← All plantsUsnea
Usnea spp.
Also: Old man's beard, Beard lichen, Song luo
CoolingDryingTonifyingHarvest with care
A lichen that fights stubborn bacterial infections.
A pale green, hair-like lichen that hangs from branches in clean, damp air. Pull a strand gently and the outer sheath parts to show a stretchy white core, the mark of true usnea. Usnea is antibacterial and antifungal, used for sore throats, small wounds, and infections of the bladder and vagina.
- Energetics
- Cooling, drying, toning
- Taste
- Bland, slightly bitter
- Family
- Parmeliaceae (a lichen: fungus and alga together)
- Parts used
- Whole lichen
Medicinal uses 4
The tags sort the evidence behind each use by kind. Members are able to tap a condition to compare every herb for it.
TTraditional useLLab and mechanism studiesCClinical studies
Gargled or sprayed, it fights the bacteria behind a sore throat; its usnic acid kills streptococci and staphylococci in lab studies.
As a powder or diluted wash, keeps small wounds from turning septic; dried usnea has long served as a wound dressing.
A traditional part of formulas for bladder infections.
Diluted as a wash or sitz bath, it works against the yeast and bacteria behind vaginal infections.
Preparations
Tincture by double extraction, gargles, washes and sitz baths, and wound powder.
Members are able to see the amounts, ratios, and methods for each preparation, search by condition, and match herbs to your constitution.
Cautions
- Pure usnic acid sold in weight-loss pills has caused severe liver damage. Use the whole lichen in short courses, and leave it out with liver disease.
- A sore throat with high fever, white patches on swollen tonsils, or trouble swallowing needs a strep test.
- Gather it only from fallen branches; it grows slowly and needs clean air.
Sourcing
Usnea grows slowly and only in clean air. Gather it from branches already brought down by wind rather than stripping living trees.
Medication interactions
Practitioner Practitioners are able to see the one type of medicine flagged for usnea, each with the mechanism and what to do. The plain-language cautions above stay open to everyone.
Pregnancy & breastfeeding
PregnancyAvoid by mouth
Usnea has not been studied in pregnancy, and usnic acid can strain the liver, so it stays out of pregnancy by mouth. Ask your midwife about external washes.
BreastfeedingAvoid by mouth
Little is known about usnic acid in breast milk; internal use waits until after weaning.
Folklore
Usnea is not one organism but a partnership: a fungus that houses green algae, which feed it by photosynthesis. In 1844 chemists isolated usnic acid, which became one of the most studied lichen compounds, and it now preserves some toothpastes, deodorants, and creams. In Chinese medicine it is song luo, given for coughs and skin sores. Usnea grows only where the air is clean, and lichenologists read it as a sign of good air.
How to grow
It cannot be cultivated. Usnea grows slowly on the bark and twigs of conifers and hardwoods in clean, humid air. Gather it from branches brought down by wind.
In the wild
Temperate and boreal forests worldwide, thickest in foggy coastal and mountain forests such as those of the Pacific Northwest.
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