HERB - lavender cotton

[Kathleen H. Keeler]

>> Um, is Santolina it's whole name, or is there more to it...
>According to Sunset Western Garden Book there are two varieties:
>S. chamaecyparissus and S. viren
>Ginger

I plead guilty to making an incomplete post--but not one book in my
extensive work library mentioned it so I couldn't look it up then.  Using
the home library I add

As Ginger posted, there are atleast the two species in cultivation
(quoted above) ("variety" is used in botany to mean "subspecies" and would
have a scientific name of 3 words, not 2)
Its a composite, that is a member of the sunflower family  and has yellow
flowers.(lavenders, _Lavendula_ are in the mint family and have purple
flowers)

Minnie Watson Kamm in _Old time herbs for northern gardens_ [good book!}
says _S. chamaecyparissus_ was introduced into northern Europe at the time
of hte Renaissance when they wanted diminutive hedge material that would
withstand close clipping.  William Turner in 1538 is the first mention and
he may have brought it from southern Europe where it grows on poor arid
soil.
   She has a picture as well.
It gets about the size of lavender, but the foliage is whitish ("cottony")
Flowers in June, are golden yellow.    Likes sun and arid soil.  It is
hardy in our Northern states grows slowly and will form a plant of
considerable size and spread.

Foliage has a strong aromatic odor, bitter tased.  Put with winter woolens
to repel moths.  Frequenly called French lavender, a misleading name. It is
also different from santonin.

Culpeper [abridged version] has LAVENDER (COTTON) - Lavandula Toemina
  and the description is certainly Santolina (yellow flowers, shurb, from
Italy) and he describes it as under Mercury, destroys worms, antidote for
all sorts of poisons and bites and stings and obstructions of the liver,
jaundice and to promote the menses.  ...bathed in a decoction it helps
scabs and itch.

Mrs. M. Grieve (in _A modern herbal_, another good book) notes it was used
as a vermifuge in children, was once esteemed for stimulant properties and
to keep away moths.  "All of the species of _Santolina_ have a strong
resemblance to each other except _S. fragrantissima_ whose [I condense and
paraphrase] flowers are in flat heads not singly.
  She says Arabs "are said to" use it to bathe the eyes and also repeats
the Culpepper statements.
 "it is now chiefly used as an edging..." and a perfume is made from it.

Notice Grieve's qualifiers like "was once esteemed as"
I suspect the curing of jaundice and use for the eyes to be treatments
derived from the Doctrine of Signatures--yellow flowers would cure the
yellow of jaundice, most of the composites were used to treat eye ailments
because the flowers reminded people of eyes (e.g. daisies, asters,
camomile, tansy,,,). Doctrine of signatures as used in the Middle Ages is
not a sound medicinal approach.
I repeat the medical uses because we're interested in Period herbalism
here--but since we trade modern suggestions as well, I want to add that I
wouldn't try these  medical treatments unless you see them repeated in a
respected herbal from the last 10-15 years or are yourself an experienced
herbalist.

I got seeds from Seeds Blum in Idaho so its hardy there.  I thought mine
died over  the winter but some winters (and falls and springs) are very
severe here in eastern Nebraska.

Agnes
(I'm using the underlines (example _word_) to indicate the scientific
(Latin) name, which is written  underlined or italicized).

Mistress Agnes deLanvallei, O.L. (herbalism), Mag Mor, Calontir
Dedicated to the study and safe recreation of the Medieval uses of plants.
If I can be of assistance in your investigations, I'd be honored.
kkeeler1 at unl.edu


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