Urtica californica

Greene

California Nettle, Stinging nettle

Urticaceae Edible: Leaves Potential hazards — see below

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Summary

Source: Wikipedia

Perennial nettle reaching 1.8 m in height, hardy to UK zone 3 and not frost tender. Dioecious species with wind pollination requiring both male and female plants; not self-fertile. Grows in light sandy, medium loamy, or heavy clay soils with mildly acidic to basic pH. Tolerates semi-shade or full sun, prefers moist soil, and can withstand maritime exposure.

Description

Edible Uses

Young leaves are best cooked, making a nutritious spinach substitute or a good addition to soups and stews. The plant is high in vitamins and minerals. Harvest only young leaves and wear stout gloves to avoid being stung. Fresh leaves carry stinging hairs, but thorough drying or cooking destroys them completely. Nettle beer can be brewed from the young shoots.

Medicinal Uses

Fresh nettle leaves rubbed or beaten onto the skin have been used to treat rheumatism, in the practice known as urtification. The intense irritation from the sting is believed to act as a counter-irritant, drawing blood to the area to help remove the toxins associated with rheumatism. The formic acid from the nettles is also thought to benefit the affected joints directly.

Known Hazards

As every other species of Urtica, it has stinging hairs that irritate the skin. This is prevented by cooking it and using the young leaves instead, because older leaves develop cystoliths which act as an irritant to the kidneys.

Distribution

It is a temperate plant.

Where It Grows

North America, USA,

Cultivation

We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though judging by its native range it should succeed outdoors in most parts of the country. It is very closely related to U. lyallii and is doubtfully distinct from it. The Flora of North America treats this taxon as no more than a synonym of Urtica dioica gracilis. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus. Prefers a nitrogen-rich soil. The best fibre is produced when plants are grown on deep fertile soils. Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required. Note: Urtica californica Greene is a synonym of Urtica dioica subsp. gracilis (Aiton) Selander

Propagation

Sow seed in spring in a cold frame, barely covering it. Prick seedlings into individual pots when large enough to handle and plant out in summer. Division can be done at almost any time in the growing season — plant divisions straight into their permanent positions.

Other Uses

A strong flax-like fibre from the stems is used to make string, cloth, and good quality paper. It is harvested as the plant begins to die down in early autumn and retted before extraction. The following uses are listed for U. dioica but are considered almost certainly applicable here too. Residual plant matter after fibre extraction is a useful biomass source used in making sugar, starch, protein and ethyl alcohol. Seed oil is used as an illuminant. The plant is an essential ingredient of 'QR' herbal compost activator, a dried powdered herbal blend added to compost heaps to accelerate bacterial activity. Leaves are a valuable compost addition and can be soaked for 7–21 days in water to make a nutritious liquid plant feed that also works as an insect repellent and foliar feed. The growing plant increases the essential oil content of neighbouring plants, improving their resistance to insect pests. Flies are repelled, and freshly cut stems have been placed in food cupboards for this purpose. Plant juice or a decoction boiled in a strong salt solution curdles milk as a rennet substitute; the same juice rubbed into leaky wooden tub seams will coagulate and seal them. Infused leaves make a hair wash used as a tonic and antidandruff treatment. A permanent green dye comes from a decoction of leaves and stems; a yellow dye from the root boiled with alum.