Medicinal Herb InfoA reference archive of plants and their traditions
Not medical advice. This site documents how plants have been described and used historically. It is a botanical and folklore reference, not guidance for treating illness, and it carries no dosing instructions. Talk to a doctor or pharmacist before using any plant medicinally — herbs interact with medication and some are toxic.

Home › Herb index › Cat’s Foot

Cat’s Foot

Botanical reference entry

On this page

Parts Usually Used

Flowering herb

Description of Plant(s) and Culture

Cat’s foot is a small perennial plant; its woolly stem grows 3-8 inches above the ground and bears linear-oblanceolate leaves, whereas the basal leaves are spatulate. The flowers grow in cymose clusters, the white male flowers having a filiform corolla, the rose-colored female flowers a tubular, 5-toothed corolla. Blooms May to August.

Where Found

Grows in large patches in the mountains of the Pacific coast states and in both mountains and flatlands of Europe.

Medicinal Properties

Cholagogue

Legends, Myths and Stories

Ground Ivy (Glecoma hederacea) is often called Cat’s Foot.

Uses

Historically, herbalists recommended this plant for chronic biliary passage complaints, to stimulate digestion, and to raise blood pressure. It was also occasionally suggested in traditional practice for dysentery, though historical texts noted other remedies were preferred.

Bibliography

Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants , by Steven Foster and James A. , Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10000 The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974. Indian Herbalogy of North America , by Alma R. , 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023 The Rodale Herb Book: How to Use, Grow, and Buy Nature’s Miracle Plants (An Organic gardening and farming book) , edited by William H.

Hylton, Rodale Press, Inc. , 1974