Biological Name:
Verbena urticifolia (White-Vervain)
Natural Habitat:
White vervain is a type of flowering plant that is native to Europe and North America. It is typically found in moist, shaded areas, such as woods, thickets, and along streambanks.
Description:
White-Vervain is a perennial herb that is native to North America. It has small white flowers and opposite lance-shaped leaves. It is often found in wetland areas and is used in traditional medicine.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q: Where is white vervain native to?
A: White vervain is native to North America, except the western portions. It is a large wildflower that may grow to 6 ft (1.8 m), with long inflorescence branches and very small white flowers.
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Q: What does vervain do to humans?
A: Vervain is a popular remedy due to its multiple plant-beneficial compounds. Some of its benefits include antitumor effects, nerve cell protection, anxiety- and convulsion-reducing properties, and antimicrobial activity.
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Q: Is vervain poisonous to humans?
A: Is vervain poisonous? The vervain plant is not poisonous and is generally recognized as safe as a food by the FDA.
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Q: Does white vervain sting?
A: Seeds Per Oz: 90000 Borne in spikes, these small white flowers are in bloom most of the summer. The plant itself is large, growing up to 4 feet tall. The leaves of this native plant may appear nettle-like (as the name urticifolia indicates), but they lack the stinging barbs that true nettles possess.
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Q: What is white vervain good for?
A: Vervain is a popular remedy due to its multiple plant-beneficial compounds. Some of its benefits include antitumor effects, nerve cell protection, anxiety- and convulsion-reducing properties, and antimicrobial activity.
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Q: Who should not take vervain?
A: No adverse effects of vervain have been reported. Vervain should be avoided during pregnancy. Although, traditionally, its use was during the last two weeks of pregnancy to facilitate labor. Vervain should be used during pregnancy only under the guidance of a healthcare professional experienced in herbal medicine.
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Q: Why is vervain sacred?
A: The “old-world†species of vervain called Verbena officinalis (native to Europe) also served as a sacred plant throughout history. Early Roman priests believed the flowers were formed from the goddess Juno’s tears. The flowers were also used to decorate altars and sacrificial animals.
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Q: What happens if vampires drink vervain?
A: When ingested, vervain causes a vampire to become severely weak and feverish, often to the point of unconsciousness. If a vampire’s skin is exposed to vervain, it results in burns, although it is less severe if the vampire has a tolerance to it.
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Q: Is white vervain a perennial?
A: White Vervain is an erect native forb that can be annual, biennial or a short-lived perennial. It grows from 1.5 to 6 feet tall on 4-sided slender stems that may branch in the upper half. Stems are usually covered with spreading hair.
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Q: What is white vervain used for?
A: Vervain is used in traditional medicine to treat infections and abdominal pain and to promote milk production in breastfeeding women.
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Q: Is vervain invasive?
A: It has escaped cultivation and become naturalized in disturbed areas across the southeastern United States and in California.
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Q: Will Verbena grow back every year?
A: Yes, all verbenas are perennial, but some are grown as annuals as they are not hardy in our climate and are so easy to propagate from cuttings or seed.
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Q: Can you touch vervain?
A: Status. Vervain is a potent herb and a vampire’s most well-known weakness. If a vampire makes physical contact with vervain in any form, it will burn them.
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Q: Will Verbena survive the winter?
A: Potted verbena can be overwintered. Unpotted verbena will likely be killed off by the first hard frost (when temperatures dip well under freezing) unless you pot it by digging up the entire plant.
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Q: Is white vervain medicinal?
A: Medicinal Uses The sweetened root decoction is drunk as an aid for flu[207]. An infusion of the root has been used in the treatment of profuse menstruation[257]. The root has been eaten to revive a patient and restore them to health[257].
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Q: How do you grow white vervain?
A: Sowing: Direct sow in late fall, pressing the seed into the surface of the soil. … Growing: Water seedlings until they become established. … Harvesting: For cut flowers, choose stems with flowers that have just opened. … Seed Saving: As soon as the flowers fade, the slender spikes will begin to turn brown.
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Q: Can you eat white vervain?
A: People do not usually consume vervain as a whole food. Instead, people dry the herb and use it in teas.
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Q: How can you tell white vervain?
A: Aids to Identification: White vervain is a tall (0.6-1.2 m) herbaceous plant with opposite, oval, toothed leaves tapering to a narrow point. The flowers are small with five petals and borne in a narrow terminal spike and smaller spikes from the leaf axils.
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Q: Why do vampires drink vervain?
A: Vervain was used as a weapon against vampires to keep them weakened and sedated. But, some vampires have been known to ingest vervain in small, but steadily increasing doses in order to build up a stronger tolerance for it to protect them from vampire hunters and others who seek to use it against them.
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