The Monthly Wort
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The Monthly Wort will provide readers with detailed descriptions of specifically chosen herbs (aka “wort”, meaning a useful herb), splitting it into 4 categories over the span of the month. Herbal History, Medicinal Uses, Magical Uses and Growing/Harvesting. In order to get the full scope of each plant, stay tuned every week as we delve into spiritual and practical experience of Herbalism.
Nettle flowers
Urtica Dioica, otherwise known as stinging nettle, dioecious, herbaceous perennial covered in glass trichomes that inject histamines like hypodermic needles into the skin of passersby. But, if you’ve read the last three Monthly Worts (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3) on stinging nettle, you might already know that this plant has more benefits than it has hindrance. For instance, they can encourage the presence of beneficial insects while also drawing less beneficial insects away from other plants, such as aphids, which love to spend time under the cover of nettle leaves. By bordering your garden with nettle, you not only can keep the deep and rabbits out (or any pesky neighbors), but you can keep the aphids away from your other plants. And that’s just one example! So, if you’re looking to try your (hopefully gloved) hand at growing stinging nettle, continue reading to find out how!
Identifying Our Stingy Friend
Nettle grows anywhere from 3-7 feet tall during the early spring to die down and continue its life cycle underground after frost season begins. The heart shaped leaves are serrated and can vary in size depending on its stage of bloom, and emerge from tall, shooting stems that grow in clusters or “colonies”. The stems themselves are somewhat square shaped, rather than round, and are hollow - eventually the insides dry out as the plant dies and becomes more of a pith, which is excellent for starting fires.
Nettle is likely a vibrant green, although it can vary between shades of purple-green throughout the stem and leaves. The needles that project from its stems and leaves are clear and tend to grow in an up and outward direction. The flowers grow along the stems and come from the joints where the leave stalks meet, and are greenish or brownish. They grow in dense axillary inflorescences, both male and female found in the colonies. Their roots are a system of rhizomes that can spread up to 5 feet in a season, not unlike our friend yarrow, which is also commonly mistaken for a noxious weed. There are smaller, fibrous roots that extend out from the rhizomes.
Stinging nettle roots
Nettle grows in a variety of areas, the ideal being damp with partial shade, near water or richer soils that can maintain moisture. The reason it grows particularly well in old construction sites or in abandoned lots is due to the earth being disturbed, therefore aerated, and increase the chances of the soil binge more nitrogen and phosphorous fueled. They are also one of the few plants that are tolerant in soils affected by poultry droppings. Their elevation needs range just as widely, from sea level to sub-alpine, which increases a gardener’s ability to grow it at home!
Growing Stinging Nettle
Growing Nettle From Seeds:
The best times to sow outdoors is either autumn or spring, depending on when you are anticipating harvesting the grown plant. If directly sowing into your box or the ground, the seedbed needs to be loose for rooting purposes, although firm at the surface (feel free to roll the soil before sowing). Plant in a row with spacing of a foot between and ¼ inch deep. Nettle has a slow germination time, so being able to cover the seeds to help activate germination might be necessary.
Growing the seedlings inside is probably going to be a better bet than direct sowing, as it would be a more controlled condition. I use jiffy peat pods for almost everything, especially nettle, as the soil in them is usually perfectly rich for most plants (although not for ones that prefer sandy or clay soils). Starting 4-6 weeks before the last frost date, sow three seeds per jiffy pod and keep moist. Germination should occur in two weeks, but it may take longer. These seedlings prefer fluctuations in temperature, generally warmer during the day and cooler at night, which might be important for growers in warmer climates. Before transplanting, try to acclimate the plants to colder temperatures so that they are hardier, and fertilize them well. In mid-April, transplant to their permanent spot outside and leave a foot or more spacing between rows and plants.
Growing from Propagation:
Head cuttings or stolons should be collected from mature plants that have been through several seasons, which will contribute to having hardier plants. Plant them mid-April after treating them with rooting hormone (dip the base into the powder and plant). Their success rate will be increased if they are started indoors first and then moved outdoors once they have an established root system.
Harvesting Stinging Nettle
Depending on what you’re going to use stinging nettle for, there are several ways to harvest it. First of all, you will want to protect yourself by using thick gloves, long sleeves and full-length pants. Even still, nettle is sneaky and might get a nip in! My hands have grown used to the stings, however I still get a bite or two on my legs when I’m out watering and not paying attention.
The best time to harvest nettle is the first few weeks that they start popping up in the spring, before they have the chance to flower and while they still have the tender leaves up top. They will be about a foot tall at this point, or less, as a sign of earlier maturity. Pick the first few “levels” of leaves from the tops of the plants and place them in your basket/bag. While you can continue to harvest the nettles throughout the growing season, they are best early on and less fibrous. If using for a meal, handle the nettle with tongs. Cooking the nettles (steaming, boiling, sauté, baking, mashing – even drying them) will destroy the delicate hairs that cause them to sting and make them very edible! You can make teas, stir frys, soups or salads with them.
If you’re harvesting the plant for fibre making, you will want more than the leaves – in fact, you won’t need them for this purpose at all! The stalks are what you want, so you will either uproot the mature plant (in this case, you will want to wait until the plant has a decent amount of height to it, as it offers more material this way) or cut at the base of its stalk, near the ground. Again, wear protection! From there, you can shuck the leaves (and use them for food), which leaves you will the long strips of fiber that can be drawn from the stalks. I mentioned a few sources for how to make nettle fibres in my earlier blog, The Monthly Wort: Stinging Nettle (Part 1). Almost all of the aerial parts can be used in making beers or for flavoring purposes, so don’t let it go to waste when harvesting this awesome herb!
That’s the end of nettle for now, although we might revisit it down the line if I do a favorite herb recipes blog. Keep updated by signing up for the newsletter. I promise there will be absolutely no spam and your information will stay private - the sole purpose of the newsletter is to keep you, dear reader, updated on when I do blog posts, add items to the shop and announce what events I will be attending.
Stay safe and practical out there, wild foragers! See you at the next Monthly Wort!
