Monarch On Purple Loostrife

 Monarch Butterfly On Purple Loostrife. 

Danaus plexippus on (Lythrum salicaria).

Whatever they say about Purple Loosestrife being invasive, I still think it's pretty. It is not nearly as destructive to habitats as it is often made out to be and it has a bunch of medicinal uses. 

 There is a fascinating article about it at: www.herbcraft.org/loosestrife.html

Purple loosestrife offers great potential as a valuable and useful medicinal, possessing an admirable balance of astringent and mucilaginous properties. This may seem odd if you think of astringents as being drying and mucilage as being moistening, but  astringents do not dehydrate tissues, they tighten and restore tone to them, and in doing they lessen oversecretion. So purple loosestrife restores tone to tissues while also bathing them in a soothing mucilage, which eases inflammation and ensures lubrication. Including more leaves and stems in preparations yields a more astringent medicine, while collecting mostly the flowering spikes increases the presence of mucilage in water based preparations. 

This plant appropriate for diarrhea, bacterial or amoebic dysentery, enteritis, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), leaky gut syndrome and as a gargle for sore throats. Perhaps most practical among these possibilities is the treatment of diarrhea and dysentery. Purple loosestrife tightens the tissues and therefore helps to quell the looseness of the bowels, while at the same time doing much to soothe the irritated tissues. In addition, research has suggested that loosestrife is markedly antibacterial, and so may help to combat any infection while simultaneously healing the tissues and relieving the distressing symptoms of such complaints. It's highly effective against candida albicans.The herb can also be used as a vaginal douche for leucorrhea and bacterial vaginosis, and as a nasal douche for nose bleeds. Topically the ointment is used for ulcers and sores and a poultice is soothing to bruises, abrasions and irritated skin. The stems can be used as chewing sticks to prevent bleeding gums caused by gingivitis. Purple loosestrife also provides an excellent eyewash for soothing dry eyes, or any ophthalmic irritation or infection characterized by dryness. 

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Disclaimer

My blog is meant to inform and I strive to be totally accurate. It is solely up to the reader to ensure proper plant identification. Some wild plants and mushrooms are poisonous or can have serious adverse health effects.