This backyard weed is one of my favorites.  There are so many good qualities associated with this special weed.  This plant’s leaves are edible and quite nutritious.  You can eat the early spring leaves, raw, just as you do spinach.  As the plant matures, the leaves become tough and fibrous.  No worries though, you can chop it up and cook the leaves. 

     These leaves are high in fiber.  Plantain is related to Psyllium.  Psyllium is often used in over-the-counter digestive products.  The leaves also have antimicrobial and antibiotic properties.  Therefore, the leaf is so effective in healing wounds and insect stings.  It is the Allantoin constituent that encourages wounds to heal.  The leaves have a powerful drawing capacity.  These leaves not only draw out toxins, they also draw out foreign objects such as splinters.

     Chewing on the root of plantain can help relieve toothaches.  Plantain tea can help colds and flu.  Combining plantain tea with honey greatly increases its effectiveness. 

     As you can see, broad-leaf Plantain is quite diversified and powerful.  We should stop killing this “weed” and start harvesting it instead.  What a gift from our Heavenly Father. 

     This is another variety of plantain.  I often will chew the leaves to encourage blood cleansing and detox.  I will chew on this if I feel I am fighting off a virus.  It has a mild peppery like taste to it.  Here is a picture from my backyard.

Here is a link to an interesting recipe using plantain leaves

Ingredients

>> Fresh large plantain leaves (washed and dried)

>> 1 cup whole wheat flour

>> 1 1/2 cup water

>> 1 egg

>> 2 tbsp. wheat germ

>> 2 tbsp. spiked salt (or a variety of spices of your choosing)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Combine the flour, water, egg, wheat germ and spices into a bowl and mix well. Dip leaves into the batter and place onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Be sure to not to overlap for best results.

Bake 5 -10 minutes if the leaves used are very large. If the plantain leaves are smaller then start watching them at about the 3-4 minute mark to ensure they do not burn.

https://www.ediblewildfood.com/baked-plantain.aspx

Here is a link to a recipe to make a plantain anti-itch Salve.

Broadleaf Plantain Anti-Itch Salve

Broadleaf plantain (Plantago major) can be used to make an salve that takes the itch off of mosquito bites. Photo by Saara Nafici.

Ingredients

• 4 to 6 cups broadleaf plantain leaves
  • 2 cups olive oil
  • ¼ cup (2 ounces) beeswax
  • Optional: rosemary, lavender, mint, citronella, or other essential oil for scent

Equipment 

• Food dehydrator (or oven)
  • Large jar with lid (big enough to hold 2 to 3 cups of salve)
  • 16–24 oz. liquid measuring cup
  • Cheesecloth
  • Rubberband
  • Heavy-duty saucepan
  • Enough small containers (like jars or tins) to hold about 2 cups of finished salve

Makes 2 cups

• Rinse plantain leaves of all dirt and debris.
  • Layer the leaves in the food dehydrator. Leave in the dehydrator overnight so that the leaves are completely dry. If using an oven, place the leaves on a cookie sheet and bake at the lowest temperature setting until they are dry and brittle, checking frequently to make sure they don’t burn.
  • Once dry, crush the leaves and measure out 3 cups. Add to the large jar.
  • Add 2 cups olive oil and close lid.
  • Let sit for about 10 days.
  • Cover the measuring cup with cheesecloth, and secure with a rubber band.
  • Strain out the plantain leaves by pouring the contents of the jar through the cheesecloth into the measuring cup. Squeeze out all the oil through the cheesecloth. You now have plantain-infused oil.
  • Heat the beeswax in a heavy-duty saucepan over low heat. Once the beeswax starts to melt, add the infused oil and stir to combine.
  • After the mixture is completely melted and combined, pour into your salve containers. Add a few drops of essential oil if you like.
  • Let cool before putting on the lids.

BBG’s garden apprentices swear by broadleaf plantain salve for combating the bothersome mosquito bites they get working in the garden. Photo by Saara Nafici.

https://www.bbg.org/news/weed_of_the_month_broadleaf_plantain

Here is a link to an herbal drawing salve recipe

Plantain Herbal Drawing Salve

Plantain is an herb with many uses. Make this plantain infused drawing salve to relieve all your bug bites, bee stings, slivers, and rashes.

Ingredients

• 1 cup base oil of your choice (I like 50% olive oil with 50% coconut oil)
  • 1/3 cup plantain leaves dried
  • 1/4 cup dandelion blossoms dried
  • 1/4 cup fennel fronds dried
  • 3-4 tablespoons beeswax pastilles
  • 48 drops essential oils, optional I like fennel, ravensara and rosemary in equal parts

Instructions

• Combine base oil and dried herbs in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Place in a small crockpot with water to the fill height of the jar. Infuse on the lowest setting heat for 24-48 hours. Alternatively, the oils can infuse without heat for six weeks, or rapid infuse in a double boiler over for 30 minutes.
  • After oil is adequately infused, strain through muslin or cheese cloth. Return oil to a double boiler, add beeswax and essential oils, then warm until completely melted. Remove oil/beeswax mixture from heat.  
  • Pour into individual 2-ounce containers (approximate 4) or other similarly sized jars. Allow to cool completely before putting a lid on the jar.

https://nittygrittylife.com/plantain-herbal-drawing-salve/