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Lamium album

Common name: White Dead Nettle Family: Labiatae
Author: L. Botanical references: 17, 200
Synonyms:  
Known Hazards: None known
Range: Europe, including Britain, from Scandanavia south and east to Spain, the Himalayas and Japan.
Habitat: Fields, hedgerows, woodland edges and clearings and moist waste ground[7, 9, 17].
Edibility Rating (1-5): 2Medicinal Rating (1-5):3

Other Common Names:From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
Beyaz Ballibaba [E], Deadnettle [E], Hsu Tuan [E], Ortiga Muerta [E], Snowflake [B], White Dead-nettle [L], White Deadnettle [H,MS,P], Witte Dovenetel [D],
Epithets:From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
album = white;
Systematics:From a USDA Plants Database
Order: Lamiales. Renamed to Lamiaceae -- Mint family
Other Range Info: From the Ethnobotany Database
China; Europe; Spain; Turkey

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.6m by 1m . It is hardy to zone 4 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from May to December, and the seeds ripen from July to December. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees. It is noted for attracting wildlife. We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 3/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, requires well-drained soil and can grow in heavy clay soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Meadow, Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade, Shady Edge, Ground Cover.

Edible Uses

Leaves; Tea.

Young leaves - raw or cooked[2, 5, 7, 13, 54]. They can be added to salads or mixed with other leaves and cooked as a potherb[183]. They can also be dried for later use[12]. The leaves are a good source of vitamin A[240].
A pleasant herb tea is made from the flowers[238].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Antispasmodic; Astringent; Cancer; Cholagogue; Depurative; Diuretic; Expectorant; Homeopathy; Hypnotic; Ophthalmic; Pectoral; Resolvent; Sedative; Styptic; Tonic; Vasoconstrictor; Vulnerary.

White dead nettle is an astringent and demulcent herb that is chiefly used as a uterine tonic, to arrest inter-menstrual bleeding and to reduce excessive menstrual flow. It is a traditional treatment for abnormal vaginal discharge and is sometimes taken to relieve painful periods[254].
The flowering tops are antispasmodic, astringent, cholagogue, depurative, diuretic, expectorant, haemostatic, hypnotic, pectoral, resolvent, sedative, styptic, tonic, vasoconstrictor and vulnerary[4, 7, 9, 13, 21, 46, 61, 165, 238, 240]. An infusion is used in the treatment of kidney and bladder complaints[9], diarrhoea, menstrual problems, bleeding after childbirth, vaginal discharges and prostatitis[238, 254]. Externally, the plant is made into compresses and applied to piles, varicose veins and vaginal discharges[7, 238, 254]. A distilled water from the flowers and leaves makes an excellent and effective eye lotion to relieve ophthalmic conditions[7]. The plant is harvested in the summer and can be dried for later use[9].
A homeopathic remedy is made from the plant[9]. It is used in the treatment of bladder and kidney disorders and amenorrhoea[9].

Other Uses

Ground cover.

The plant has a creeping rootstock and makes a good groundcover plant for woodland edges[24].

Cultivation details

A very easily grown plant, it tolerates most soils and conditions[200]. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Prefers a sunny position, though it also does well in partial shade[238].
Plants are hardy to about -25°c[187].
The white dead nettle is too weedy to be grown in the flower garden, but it does well in the wild garden and self-sows when well sited[200].
Plants seem to be immune to the predations of rabbits[233].
A good bee plant[4, 24] and a good companion plant, helping any vegetables growing nearby[14, 18].

Propagation

Seed - this species usually self sows freely and should not require human intervention. When required it can be sown in situ as soon as it is ripe.
Division in spring. Division succeeds at almost any time in the growing season[K]. Very easy, larger clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the spring.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

PFAF Web Pages

This plant is mentioned in the following web pages

Web References

References for lamium album (a possible synonym).

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[5] Mabey. R. Food for Free. Collins 1974 ISBN 0-00-219060-5
Edible wild plants found in Britain. Fairly comprehensive, very few pictures and rather optimistic on the desirability of some of the plants.

[7] Chiej. R. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald 1984 ISBN 0-356-10541-5
Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs.

[9] Launert. E. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn 1981 ISBN 0-600-37216-2
Covers plants in Europe. a drawing of each plant, quite a bit of interesting information.

[12] Loewenfeld. C. and Back. P. Britain's Wild Larder. David and Charles ISBN 0-7153-7971-2
A handy pocket guide.

[13] Triska. Dr. Hamlyn Encyclopaedia of Plants. Hamlyn 1975 ISBN 0-600-33545-3
Very interesting reading, giving some details of plant uses and quite a lot of folk-lore.

[14] Holtom. J. and Hylton. W. Complete Guide to Herbs. Rodale Press 1979 ISBN 0-87857-262-7
A good herbal.

[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.

[18] Philbrick H. and Gregg R. B. Companion Plants. Watkins 1979
Details of beneficial and antagonistic relationships between neighbouring plants.

[21] Lust. J. The Herb Book. Bantam books 1983 ISBN 0-553-23827-2
Lots of information tightly crammed into a fairly small book.

[24] Baines. C. Making a Wildlife Garden.
Fairly good with lots of ideas about creating wildlife areas in the garden.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[54] Hatfield. A. W. How to Enjoy your Weeds. Frederick Muller Ltd 1977 ISBN 0-584-10141-4
Interesting reading.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[165] Mills. S. Y. The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism.
An excellent small herbal.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[187] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Perennials Volumes 1 and 2. Pan Books 1991 ISBN 0-330-30936-9
Photographs of over 3,000 species and cultivars of ornamental plants together with brief cultivation notes, details of habitat etc.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[233] Thomas. G. S. Perennial Garden Plants J. M. Dent & Sons, London. 1990 ISBN 0 460 86048 8
A concise guide to a wide range of perennials. Lots of cultivation guides, very little on plant uses.

[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.

[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.

[254] Chevallier. A. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Dorling Kindersley. London 1996 ISBN 9-780751-303148
An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.

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Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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