Meadowsweet
The Meadowsweet, a plant with a rich history that Pagès has chosen to incorporate into its creations.
The Meadowsweet, a large perennial plant with many stories and virtues.
Origins of meadowsweet
According to some legends and stories, the Meadowsweet is a sacred plant for druids. The latter used it to treat the sick and were the only ones who knew how to use it and how to benefit from its virtues. It was at that time when the plant was considered sacred that it was put in abundance in brides' bouquets to bring them luck.
Some say that it was Father Obriat who unravelled the mystery about the benefits of the Meadowsweet. A honey plant, it was known at that time as the "bee plant".
In the Renaissance, the Flemish Dodoens, in his "Medical Practice of Medicinal Plants" where he reviews most of the plants then known, cites the Meadowsweet as a remedy for dysentery. Effective, in fact, against this disease and diarrhoea, it is also effective in the inflammation of the stomach, certain heart diseases, old rebellious catarrh, insomnia or intestinal worms.
Pharmaceutical laboratories marketed it, with the success we know today, under the name "aspirin" or "spiraea", the former name of the Meadowsweet inspired by the spiral shape of its fruits.
Characteristics of meadowsweet
Name: Filipendula ulmaria
Family: Rosaceae
Species: Perennial plant
The Meadowsweet is a perennial plant more than 1 metre high. It forms beautiful colonies in the humid places of all our French regions, often on the water's edge. The Meadowsweet is found in Europe and Asia. Its erect, reddish stem has leaves divided into leaflets with bright green toothed leaflets on top, ashen white below, with a much larger terminal leaflet, deeply divided into three acute lobes. The creamy-white flowers are deliciously fragrant and arranged in irregularly composed bunches that flare upwards. The fruits of the Meadowsweet are small green spiral balls, particularly fragrant when crumpled.
This woodland plant has similar white flowers and is sometimes grown in gardens for the elegance of its flowers. It owes its name to the large tubers suspended from the filamentous roots it bears. This variety of plant gives off the same smell as its neighbour, the Meadowsweet, which we know.
Uses of meadowsweet
The Meadowsweet can be consumed in several ways. It is of course possible to infuse it in boiling water for 7 to 10 minutes, to enjoy its benefits and its characteristic smell.
Like many other plants, Meadowsweet also finds its place in the kitchen. Indeed, we find its leaves, floral buds, fragrant flowers and even its curious fruits on our plates. The Meadowsweet is a very pleasant flavouring for creams, ice creams, custards and other sweet dishes, which are eaten at the end of a meal.
Benefits of meadowsweet
Meadowsweet is known to be anti-inflammatory and anti-rheumatic.
Meadowsweet is also said to help reduce gastric acidity.
In external use, Meadowsweet also has interesting properties: applied with a compress against a wound, Meadowsweet infusion helps to relieve pain.
