Nettle in, Dock out
By Chelsie Vandaveer
June 12, 2003
killerPlants Tendrils: ~~1~~2~~3~~4~~5
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To anthropomorphize: nettles are antisocial plants, vindictive in the extreme. Nettles (genus Urtica) comprise about fifty species distributed over the world. The plants are monoecious (pistillate and staminate flowers borne on the same plant) or dioecious (pistillate and staminate
flowers borne on separate plants).
The flowers do not entice pollinators to visit. Each of the male flowers has four stamens. When the pollen is ripe, the anthers explode. The cloud of pollen is cast to the wind, left to chance upon the pistils. Even the pollen is spiteful; it is listed as an aeroallergen causing allergic rhinitis to bronchial asthma. (Medical Botany: Plants affecting Man's Health, Lewis and Elvin-Lewis, Wiley and Sons, 1977)
Nettles are best known for their urticating trichomes, the thousands of tiny 'hairs' that cover the leaves and stems. In most plants, trichomes simply discourage insects or larger animals from chewing on the leaves. Nettle
trichomes are designed to drive home a lesson.
The urticating trichome is an extension of the epidermal tissue. As it grows from the surface of the leaf or stem, silica is laid down in the cell walls. At maturity, the trichome is essentially a tiny fragile hollow glass tube closed at the tip. It sits on a pedestal of cells that manufacture a blend of histamine, acetylcholine, and serotonin.
The lightest touch snaps the tip from the trichome. The broken point enters the skin and injects the soup of vasodilator and neurotransmitters. The pain is equivalent to a wasp sting; many trichomes, many wasp stings. ("Urtica chamaedryoides Pursh: a Sting Nettle, or Fireweed and Some Related Species", Nancy C. Coile, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Botany Circular No. 34, 1999)
Relief from nettles is often close. Mrs. Grieve (A Modern Herbal) related the folkloric remedy for nettle stings: "Nettle in, dock out. Dock rub nettle out"--rubbing the affected area with clean dock leaves (Rumex species). Lewis and Elvin-Lewis (Medical Botany) offered the same advice, "The stinging rash obtained from brushing against stinging nettles (Urtica spp.) is best treated by Rumex spp. juice, which often is found growing nearby."
The Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida has five photographs of heartleaf nettle (Urtica chamaedryoides Pursh). To view the photographs, click on the link:
http://www.plantatlas.usf.edu/main.asp?plantID=3889
Click on the "Images" tab, then on the thumbnails to enlarge the images. Note the urticating trichomes on the leaves and stems.
The Atlas also has photographs of bitter dock (Rumex obtusifolius Linnaeus), a dock native to Europe and recommended by Mrs. Grieve to treat nettle rash. To view the photographs, click on the link:
http://www.plantatlas.usf.edu/main.asp?plantID=1928
Click on the "Images" tab, then on the thumbnails to enlarge the images.
To view other species of Rumex or Urtica, use the search box on the left side of the window. Type in the genus and hit "GO". The program will bring up a listing of the species. Click on the individual species for more information and images.
killerPlants Tendrils: ~~1~~2~~3~~4~~5
Suggested Reading:
What was nettle cloth? Plants that Changed History - June 10, 2003
Nettle in, Dock out Weird Plants - June 12, 2003
Why were hops added to beer? Weird Plants - December 12, 2002
What herbs prevented evil on Midsummer's Eve? Herbal Folklore - June 24, 2002
How did flax preserve history? Plants that Changed History - April 29, 2003
What is lint? What's in a Name? - April 25, 2003
What does flax need to create fine fibers? Weird Plants - April 24, 2003
How did flax revolutionize clothing? Plants that Changed History - April 22, 2003
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Wollemi Pine
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Exclusively from National Geographic, this survivor from the age of the dinosaurs is one of the greatest living fossils discovered in the 20th century. The Wollemi pine is one of the world's oldest and rarest tree species, belonging to a 200-million-year-old plant family thought to have been extinct for more than two million years.
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You can assist in the conservation effort and enjoy the unique opportunity to ensure the continued survival of this rare species by giving the tree as a gift or growing your own. Suitable for indoor container gardening or as a landscape tree in certain areas of the U.S.
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