Sage (Salvia officinalis)
Sage (Salvia officinalis)
Origin:
Sage is native to the Mediterranean Sea and north Africa and the Latin “salvare” translates to healing, which is a grate pinpoint to it’s medical usefulness.
There are around 900 Sage Varieties to be found and all have healing properties.
Salvia officinalis is also called common sage or garden sage
Appearance of the plant:
Sage is a perennial that grows bushy about 60 cm tall. The oval leaves are rough or wrinkled and usually downy (fluffy); the color ranges from gray-green to whitish green, and some varieties are variegated. The flowers are borne in spikes and feature tubular two-lipped corollas that are attractive to a variety of pollinators, including bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. The flowers can be purple, pink, white, or red and produce nut-let fruits.
Soil and location:
Sage loves it Sunny and warm. The soil should be dry, limey and well draining. It can be cultivated in pots, therefor you should use a herbal potting mix.
Care:
Sage can easily propagated through seeds or cuttings. Plants should be separated 30-40cm apart.
For a good harvest it’s recommended to trim back the stems in early spring, that promotes new growth and delays the bush from getting woody too fast. If you don’t want seedlings all around you should also trim back the flower stems after flowering, to get rid of the seeds.
Sage needs water regularly, but moderate.
Medical effective components:
Sage essential oil contains Borneol and Thujon, Taninen and Saponosiden. Sage also contains bittering agents such as Carnosol, Pokirosalvin, Rosmanol, Safficinolid and Salvin as well as Bornylester, Linalool, Camphen, Limonen, Campher and Cholin.
That’s plenty tongue breaker stuff but there’s even more.
They contribute to the powerfull anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, anti-fungi and anti-bacterial aspects of tinctures, salves, ointments, teas, brews and so on.
It helps powerfully with problems in the respiratory system, mouth and throat issues and perspiration problems. Not much known and used but very helpful with Akne, eczema and flushing wounds.
Before toothpaste was invented it’s leaves (alongside mint) were used to scrub teeth and gum, eliminating viruses, bacteria and fungi and also cleaning plaque with it’s fluffy hairy leaves.
Sage Tea:
1g dried leaves to 100ml boiling water, let sit for 10 min then strain. You can add honey and/or lemon juice.
Sage Syrup:
you need to lay in small cut sage leaves ind apple vinegar (1:10), add honey until it’s not as bitter anymore. This concoction even was used in the medieval against tuberculosis (and even useful, tho modern medicine helps much faster).
Sage in compost:
Helps the good bacteria growing if added to compost.
Fumigate:
Dried leaves and stems can be used to fumigate rooms, especially ones where sick patients have stayed for a time. It’s one of the most important plants in use for the native Americans in rites and shamans use it as teaching plants.
Steam bath/Inhalation:
Put 10g sage in a big bowl (diameter of at least 20cm) topped with boiling water 1-3 Liter. Put your head over the bowl and a cloth over both to keep the steam in. Inhalate for 5 to 10 min or until the water gets too cold. You can also use the essential oil: use 2-6 drops in 1-3 Liter.
Contraindication/ Warning:
if used in too high concentration the essential oil can cause reddening and irritation of the skin. Too much sage can be poisonous (over a hand full).
And as always: Please be careful and use common sense while handling and using Sage for whatever reason.
Origin:
Sage is native to the Mediterranean Sea and north Africa and the Latin “salvare” translates to healing, which is a grate pinpoint to it’s medical usefulness.
There are around 900 Sage Varieties to be found and all have healing properties.
Salvia officinalis is also called common sage or garden sage
Appearance of the plant:
Sage is a perennial that grows bushy about 60 cm tall. The oval leaves are rough or wrinkled and usually downy (fluffy); the color ranges from gray-green to whitish green, and some varieties are variegated. The flowers are borne in spikes and feature tubular two-lipped corollas that are attractive to a variety of pollinators, including bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. The flowers can be purple, pink, white, or red and produce nut-let fruits.
Soil and location:
Sage loves it Sunny and warm. The soil should be dry, limey and well draining. It can be cultivated in pots, therefor you should use a herbal potting mix.
Care:
Sage can easily propagated through seeds or cuttings. Plants should be separated 30-40cm apart.
For a good harvest it’s recommended to trim back the stems in early spring, that promotes new growth and delays the bush from getting woody too fast. If you don’t want seedlings all around you should also trim back the flower stems after flowering, to get rid of the seeds.
Sage needs water regularly, but moderate.
Medical effective components:
Sage essential oil contains Borneol and Thujon, Taninen and Saponosiden. Sage also contains bittering agents such as Carnosol, Pokirosalvin, Rosmanol, Safficinolid and Salvin as well as Bornylester, Linalool, Camphen, Limonen, Campher and Cholin.
That’s plenty tongue breaker stuff but there’s even more.
They contribute to the powerfull anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, anti-fungi and anti-bacterial aspects of tinctures, salves, ointments, teas, brews and so on.
It helps powerfully with problems in the respiratory system, mouth and throat issues and perspiration problems. Not much known and used but very helpful with Akne, eczema and flushing wounds.
Before toothpaste was invented it’s leaves (alongside mint) were used to scrub teeth and gum, eliminating viruses, bacteria and fungi and also cleaning plaque with it’s fluffy hairy leaves.
Sage Tea:
1g dried leaves to 100ml boiling water, let sit for 10 min then strain. You can add honey and/or lemon juice.
Sage Syrup:
you need to lay in small cut sage leaves ind apple vinegar (1:10), add honey until it’s not as bitter anymore. This concoction even was used in the medieval against tuberculosis (and even useful, tho modern medicine helps much faster).
Sage in compost:
Helps the good bacteria growing if added to compost.
Fumigate:
Dried leaves and stems can be used to fumigate rooms, especially ones where sick patients have stayed for a time. It’s one of the most important plants in use for the native Americans in rites and shamans use it as teaching plants.
Steam bath/Inhalation:
Put 10g sage in a big bowl (diameter of at least 20cm) topped with boiling water 1-3 Liter. Put your head over the bowl and a cloth over both to keep the steam in. Inhalate for 5 to 10 min or until the water gets too cold. You can also use the essential oil: use 2-6 drops in 1-3 Liter.
Contraindication/ Warning:
if used in too high concentration the essential oil can cause reddening and irritation of the skin. Too much sage can be poisonous (over a hand full).
And as always: Please be careful and use common sense while handling and using Sage for whatever reason.