Nettles

No, nettle (Urtica dioica) is not a toxic plant. However, the whole plant is covered with stinging hairs that can cause skin lesions. Is stinging… Read More »Are Nettles Poisonous?

Stinging nettles have developed stinging cells as an adaptation to deter herbivores from eating them. The plants contain long, thin, hollow hairs that cover the… Read More »Why Do Stinging Nettles Exist?

formic acid. The nettle sting contains irritants – mainly formic acid and histamines – that are injected into the surface layer of the skin cells.… Read More »What Acid Is In Nettles?

Horses don’t usually eat stinging nettle, but if they lie down or roll on the plant, glassy hairs from the plant’s leaves and stems cause… Read More »Do Nettles Sting Horses?

Propagating Stinging Nettle This plant is easy to propagate simply by digging up plants from an existing patch and moving them to a new location.… Read More »Can You Propagate Nettles?

Stinging nettle has been used for hundreds of years to treat painful muscles and joints, eczema, arthritis, gout, and anemia. Today, many people use it… Read More »What’S The Purpose Of Stinging Nettles?

The leaves are edible at any stage of the plants’ growth. Cooking or drying them denatures the sting. They are nice and tender earlier in… Read More »How Can You Tell If Nettles Are Edible?

Nettles can reproduce themselves from seed and rhizomes that form underground stems that extend out and grow, producing new shoots, enabling the nettle plants to… Read More »How Do Stinging Nettles Reproduce?

Stinging nettle is a nutritious plant popular in Western herbal medicine. Studies suggest that it may reduce inflammation, hay fever symptoms, blood pressure and blood… Read More »Why Do People Eat Stinging Nettles?

Nettle plants are a primary food source for caterpillars/butterflies and bees which are great pollinators in the garden. Ladybugs use nettle plants as a prime… Read More »What Are Nettles Good For In Nature?