Low Cudweed

About 150 species of annuals and perennials belong to this cosmopolitan genus, which is closely related to Anaphalis. Few have little to reccommend them as garden plants, though some New Zealand species are sought after by alpine enthusiasts. According to Culpeper, " the juice of the herb taken with wine and milk, is, as Pliny saith, a sovereign remedy against the mumps and quinsey" (The English Physician Enlarged, 1653). The American Gnaphalium obtusifolium (sweet everlasting) was similarly used by the Creek people, who boiled the leaves in water, added lard, and then wrapped cloths soaked in the liquid around the swollen neck. Others include G. polycephalum, and Indian remedy for mouth ulcers, and G multiceps, a Chinese cough cure. Gnaphalium come from the Greek gnaphalion, "soft down", and refers to the woolly foliage.

Wooly annual with spreading stems and silver-gray, stalkless leaves to 5cm (2in) long. Tiny yellow-brown flowers are borne in dense, terminal clusters in summer.


Common Name:
Low cudweed
Other Names:
Marsh cudweed, cottonweed
Botanical Name:
Gnaphalium uliginosum syn. Filaginella uliginosa
Genus:
Gnaphalium
Family:
Asteraceae
Native Location:
Europe, W Asia, N America
Cultivation:
Moist to wet, acid soil in sun or partial shade.
Propagation:
By seed sown in spring.
Harvest:
Plants are cut when in flower and dried for infusions, liquid extracts, and tinctures.
Height:
4-20cm (1½-8in)
Width:
20cm (8in)
Hardiness:
Hardy
Parts Used:
Whole plant
Properties:
An astringent, antiseptic, slightly aromatic herb that is diuretic, anti-inflammatory, resolves excess mucus, and increases perspiration. May have anti-depressant and aphrodisiac effects.
Medicinal Uses:
Internally and externally for laryngitis, upper respiratory mucus, and tosilitis. Combined with Sambucus nigra (See, common elder), Xanthium strumarium, (See, cocklebur), or Solidago virgaurea, (See, goldenrod) for catarrh, and with Echinacea purpurea (See, purple coneflower) or Galium aparine (See, goosegrass) for throat infections.
Bibliography:
Encylopedia of Herbs by Deni Brown Copyright ©: 1995, 2001 Dorling Kindersley Limited pg. 227