Lovage
Parts Usually Used
Rootstock, seed
Description of Plant(s) and Culture
The short, thick rootstock produces a round, hollow stem 3 to 6 feet high and branched near the top. The leaves vary from long-petioled and decompound, with incised, ovate leaflets, to sessite and simple near the top. The small, pale yellow flowers grow in compound umbels from June to August. The whole plant has a strong, aromatic odor.
Where Found
Found wild in southern Europe and Asia Minor but widely cultivated all over the continent.
Medicinal Properties
Carminative, emmenagogue (starts flow of menstruation), diuretic, expectorant, stimulant, stomachic, tonic
Biochemical Information
Essential oil with phthalidene, terpineol, carvacrol, isoveleric acid, coumarin, angelic acid, malic and benzoic acid, resin, starch, and sugar.
Legends, Myths and Stories
The roots of lovage add an aged-like essence to cordials, gin and bitters when properly used. The old timers say that lovage is rubbed over the bait, any kind of fish bait, that as long as there are fish within yards of the hook, you will be pulling them in.
Uses
Historically, herbalists utilized lovage as a diuretic for fluid retention and urinary difficulties, as well as to address bloating, flatulence, gastric catarrh, and poor appetite. Traditional practitioners also employed the plant to promote perspiration and to counteract colds and flu. In folk tradition, decoctions of lovage were added to bath water for skin complaints, applied topically to address boils, freckles, and age spots, or dropped into the eyes to target redness and dimness.
Warning
In excessive doses, lovage can cause kidney damage; this herb should not be used by those with kidney problems. Lovage promotes the onset of menstruation and should not be used by pregnant women.
Bibliography
The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974. Old Ways Rediscovered , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, published from 1954, print 1988 The Complete Medicinal Herbal , by Penelope Ody, Dorling Kindersley, Inc, 232 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, First American Edition, copyright 1993 Culpeper’s Complete Herbal & English Physician: Updated With 117 Modern Herbs , by Nicholas Culpeper, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, 1990, (reprint of 1814) The Nature Doctor: A Manual of Traditional and Complementary Medicine , by Dr.
A. , 27 Pine Street (Box 876) New Canaan, CT. 06840-0876. Copyright Verlag A. , Lotus Press, PO Box 325, Twin Lakes. , Copyright 1988, published 1992 American Folk Medicine , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, 1973 Taber’s Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary , 15th Edition, F. A. , 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