Solomon's Seal
Parts Usually Used
Root, rhizome
Description of Plant(s) and Culture
Solomon’s seal is a perennial plant; the thick, horizontal, scarred rootstock produces 1 or 2 erect stems, 1-3 feet high, whose lower half is naked and upper half leafy. The alternate, elliptic to ovate leaves are green with a whitish bloom underneath. 2 to 5 or more greenish-white, bell-shaped flowers hang from the leaf axils from April to August. The fruit is a blue or blue-black berry.
Another variety: Other species of Solomon’s seal have similar properties. A European variety (P. odoratum) contains a substance that lowers the level of blood sugar. This variety has long been used in the Orient for diabetes and is included in many tea mixtures designed to lower blood sugar.
Where Found
Grows in rich woods and thickets in eastern North America, Europe, and Asia. Connecticut to Florida; Texas, Nebraska to Michigan.
Medicinal Properties
Antispasmodic, antibacterial, aphrodisiac, astringent, demulcent, emetic, expectorant, hemostatic, nutritive tonic
Biochemical Information
Convallarin, aspargin, gum, sugar, starch, pectin
Legends, Myths and Stories
Solomon’s seal was so called probably from starlike markings on the rootstock, supposedly reminding us of the Star of David. Another herb (Smilacina amplexicaulis) is known as Solomon’s seal. Paiute name “Shapui”; Shoshone name “Roy”; The tea from roots for female trouble and internal pains. Solomon’s seal is reported to take away, in 1 or 2 nights, bruises, black eyes, burning heat of wounds, etc.
Also, it will strengthen gums and fasten loosened teeth.
Uses
Historically, herbalists applied this plant primarily for external complaints, preparing it as a poultice for bruises, inflammation, hemorrhoids, sores, and wounds, or as a wash for skin irritations, acne, freckles, blemishes, and poison ivy. Native American traditions utilized a tea brewed from the rootstock for indigestion, general debility, dry coughs, lung ailments, internal pain, and to encourage sleep, as well as for reproductive concerns, menopause, and as a laxative.
They also employed the fresh root as a poultice or the root tea as a wash for cuts, bruises, sores, rheumatism, and arthritis. Western herbal traditions historically administered the plant to aid the healing of broken bones. In Ayurveda, it was regarded as a kidney tonic and believed to support reproductive fluids. In traditional Chinese medicine, it was utilized as a tonic for the heart.
Bibliography
, Loma Linda, CA 92354, Original copyright 1939, revised edition 1994 American Folk Medicine , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, 1973 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) Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants , by Steven Foster and James A.
, Pantheon Books, Knopf Publishing Group, New York, 1994, first edition The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974. , 180 Varick Street, New York, NY 10014, first printed by the United States Government Printing Office, Washington, in 1928, this Dover edition 1974 Indian Herbalogy of North America , by Alma R. , Lotus Press, PO Box 325, Twin Lakes.
, 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023 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 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