Safflower | Saffron | Sage | St John's Wort | Salad Burnet | Summer Savory | Scarlet Pimpernel | Senna | Sesame Seeds | Shepherd's Purse | Skullcap | Sloe | Snakeroot | Solidago | Sorrel | Southernwood | Sphagnum Moss | Spikenard | Stickwort | Strychnine | Sundew | Sweet Cicely

Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius) 30-100 cm (12-40 ins).
Orange-yellow flowers, branching stem, oval leaves with small, spiny teeth.
Found wild but often cultivated.
Flowers have been used to make tea producing strong perspiration, used for colds etc. Also used for soothing hysteria.
Use of flowers-ground up and mixed with talcum powder to make rouge.

Back to index

Saffron (Crocus sativus) 30-70 cm (12-30 ins).
Funnel-shaped reddish-purple flowers, growing with grey-green leaves from corm. Leaves have hairy margins and grow to height of whole plant.
Widely cultivated.
Medicinal use of stamens from flowers for coughs, colic and insomnia, but only in small doses. Rarely used as very expensive. Can be highly poisonous.
Main use of cultivated flowers in dye and perfume manufacture and also for cooking but high cost restricts usage.

Back to index

Sage (Salvia officinalis) 60 cm (24 ins).
Violet-blue flowers, hardy greyish green leaves with serrated margins, strong woody stems, a sub-shrub.
Grows wild in S. Europe but usually cultivated.
Culinary use is extensive. Should be used sparingly as it has a strong flavour; helps digestion.
Medicinal use of tea for gargling and is supposed to reduce sweating. Prolonged dosing can be poisonous. Steam baths with added sage have cosmetic qualities.

Back to index

St John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum) 30-70 cm (12-30 ins).
Flat-topped yellow flower clusters, petals dotted with black along the margins. The oblong/linear leaves are covered with transparent oil glands that look like holes. Round stems with runners at base. A shrubby plant with a turpentine-like odour. Found generally in dry gravelly soils.
Medicinal use of whole plant to treat wounds, all good herbal ointments contain St Johns Wort. Oil extract for stomach and intestinal problems has sometimes poisoned livestock

Back to index

Salad Burnet see Burnet Savory

Back to index

Summer Savory (Saturejahortensis). Winter Savory (Satureia montana).
Former is 30 cm (12 ins),
Bushy plant, sparse leaves, erect stem hairy and quadrangular, woody at base. Narrow dark green leaves, lilac, pink or whitish flowers. Whole plant appears purplish. Latter is 15-40 cm (6-16 ins) compact sub-shrub and similar but has silky bark and greyish green leaves.
Both are found wild, in the Mediterranean but usually only winter savory in U. K.; in cultivation summer savory prefers rich soil but winter savory a poor and chalky one.
Culinary use of both in a variety of dishes and deserves some experimentation. The Winter variety is not as delicate.
Medicinally has been used as tea for digestive problems, also as a gargle for sore throats.

Back to index

Scarlet Pimpernel (Anagallis arvensis).
Stems wander over surface to length of 30 cm (12 ins), star like red flowers. Oval leaves blue-green on top, brown or black on underside.
Found particularly on loamy soils.
Medicinally reputed to cause sweating and increased kidney activity. Acts on central nervous system and brain.
Dangerous.

Back to index

Senna (Cassia acutifolia) 1-2 m (3-6 ft).
Yellow flowers in bunches, stems round and slightly hairy, each leaf divided into 8-10 leaflets.
Found in N. America also as another species in N. Africa.
Medicinal use of pods as a laxative, use infusion as mouthwash for halitosis.

Back to index

Sesame Seeds (Sesamum indicum).
The seeds of an erect plant growing in tropica and sub-tropical areas. Many varieties. One of the first oil-seeds grown by man. Seeds contain 45-63% edible oil and 16-32% protein.
Culinary use of oil in salads cooking and in the manufacture of margarine.

Back to index

Shepherd's Purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris) 15-50 cm (6-18 ins).
Small white flowers in flat-topped clusters erect simple branching stem.
Common in fields and waste places everywhere.
Extract has been used to stop internal and external bleeding; raises blood pressure

Back to index

Skullcap (Scutellaria latenflora) 30-70 cm (12-30 ins).
Two-lipped pale purple or blue flowers, branching stem, serrated oval leaves com to a point. Yellow root.
Medicinal use of infusions thought good for spasms and contractions.
American Indians used it to promote menstruation.

Back to index

Sloe see Buckthorn.

Back to index

Snakeroot see Bistort.

Back to index

Solidago (Solidago virgaurea (Golden Rod).
Elongated flower clusters, hairy round striped stem, oblong leaves.
Often found growing wild and in gardens, very colourful when in flower.
Tea from leaves and flowery once used for arthritis, whooping cough and chronic eczema. Said to be useful for kidney problems. Crushed fresh leaves for wounds, sores and insect bites.

Back to index

Sorrel (Rumex acetosa) (French Sorrel) 60 cm(24 ins).
Slender plant with juicy stems and leaves and whorled spikes of reddish
green flowers. Leaves oblong, slightly arrow shaped at the base, succulent.
Common in damp meadows and along roads. Other varieties, all with same taste.
Culinary use of fresh young leaves cooked, preferably in combination. Particularly good for making soup.
An important vitamin C source. Large quantities can irritate kidneys and cause mild poisoning.

Back to index

Southernwood (Artemesia abrotanum) (Lad's Love).
This is a much safer herb than its relation wormwood or absinthe (c.f.), which it strongly resembles but has yellowish-white flowers.

Back to index

Sphagnum Moss (Sphagnum).
The chief component of peat bogs.
Medicinal use as a cleansing and healing dressing.

Back to index

Spikenard (Nardostarchys jatamausi).
The true source of the valuable perfume is from the Indian species.
Other spikenards exist but of different species.
The spikes are collected and used in the perfume industry.

Back to index

Stickwort see Agrimony.

Back to index

Strychnine (Strychnos nux-vomica).
This drug is extracted from the seeds of a tree which grows in India and S.E. Asia.
Medicinal use in small doses to increase sensitivity, but overdose produces uncontrollable spasms which are fatal unless treated. Poisonous.

Back to index

Sundew (Drosera rotundifolia). Up to 30 cm (12 ins).
Small, white or pinkish flowers. Naked flower stalk, basal rosette of leaves ,which are nearly round, reddish, glandular-hairy, and exude a liquid which traps insects.
Found in damp places, usually moorland and general wild areas.
Medicinal use for respiratory ailments and chest problems, including coughs, asthma, and bronchitis. Plant contains an antibiotic which is active against streptococcus.
Only used in small quantities as it contains irritants.

Back to index

Sweet Cicely (Myrrhis odorata) 60-90 cm (2-3 ft) and taller.
White flowers in downy umbels. Large light green leaves, sweet and highly aromatic foliage.
Easy to grow, spreading profusely once established.
Culinary use improves all mixtures of herbs, added to salad dressings, soups, root vegetables and cabbage. Roots can be boiled and eaten. Reduces acidity in fruit.

Back to index