Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica) has traditionally been used as a Spring tonic, and in this video I show you just how easy it is to make a nourishing Nettle infusion.
Last week I went on a two-day Nettle infusion fast. Now I’ve fasted numerous times over the years, but using Nettle infusion was one of the most enjoyable ways to do one. Plus minor skin irritations cleared up within hours of starting it, and my skin became super soft.
Don’t worry I’m not suggesting you fast on this ‘green nectar’, but as a Spring tonic just consume 2-3 cups a day for seven days, and then drink a cup a day for as long as your body tells you it needs it.
Oh, and if the taste is a little earthy for you, you can always serve it with a little local honey, or a slice of lemon. Personally I love it as it is.
So folks, it’s time to blow out the cobwebs of the past seasonal over-indulgences, and re-energise yourself with this nourishing Nettle infusion.
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{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi,
I have often made ‘tea’ using Nettles.
I have never made an infusion.
I will be following the instructions given in the video and making an infusion.
I would like to know, how long ,once it’s made will it keep for ?
I am really enjoying the videos and general information i recieve in the
‘Eat Weeds’ news letters.
Thank you all. Best Wishes. Peter.
Greetings Peter! Sorry about that, obviously I left that important bit of information out, thanks for pointing it out
You need to drink your herbal infusion within 48 hours. If you have some left over, try watering your plants with it, or put it in your compost bin, and with Nettle infusions it’s also great as a hair rinse!
Where is the actual infusion recipe?
sorry – just found the video. Am going out into the hedgerows now. Many thanks!
hi,just watched your video on the nettle infusion ,do you know the stings of the nettle does that not come off into the infusion for when you drink it .
Phyllis: The nettle stings are completely removed as soon as any heat is applied to the plant.
Hi, thanks for the video demonstration. I’ve been looking into the health benefits of nettles recently and am convinced they ill form an essential part of our diet from now on. Especially as they are free!
Hi, it’s now May so could you please tell me whether it is too late to pick nettles now to make some of this infusion? I would like to make some for myself and also I have a 9 year old son who is sufferring from Hayfever and I’ve heard that nettles are good for this?
Helen: Nettles are fine here in East Devon. Just make sure that they haven’t started flowering.
Nettles Cure Hayfever? Apparently only one study has been done, and that was back in the 1990′s, and it hasn’t been repeated. Here’s the data… “In a 1990 randomized, double-blind clinical study reported in Planta Medica: Journal of Medicinal Plant Research, researchers noted that freeze-dried stinging nettles relieved allergy symptoms in over half of the participating patients. Indeed, 58% of the participants taking two 300 mg capsules of freeze-dried Urtica dioica for one week experienced reduced symptoms of seasonal allergic rhinitis. (Planta Medica 1990 (56):44-47)~”
I’ve read a few herbalism books and they agree that even though no others studies have been carried out, that it is perfectly reasonable to see why people give stinging nettles credibility for helping hayfever sufferers. Why? For centuries, cultures around the world have used nettles to treat nasal and respiratory problems. E.g. Coughs, runny nose, chest congestion etc.
Thank you for taking the time to make the video!
We have a 100-acre farm, in the midwestern part of the USA, and believe it or not, there are no nettles here! So I got some seeds and planted them in my garden. I’ve been using the leaves all year round, and just before the snow flew, gathered as many off of my few plants as I could, put into a high-speed blender (Vita-Mix), with a little water and blended them. I then put into glass jars and froze them.
All summer, I used them fresh in smoothies. So I eat them raw. Is there any advantage to heating? I would think vitamins would be destroyed, but not minerals so much.
Thanks again,
Mary Kay, Ohio, USA
Mary Kay: That depends on your dietary philosophy. I eat more raw food in warmer months, and cooked food in colder months. I was also a raw food vegan for 5 years back in the 1980′s. I encourage people to throw away their diet books and all the diet fads and gurus, and tune into their ‘body wisdom’. We are all bioindividuals, and there is no such thing as one diet suits all. That’s called dietary fascism.