Restharrow

Botanical reference entry

On this page

Parts Usually Used
Description of Plant(s) and Culture
Where Found
Medicinal Properties
Uses
Bibliography

Parts Usually Used

Root

Description of Plant(s) and Culture

Restharrow is a shrubby perennial plant; the plant’s deep, sinuous roots produce spiny, much-branched stems which are woody at the base and which grow from 1 to 2 feet high. The alternate leaves are simple near the top and pinnate near the bottom, with 3 serrate, oblong leaflets. The rose-colored or white, papilionaceous (butterfly-shaped) flowers grow singly or in twos and threes in the leaf axils from June to August.

The fruit is an ovate, hairy pod.

Where Found

It is fairly common in dry meadows, pastures, fallow land, and limestone soils in Europe and sometimes cultivated as a garden plant in the United States.

Medicinal Properties

Aperient, diuretic, expectorant, metabolic stimulant, sedative

Uses

Historically, herbalists primarily valued this plant as a diuretic, believing it could address water retention and edema without unwanted side effects. Traditional practitioners recommended it for individuals prone to gravel and stones, attributing this to its supposed action against uric acid retention. It was also employed historically for kidney inflammations, urinary catarrh, and rheumatism.

Additionally, external washes made from a decoction of the roots were traditionally applied for eczema, itching, and various skin conditions.

Bibliography

The Complete Medicinal Herbal , by Penelope Ody, Dorling Kindersley, Inc, 232 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, First American Edition, copyright 1993 The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974. The Nature Doctor: A Manual of Traditional and Complementary Medicine , by Dr. A. , 27 Pine Street (Box 876) New Canaan, CT. 06840-0876.