Goldenrod Love

Goldenrod (Solidago spp.) is the common name for an extensive family of plants with over 100 species worldwide.  In our state alone there are a dozen or more varieties (see CT Botanical Society web pages), many of which can be found in our back yards.  That is of course if one allows them to be there.  Goldenrods have been aggressively removed from gardens and yards for a very long time, considered a noxious weed and a source of fall allergies.  I hope to dissuade the readers from those sentiments.

Let us clarify immediately the issue of hay fever for which Goldenrod is blamed both through folklore and inferential advertising.  I have seen more than one allergy medicine advertisement on the TV showing a person in a field of goldenrod.  However, for the most part the real culprit is Ragweed, Ambrosia artemisiifolia.  Ragweed has green flowers that send pollen into the air in masses of fine powdery dust. It does this at the same time goldenrod is flowering. Many people mistakenly think the goldenrod is to blame for their allergies but it is really the ragweed lurking below and nearby. Goldenrod pollen is large and sticky and is distributed by pollinators more often than not. Unless a bee gets up your nose, you are unlikely to have a hay fever reaction to this yellow beauty. Don't believe me? Check out the University of Michigan Extension website for a thorough article.

Goldenrod most certainly is aggressive, especially our most common and medicinal Solidago canadensis.  It does spread readily through rhizomes and will take over a garden or lawn area if not kept in check.  That does make it a plant for the very active gardener who is willing to edit beds regularly.  Funnily enough, it is considered an invasive in Russia and China, where it is a “non-native” taking over native space.  Personally, it is by far one of my favorite plants and I move it around frequently to keep it in check. 

My first experience with Goldenrod was when I was an active spinner/weaver.  I gathered it to make a natural dye for my wool, creating lovely yellow/green shades.  I was deterred from my first attempt at wildcrafting by the webs of hundreds of full grown yellow and black garden spiders (Argiope aurantia) guarding a large patch.  I believe I left terrorized and screaming.  It took me years to appreciate both the spiders and goldenrod the way I do today.

In addition to being a spectacular cut flower, used worldwide, Goldenrod is a versatile plant medicine.  References are often to the Solidago canadensis and odora, but it is generally thought that all Goldenrods will have similar actions.  These include but are not limited to; anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, antibacterial, diuretic, antispasmodic, diaphoretic, and vulnerary.  All parts of the plant can be utilized.  The fresh or dried tops as tea/infusion can be used hot, with honey, to counter allergies (especially pollen allergies), fevers, sore throats, coughs, colds and the flu.  The same tea can be used to clean wounds as an antiseptic.  Many herbalists recommend it as a remedy for cat allergies.

Alcohol and vinegar extracts can be made with the flowering tops as well as the root.  Susun Weed likes to tincture the entire plant.  She makes a Goldenrod vinegar with all parts to improve mineral balance, help prevent kidney stones, eliminate flatulence, and improve immune functioning.  Likewise, Susun makes a tincture with 50% alcohol to treat kidney problems -- including nephritis, hemorrhage, kidney stones, difficulty voiding, and prostate problems, including frequent urination.

Matthew Wood, in his Book of Herbal Wisdom, reminds us that the name Solidago comes from the Latin solidus plus agere, which translates into “causes to solidify”, with a historic use in healing wounds from as far back as the Middle Ages.  Additionally, his recounting of history shows its continual use to aid in the healing of the kidneys.  His chapter on Goldenrod is fun and informative reading.  In general Wood puts Goldenrod in the same category as many other “multi-purpose” healers such as Prunella vulgaris and Glechoma hederacea.

Likewise, historical reference books on the use of Solidago for medicine include Charlotte Erichse-Brown’s, Medicinal and Other Uses of North American Plants where she documents the same wide range of uses for Solidago species among Native Americans and early settlers.  Notable is that there are no references to side effects or negative reactions.  Rico Cech identifies it as a “safe for general use” in his chapter on Goldenrod in Making Plant Medicine.

I will use Solidago as a tea or tincture to aid the immune system in fighting off seasonal infections and reducing the discomfort of a fever.   I will probably add it to other herbs depending on the presenting symptoms.  I have made both simple tinctures of alcohol and vinegar, dried the flowers and leaves and will dry the root in the fall.  This article is only an introduction and I will report back after my year of use and further research.  I encourage all of us to use what is around us and limit the use of popular exotics or endangered species.

References:

Wood, M.: The Book of Herbal Wisdom: Using Plants as Medicines, 1997: North Atlantic Books

Uva, R., et.al.:Weeds of the Northeast, 1997: Comstock Publishing Associates

Erichsen-Brown, C.: Medicinal and Other Uses of North American Plants: A Historical Survey with Special References to the Eastern Indian Tribes, 1979: Dover Publications

Cech, R.: Making Plant Medicine, 2000: Horizon Herbs

http://www.susunweed.com/Article_Glorious-Goldenrod.htm

https://www.ct-botanical-society.org/Plants/view/571

https://www.extension.umn.edu/garden/yard-garden/weeds/goldenrod-and-ragweed