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Virtually everyone is familiar with this nettle, and most have had the unpleasant experience of making personal acquaintance with its stinging hairs. This nettle is often viewed as a pesky weed; very few know that it contains a host of beneficial substances. The stinging nettle gets its Latin name “Urtica” from “urere”, which means “to burn” in Latin.
The stinging nettle is one of the oldest magical herbs found in central and northern Europe. The early Germanic tribes considered it to be holy and associated the herb with the god Donar. Donar is the god of storms and thus of thunder and lightening. When a storm approached people would throw stinging nettles into the fire in order to protect their abodes from lightening.
Welcoming spring with energy and vigor
The stinging nettle is also one of the first herbs to push its sprouts through the spring soil. Rich in valuable vitamins, it acts as a spring tonic to waken us from our winter sleep and inject us with new vitality. The stinging nettle is packed with iron, vitamins A, B, C and E, calcium, magnesium, silica, trace elements, carotinoids and flavonoids.
The “herb witches” were also aware of this nettle’s properties, thus making it a highly coveted plant. Following a long hard winter the stinging nettle offered an abundance of fresh, vital nutrition.
Medicine for all situations
The stinging nettle is perfect for spring “tune-ups”, because it promotes urine discharge and thus helps to rid tissue of excess substances. It speeds recovery from illnesses by strengthening the body. Its high iron content helps generate red corpuscles. The burning effect of the nettle also increases circulation, thereby alleviating rheumatic aches and pains.
Stinging nettle spring recipes
Things that are good for you do not necessarily have to taste like medicine. The stinging nettle is a welcome addition to numerous springtime dishes.
- Leaves scalded slightly or placed in oil make an excellent supplement to salads and herbal spreads
- As a vegetable it can be prepared like fresh spinach
- Stinging nettle makes an especially tasty addition to vegetable soups
- Tea: simply pour boiling water over fresh shoots or dried nettle and enjoy
- The seeds of the stinging nettle are also edible and full of vitamins; sprinkle fresh or slightly roasted seeds on salads or your breakfast “müsli.”
Useful tips
- Nettle hairs lose their stinging effect when dried, heated or finely chopped
- Young plants do not pack as much stinging power as older ones
- Harvest only young sprouts from plants that have not yet bloomed.
- Always wear gloves with gathering stinging nettles!
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