Hops are widely used as a folk remedy to treat a wide range of complaints, includind boils, bruises, calculus, cancer, cramps, cough, cystitis, debility, delirium, diarrhoea, dyspepsia, fever, fits, hysteria, inflammation, insomnia, jaundice, nerves, neuralgia, rheumatism and worms.

Found in Britain, all over Europe, especially in the Arctic region. Iceland moss has been used since ancient times as a cough remedy and has also been used in European folk medicine as a cancer treatment.

In present day herbalism it is highly prized for for its strongly antibiotic and demulcent actions, being used especially to soothe the mucous membranes of the chest, to counter catarrh and calm dry and paroxysmal coughs-it is particularly helpful as a treatment for elderly people.

Iceland moss has both a demulcent and a bitter tonic effect within the gut-a combination almost unique amongst medicinal herbs.

Knot weed is found throughout Europe, including Britain, to Temperate Asia.Knot weed is a safe and effective astringent and diuretic herb that is used mainly in the treatment of complaints such as dysentery and haemorrhoids. It is also taken in the treatment of pulmonary complaints because the silicic acid it contains strengthenes connective tissue in the lungs. The whole plant is anthelmintic, astringent, cardiotonic, cholagogue, diuretic, febrifuge, haemostatic, lithontripic and vulnerary.

The juice of the plant is weakly diuretic, expectorant and vasoconstrictor. Applied externally, it is an excellent remedy to stay bleeding of the nose and to treat sores.

Maiden hair is a small, slow-growing evergreen fern found throughout the world in moist forests. It can be found in the rainforests of the Amazon as well as in the more temperate, moist forests of Southern Europe and the United States.

In the Peruvian Amozon, local people prepare the fronds of the plant as an infusion or syrup and use it as a diuretic, as an expectorant and to calm coughs, to promote perspiration and menstruation, and to treat urinary disorders, colds, rheumatism, heart burn, gallstones, alopecia (hair loss), and sour stomach. In the highlands of the Peruvian Andes, local shamans and healers decote the rhizome and use it for alopecia, gallstones, and jaundice. In the Brazillian Amazon, it is recommended as a good expectorant and used for bronchitis, coughs, and other respiratory problems.

Pot marigold was used in ancient Greek, Roman, Arabic and Indian cultures as a medicinal herb as well as a dye for fabrics.

The leaves of pot marigold are edible, with the petals added to dishes as a garnish. Hot marigold tea helps soothe ulcers. Gargle with tea for inflamed tonsils or canker sores. Marigold can be used as an ointment which can help with eczma, psoriasis, and scabs.

A spray can be made to use on rashes, cuts, scrapes, or acne with a cotton ball. Used as a spray it is good for sunburn, vaginitis, and pinworm.

Meadowsweet is taken by mouth to relieve the symptoms of the common cold. It contains chemicals known as tannins, which have a drying effect that may decrease congestion and mucus that is often associated with a cold.

In addition, one of the other chemicals contained in meadowsweet is a salicylate, similar to but much weaker than a component of aspirin. Since meadowsweet contains a salicylate component, it is thought to reduce pain and fever, mildly. None of these uses have been documented by well controlled clinical studies.

Melilot  is found in Europe to E. Asia, in grassy fields and roadsides.

Melilot, used either externally or internally, can help treat varicose veins and haemorrhoids though it requires a long-term treatment for the effect to be realised. Use of the plant also helps to reduce the risk of phlebitis and thrombosis. The flowering plant is antispasmodic, aromatic, carminative, diuretic, emollient, mildly expectorant, mildly sedative and vulnerany. An infusion is used in the treatment of sleeplessness, nervous tension, neuralgia, palpitations, varicose veins, painful congestive menstruation.

Mouse ear is found in Britain, France, Germany, Spain on lawns, and grasy areas. Mouse ear relaxes the muscles of the bronchial tubes, stimulates the cough reflex and reduces the production of catarh. This combination of actions makes the herb effective against all manner of respiratory problems including asthma, wheeziness, whooping cough, bronchitis and other congested and chronic coughs.

The herb is mildly astringent, cholagogue, diaphoretic, strongly diuretic, expectorant and tonic. The fresh plant is antibiotic. The plant has been regarded as a specific for whooping cough, and is also used in treating other problems of the respiratory system such as asthma, bronchitis and influenza.

Widespread in the forests of North America, and is also known as the cultivated plant Mahonia.

In North American medicine, Mahonia aquifolium (Oregon grape root) has been traditionally used to treat fever, diarrhoea, dyspepsia, gout, rheumatic ailments, kidney and liver diseases, but most prominently for skin complaints.

However, only in the last five years have scientists discovered how and why this herbal extract is so beneficial for psoriasis sufferers.