Balmony
Parts Usually Used
Leaves
Description of Plant(s) and Culture
Balmony is an herbaceous perennial plant; its simple, erect, square stem reaches 1-3 feet high. Opposite, short-petioled, shiny leaves are dark green, pointed, are serrate and oblong-lanceolate in shape. Bloom from July to September, the white flowers are often tinged with pink or magenta, grow in dense clusters, terminal or axillary spikes. The two-lipped corolla of the flower somewhat resembles a turtle’s head, upper lip arching.
The fruit is an ovoid capsule.
Where Found
Found in wet ground from Newfoundland to Florida and westward to Minnesota, Kansas, and Texas.
Medicinal Properties
Anthelmintic, antibilious, aperient, cholagogue, stimulant, tonic
Uses
Historically, herbalists recommended this plant for weak digestion, constipation, poor appetite, general debility, and a sluggish liver, as well as a general tonic during convalescence. External preparations, including ointments, were traditionally applied to soothe sores, ulcers, inflamed breasts, eczema, and the discomfort associated with hemorrhoids.
Bibliography
, Loma Linda, CA 92354, Original copyright 1939, revised edition 1994 Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants , by Steven Foster and James A. , Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10000 Indian Herbalogy of North America , by Alma R. , Horticultural Hall, 300 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, 1973 The Herbalist Almanac , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, copyright 1988, fifth printing, 1994 Old Ways Rediscovered , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, published from 1954, print 1988 The Yoga of Herbs: An Ayurvedic Guide to Herbal Medicine , by Dr.
David Frawley & Dr. Vasant Lad, Lotus Press, Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, Second edition, 1988. The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974.