Nettle

Urtica dioica

Also: Stinging nettle, Common nettle

CoolingDryingTonifying

A mineral-rich green that stings first and feeds you after.

A tall, square-stemmed perennial armed with hollow stinging hairs that turn harmless once the plant is dried or cooked. The leaf feeds the body deep minerals and moves fluid through the kidneys; the root has its own work in the pelvis and prostate.

Energetics: Cooling, drying, tonifying
Taste: Earthy, salty, green
Family: Urticaceae (nettle family)
Parts used: Leaf, root, seed

Medicinal uses 12

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Traditional useLab and mechanism studiesClinical studies

Seasonal allergiesTLC
Calms hay fever, itchy eyes, and sneezing by steadying the cells that release histamine.
Depletion & mineral needsTLC
A deep source of iron, calcium, magnesium, and protein for depleted bodies, including after birth.
Joint pain & arthritisTLC
Eases arthritic joints taken as tea, and fresh stings on a sore joint bring blood to the area, a practice called urtication.
Fluid retentionTLC
Moves water through the kidneys while replacing the minerals it flushes.
Bladder irritationTLC
Flushes the urinary tract.
High blood pressureTLC
Lowers blood pressure through its diuretic action.
Low milk supplyTLC
A traditional support for milk supply.
Enlarged prostateTLC
The root eases the urgency and incomplete emptying of an enlarged prostate.
Exhaustion & burnoutTLC
The seed is a restorative for burnout after long overexertion.
Rashes & eczemaTLC
Taken over months, clears chronic eczema tied to depletion.
Acne & breakoutsTLC
A long-term alterative for breakout-prone skin.
Postpartum recoveryTLC
Rebuilds iron and minerals after birth and backs up a new milk supply.

Preparations

A long infusion of the leaf, cooked spring greens, freeze-dried capsules, and root decoction.

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Cautions

Nettle dries; pair it with a moistening herb such as marshmallow, violet, or linden if you run dry.
Harvest before flowering, while the tops are young.
Rich in vitamin K, which works against warfarin; it can also add to blood pressure and diuretic medications. Check with your prescriber.
Wear gloves to harvest fresh plants.

Medication interactions

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Pregnancy & breastfeeding

PregnancyAs food and tea

Cooked nettle is one of the most nourishing spring foods and a traditional pregnancy food across Europe. Leaf tea at everyday amounts is widely used; save concentrated extracts, and the root, for after pregnancy.

BreastfeedingTraditional milk support

A traditional galactagogue, low risk in food and tea amounts.

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Folklore

Urtica comes from the Latin urere, to burn. Across northern Europe people spun nettle stalks into cord, fishing net, and fine cloth, and a Bronze Age burial in Denmark was wrapped in nettle fabric. In Hans Christian Andersen's The Wild Swans, Elisa knits shirts from churchyard nettles in silence to free her eleven brothers. Tibetan tradition holds that the yogi Milarepa lived on nettle soup in his cave until his skin turned green.

How to grow

A spreading perennial for rich, moist ground in sun or part shade. Give it a bed of its own or a large container, since the roots travel. Cut it to the ground in early summer for a second crop of tender tops. Red admiral and peacock butterflies lay their eggs on it.

In the wild

Rich, disturbed soil along streams, woodland clearings, and old farmyards across Europe, Asia, northern Africa, and North America. Harvest the top few inches of young plants, away from roadsides and sprayed fields.

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