| Kingdom | Plantae |
| Division | Magnoliophyta |
| Class | Magnoliopsida |
| Order | Asterales |
| Family | Asteraceae |
| Genus | Cnicus |
| Species | C. benedictus |
| Binomial name | Cnicus benedictus |
Other Common Names:
The other common names for the herb thistle are Blessed Thistle, St. Benedict Thistle, Holy Thistle, Spotted Thistle, Cardin and Carduus Benedictus.
History
Medieval monks held this plant in high esteem, as the name suggests and considered it a cure for everything from smallpox to headaches, being supposed to even cure the plague. It has been stated that the herb was first cultivated by Gerard in 1597, and infact there is also a quote about the herb thistle in the Herbal of Turner in 1568. (Grieve, M.)Blessed Thistle is an old English name for a large family of plants occurring chiefly in Europe and Asia. There are 14 species of Thistles just in Great Britain.
Description
Range
The thistle herb is a native of Southern Europe and it grows more readily in England in cultivation. It is an infrequent casual in Britain. Thus it is widely distributed in southern Europe, western Asia and North America.
Habitat
It is usually seen in dry sunny arable places, stony and waste grounds. The plant prefers light sandy, medium loamy and heavy clay soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic alkaline soils.
Cultivation
Thistle is mainly cultivated for its oil yielding seeds which is of medicinal use. It prefers a dry and well manured soil. This herb is propagated by seed. Allow 2 feet each way when thinning out the seedlings. The seeds are usually sown in spring, but if the newly-ripened seeds are sown in September or October in sheltered situations, it is possible to have supplies of the herb green, both summer and winter. The seed usually germinates in 2 - 6 weeks at 10°c.
Flowering Season
The pale yellow flowers of the thistle are in bloom from May to September.
Parts Used
The whole herb of the thistle plant is of both medicinal and culinary use. The leaves and flowering tops are collected in July, just as the plant breaks into flower, and cut on a dry day, the best time being about noon, when there is no longer any trace of dew on them.
Medicinal Applications
• It helps in treating conditions of the stomach and acts as a tonic, creating appetite and preventing sickness.
• It is said to have great power in the purification and circulation of the blood, and thus strengthening the brain and the memory.
• The leaves, dried and powdered, are good for worms.
• It is considered one of the best medicines which can be used for the nursing mother for improving the milk supply.
• Thistle is a good remedy for all kinds of aches and also helps in better hearing.
• Thistle is mainly employed as an ingredient in herbal tonics.
• Thistle helps in curing vertigo and plague.
• It is also been used as a contraceptive and in the treatment of liver and gall bladder problems.
• The plant is also used internally in the treatment of anorexia, poor appetite associated with depression, dyspepsia, flatulent colic etc.
• It is used in treating veneral diseases in men.
• Blessed Thistle has been used as a mild antibiotic, an anti-inflammatory, a treatment for lapsed menstrual cycles, and for smallpox, plague, and hepatitis.
• Blessed Thistle is externally used for chill blains, sores and wounds.
• The herb may be eaten on bread and butter, like Watercress.
Tansy was one of the Strewing Herbs mentioned by Tusser in 1577, and was one of the native plants dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The Tansy cakes were made from the young leaves of the plant, mixed with eggs, and was thought to purify the humours of the body after the limited fare of Lent. In time, this custom obtained a kind of symbolism, and Tansies, as these cakes were called, came to be eaten on Easter Day as a remembrance of the bitter herbs eaten by the Jews at the Passover. Coles (1656) says the origin of eating it in the spring is because Tansy is very wholesome after the salt fish consumed during Lent, and counteracts the ill-effects which the 'moist and cold constitution of winter has made on people.
Tansy also has a long history as a seasoning and medicinal plant. In England, the leaves were once used to flavor small tansy cakes eaten during Lent where their bitter taste symbolized Christ's suffering.
Tansy is a Protective herb commonly said to keep the Police, DEA Agents, or the INS from looking into one's affairs. A pinch of tansy worn in the shoes is said by many conjures and root workers to Keep the Law Away, as does bathing in TANSY Tea, rinsing your clothing in water to which TANSY Tea has been added, or washing your floors down with the tea.
