186 
GARDENING IN THE SOUTHWEST 
Herbs 
in 
Medical 
Usage 
among themselves as to the cause and cure of disease in the humai i 
body, natural and primitive man has been drawing successfully 
throughout the ages from the vegetable kingdom for his food and 
medicine, and witches, sorcerers, conjurers and others with some 
knowledge of the curative value of plants have plied their trade 
to their own purposes. 
The Southwest grows literally hundreds of medicinal herbs and 
shrubs which have for long been used advantageously by the 
natives, and thru this connection considerable knowledge and much 
folklore has been handed down. Leaves, flowers, roots, and in some 
cases the seeds, are the parts of the plant that are used for medic¬ 
inal purposes. Boiling water or alcohol are the mediums of in¬ 
fusion. The following are but a few of the more important native 
medicinal herbs: 
MEXICAN WORMWOOD (Artemisia 
mexicana), Aster family, grows abund¬ 
antly here. It is from a close relative of 
our Artemisia that the Frenchman gets 
his absinthe. We are told that the genus 
acquired its name from Artemisia, wife of 
Mausolus, king of Hallicarnasus, who 
built a famous tomb for himself and wife. 
Modern gardens display these plants and 
related species as border and bouquet fea¬ 
tures under the name of Dusty Miller. 
Medicinally it is anthelmintic, tonic and 
narcotic. 
CROTON TEA, also called Tea Plant and 
'Mexican Tea (Croton monanthogynus ), 
Spurge family, is a rusty colored, aromatic 
weed whose leaves are gathered while still 
in blossom and used for tea by the Mex¬ 
icans. The dried leaves and stems when 
ground are employed as flavoring or as a 
condiment for meats, and the well-known 
Croton Oil is obtained from a variety. It 
is diaphoretic and sudorific. 
BLUE SAGE (Salvia farinaceae), Salvia 
family, was first discovered in South 
Europe, and it is one of the most prolific, 
most common and most beautiful of the 
Southwestern blue flowers. There are sev¬ 
eral varieties, each blooming at a different 
season, which gives a rather continuous 
blue cast to the landscape. A delicious and 
refreshing tea is made from the leaves 
which, together with the whorls of small 
flowerets, should be carefully gathered 
and dried during the blossoming season. 
It is also much utilized as a seasoning for 
meats and dressings. It is tonic, astringent, 
expectorant and diaphoretic. 
MOTH MULLEIN and Velvet, or Blanket 
Mullein (Verbascum thapsus ), Figwort 
family, is a stout biennial whose straight, 
tall, wooly stem grows alternate, big hairy 
leaves that lie close to the ground mostly. 
It was probably introduced from Europe, 
but is now common in this country, and 
is indigenous to lowlands and moist places. 
According to tradition, the Romans of the 
14th Century sprinkled the powdered 
seeds and roots on water to induce fish to 
bite, and they also dipped the stalks in 
suet, allowed it to dry and used them for 
procession torches. About the same time 
the Greeks were utilizing the leaves, which 
they soaked in oil, for lamp wicks. Roman 
women dyed their tresses to a golden hue 
in an infusion of the flowers. Germans 
carried flambeaux for festivals, mullein 
stalks covered with pitch. Humming birds 
employ the hairs from the leaves in their 
nest building, and primitive folk used the 
dried leaves and flowers for a smoke. The 
plant is demulcent, diuretic, anodyne and 
anti-spasmodic in effect. 
