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Yarrow is a lovely medicinal herb to grow in your garden beds. Its small flowers are great for attracting beneficial insects like bees, butterflies, ladybugs, and lacewings to your garden to help pollinate and protect your garden from unwanted pests. Yarrow is also a wonderful natural styptic that can be used to stop bleeding when the leaves are made into a powder.
Styptic
A styptic is an astringent that helps to stop bleeding.
Yarrow works to stop bleeding by contracting the blood vessels which encourages clotting. It also helps the wound to heal quicker as well.
Yarrow
Yarrow, Achillea millefolium, is a perennial herb that can be used in many different medicinal applications. It is antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and anti fungal.
The most common yarrow has white flowers and feathery fern like leaves, though it can have yellow or pink flowers as well. Sometimes, it can be confused with other plants such as Queen Anne’s Lace. The flowers of the yarrow plant are thicker and not as lacy. The clusters are not the same either.
Another plant it is often confused with it Poison Hemlock. This plant has a smooth stem and visible purple spots on it that yarrow doesn’t.
If you want to grow yarrow for medicinal use, the white variety is the one you are looking for as it is said that the others don’t contain the same plant compounds that make it medicinal.
If you need to stop blood flowing in a hurry and have no yarrow powder on hand, you can mash up some fresh leaves and use as a fresh poultice.
Using Yarrow
The leaves and the flowers can be used fresh or dried. They are often infused in oil and used in salves or in tinctures.
- Helping to stop bleeding taking it a great styptic
- Help with the healing process of topical injuries such as cuts, scrapes, burns, skinned knees, itchy bug bites, stings and rashes
- Decrease the symptoms associated with colds and the flu when made into a tea
- Put in the compost to help break it down
- Soothe the symptoms associated with arthritis and hypertension
Check out this post for more information on how to grow and harvest yarrow.
Important Yarrow Notes
Though this is an amazing herb that you should have in your garden, there are some contraindications that you should know.
- Yarrow should not be taken for more than 2 weeks at a time.
- It should not be taken if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
- It should not be take if you are on high blood pressure medications, have a bleeding disorder or are taking blood thinners and as it may affect blood clotting, it should not be taken for 2 weeks before and 2 weeks after surgery.
- If you place yarrow directly onto your skin, it may cause issues if you go into direct sunlight afterwards.
- Those who are allergic to the Asteraceae / Compositae family (which includes ragweed, marigolds, daisies, chrysanthemums and more), should be careful with this plant as they made have an allergic reaction to it.
Ingredients for Stop Bleeding Yarrow Powder
Yarrow flowers could be used, though they are a bit harder to turn into a powder.
If taking leaves from your plant, gather leaves from the bottom of the plant. They will be long and feathery. never take more than one-third of the leaves as you want to keep the plant alive.
Making Yarrow Styptic Powder
Add the dried yarrow to a blender or food processor.
Blend up the dried yarrow until it is a fine a powder.
A mortal and pestal or a coffee grinder will also work.
Store in a small airtight container in a dry, dark place. It should last up to 5 years when kept cool and dry.
Using Yarrow Powder
Sprinkle a pinch of yarrow powder around the wound that is bleeding. It can also be applied to small bruises, scrapes, insect bites and other abrasions. A band-aid could be used to secure the powder in place.
It should ease the flow of blood and numb the pain while acting as an antiseptic.
A scab should form, which will fall off when the new skin under it grows.
Some have also used this powder on pets, though I haven’t tried it.
More Resources
Stop Bleeding Fast with Yarrow
Simple Living. Creative Learning
Yarrow is also a wonderful natural styptic that can be used to stop bleeding when the leaves are made into a powder.
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