herbal treasure chest: fuller's teasel

fuller's teasel (dipsacus sativus)

how to grow:

They can be grown from seed and are hardy in zones 3-9. The plants are biennial, that means they come back every second year. It is a very interesting plant as it is actually a kind of carnivorous plant. It catches insects in its leaf basin which fills with rain water. However it can only eat small insects, beatles for example can easily escape again. Text books don't consider fuller's teasel carnivorous as it growns in soils that are bad for other carnivorous plants and is also bigger.

fullersteasel

medicinal properties:

Mostly the root is used for medicine. It is harvested in early fall of the first year it is grown.
An infusion of the root of fuller's teasel is good to create appetite and help the stomach and the liver and to treat jaundice. Made into a tincture it can also be used to treat lyme disease (borreliosis). The flowering plants can be used to help with skin diseases. In folk medicine the plant was used to treat cancer and an ointment made from the root was used to remove warts.

cautions and possible side effects:

I couldn't find any.

fullersteasel

fuller's teasel (dipsacus sativus)

how to grow:

medicinal properties:

cautions and possible side effects:

further reading: