Meadowsweet Meadwort Filipendula ulmaria
Latin: Filipendula ulmaria (previously known as Spiraea ulmaria)
Also Known As: Queen of the Meadow, Bridewort, Little Queen, Gravel Root, Trumpet Weed, Lady of the Meadow, Steeplebush, Bride of the Meadow, Meadsweet, Mead Wort, Pride of the Meadow, Meadow Maid, Honeysweet, Dollor, Meadow Wort, Bridgewort, Dollof, Lace-Makers-Herb
>>Actions and Indications: Culpeper is of the opinion that the herb is used to dry the body out, and that it can stop bleeding, diarrhoea, vomiting and excessive menstruation. He also reckons that it can be used to 'make a merry heart', and comments that the leaf or flower can be added to claret wine for this purpose. If this mix is drunk warm with some honey added, it can relieve constipation, but drunk cold, it stops diarrhoea. Externally he states that it can be used to treat sores, cankers and fistulas, and the distilled water can be used to treat heat and inflammatory conditions in the eyes (one can assume he possibly means conjunctivitis.)
By contrast, Gerard does not have a great deal to say about the herb, although he does clarify Culpeper's comment regarding the eyes, mentioning that the flower water relieves burning and itching and clears the sight. He mentions that Meadowsweet is an excellent strewing herb, and that the scent of the flower gladdens the heart.
Modern authors list a plethora of uses for this plant, in particular for the ease and relief of gastro-intestinal problems such as gastric and peptic ulcers, acid reflux, dyspepsia, diarrhoea, liver disorders and related digestive upsets. The herb is an aromatic stomachic and tonic, although very astringent. It is well recommended for digestive upsets related to overproduction of mucous � the same can be said of urinary disorders. As the herb is a painkiller and anti inflammatory, it can be used to relieve the pain of arthritic conditions, sciatica, gout, tendonitis, influenza and joint aches.
It can also be used to treat prostatic enlargement and some urinary disorders such as cystitis and reddish deposits in the urine, in particular where this is accompanied by an oily film on the urine, as well as to treat urinary stones. Meadowsweet is a strong diuretic and urinary antiseptic.
The plant's immunostimulant action works through the herb's liver tonic and digestive stimulant actions. The flowers can be used fresh or dried as a diaphoretic, as well as sometimes being helpful with the management of weight gain when this is due to problems with fat metabolism and storage. I'd probably combine it with Dandelion root in this sort of circumstance.<<
http://www.eldrumherbs.co.uk/content/content_files/profiles_meadowsweet_filipendula-ulmaria.php?state=1
Meadowsweet was one of the three holiest medicinal herbs of the Druids
https://www.herbal-supplement-resource.com/meadowsweet-filipendula-ulmaria.html?fbclid=IwAR27iCmnvvSqJsN1VwsN3L9ox_21E51X_LtJZZxBv_bHhdSkgrgOP8cSea4
In Chaucer’s The Knight’s Tale, meadowsweet is known as Meadwort and was one of fifty ingredients in a drink called ‘Save’–must have been an amazing cure-all. The name Bridewort comes from its use as a strewing herb in churches at weddings and often as a bridal garland. Queen Elizabeth 1 favored meadowsweet as her choicest strewing herb in the sixteenth century, but its use far predates the queen.
Meadowsweet pollen was found in a stone cairn alongside the cremated remains of a young girl above Lake Llyn-y-Fan Fach that lies below the Peak of Black Mountain in Wales. Pottery and flint tools were also discovered with her. Probably no connection, but an ancient legend says a mysterious beautiful lady came out of the waters of Llyn-y-Fan Fach and taught the first of the Physicians about the healing power of plants. They are called The Physicians of Myddfai, and make their first appearance in the Middle Ages. The last of their line died out in the 1800’s, when the story of The Lady of the Lake was first recorded. According to the Lady of the Lake and the Physicians of Myddfai, it’s possible that the Carmarthenshire village of Myddfai may be the birthplace of modern medicine. The legend says this dynasty of herbalists lived and worked there in the 11th and 12th centuries, and some say with magical powers. For more, check out the link above.
https://bethtrissel.wordpress.com/2017/04/03/meadowsweet-fascinating-herbal-lore/
In Irish mythology, Cú Chulainn, the warlike hero of the Ulster Cycle, is said to have used meadowsweet baths to calm his rages and fevers and in Wales, the beauteous but adulterous Blodeuwedd, was made by two magicians from the flowers of oak, broom and meadowsweet.
https://whisperingearth.co.uk/2012/07/06/meadowsweet-queen-of-the-meadow-queen-of-the-ditch/
https://www.druidry.org//druid-way/teaching-and-practice/druid-plant-lore
Strewing herbs are certain kinds of plants that are scattered (strewn) over the floors of dwelling places and other buildings. Such plants usually have fragrant or astringent smells, and many also serve as insecticides or disinfectants.
Meadowsweet is a tall, stout, fragrant, perennial herb, native to Europe and Asia, found in damp meadows and moist banks, naturalized in North America as an escape from cultivation, now found wild from Newfoundland and eastern Quebec to Nova Scotia, New England, New Jersey, New York, West Virginia, and as far west as Ohio (Grieve, 1979; HPUS, 1992; Lust, 1974).The material of commerce is obtained from Poland, Bulgaria, the former Yugoslavia, and the United Kingdom (BHP, 1996; Wichtl and Bisset, 1994).
Meadowsweet was one of the three most sacred herbs used by ancient Celtic Druid priests. It is mentioned in the Knight's Tale by Geoffrey Chaucer (fourteenth century C.E.), and described in old European herbals, including those of John Gerard (The Herball, 1597) and Nicholas Culpepper (The English Physitian, 1652). The analgesic substance salicin was first isolated from meadowsweet leaves in 1827. Salicylic acid was made in 1838, and synthesized in 1859, which provided the basis for acetylsalicylic acid, first produced in 1899. The word aspirin owes its origin to meadowsweet's former genus name Spiraea, having been coined from 'a' (for acetyl) and 'spirin' (from Spiraea) (Bown, 1995; Duke, 1985; Grieve, 1979). Meadowsweet's traditional use in Britain eventually spread to India where it is now used somewhat in Ayurvedic medicine. Meadowsweet is official in the French Pharmacopoeia and also monographed in the Ayurvedic pharmacopoeia, the British Herbal Pharmacopoeia and British HerbalCompendium,the Commission E monographs, and the German Standard Licenses (BAnz, 1998; Bradley, 1992; Braun et al., 1997; Karnick, 1994; Ph.Fr.X, 1990; Wichtl and Bisset, 1994). The Ayurvedic pharmacopoeia specifically indicates its use for prophylaxis and treatment of peptic ulcer and for rheumatic muscle and joint pains (Karnick, 1994).
In Germany,meadowsweetis licensed as a standard medicinal tea, approved in the Commission E monographs, and used for feverish common colds for which a sweat treatment is desired.The Commission E specifies a tea infusion dosage form and it appears as a component of some influenza, rheumatism, and kidney-bladder compound herbal tea drugs (BAnz, 1998;Braun et al., 1997; Meyer-Buchtela, 1999;Wichtl and Bisset, 1994).In German pediatric medicine, meadowsweet is an antipyretic and diaphoretic component of an effective influenza tea combined with willow bark, tilia flower, chamomile flower, and orange peel (Schilcher, 1997). The American Herbal Products Association gives it a Class 1 rating (herbs that can be safely consumed when used appropriately) (McGuffin et al., 1997). It is not commonly found in consumer products in the U.S. market, though medical herbalists and naturopaths include it in some prescribed formulas.
The approved modern therapeutic applications for meadowsweet are supportable based on its history of use in well established systems of traditional medicine, phytochemical investigations, and pharmacological studies in animals.
Pharmacopeial grade meadowsweet must be composed of the driedaerial (aboveground) parts (flower, leaf, and stem), collected when the plant is in bloom. Botanical identity must be confirmed by thin-layer chromatography (TLC) as well as by macroscopic andmicroscopic examinations and organoleptic evaluation.It must contain not less than12% water-soluble extractive, among other quantitative standards (BHP, 1996).The German Standard License monograph requires the dried flower as opposed to the dried aerial parts. A test for absence of known adulterants (e.g., elder flower) is also required among other purity tests. The Standard License includes specific packaging requirements for shelf-life stability and indications for use, dosage, and mode of administration (Braun et al., 1997).
Description
Meadowsweet flower consists of the dried flower of Filipendula ulmaria (L.) Maximowicz (syn. Spiraea ulmaria L.) [Fam. Rosaceae] and its preparations in effective dosage. Meadowsweet herb consists of the dried, above-ground parts of F. ulmaria (L.) Maximowicz, harvested during flowering season, and its preparations in effective dosage. The preparation contains flavonoids, essential oil, and, mainly in the flowers, phenol glycosides.
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