Have you decided what herbs you would like to grow this year? Or perhaps you are looking at your garden space, wondering where to start.  These 7 top tips will make planting your garden a whole lot easier.

1. Remember Your Herbal Allies

Think about your herbal allies: which herbs do you use in your cooking most often, which are your favourite herbal remedies, do you have a condition (e.g. IBS, needing to relax a bit more) where you would like to grow herbs that can help with that?  Are there herbs you would like to grow simply because they're beautiful and would look lovely in your garden?

Write down all the herbs that come to mind right now. Don't worry about constraints like how much space do I have or is it easy to grow. That comes later. Try to think about herbs that are good all-rounders such as peppermint, thyme, yarrow or chamomile.

2. Make Planting Easier In The Years To Come

Have a mixture of annuals, biannuals and perennials in your garden. That way you're not starting from scratch each year.

• Annuals go from seed to flower in one growing season and die at the end.
• Biannuals do this over 2 growing seasons, often flowering in year 2.
• Perennials last a number of seasons

3. Contain Your Enthusiastic Herbs

Some herbs are difficult to get rid of once established or they like to make the most of your wonderful garden space and turn up in unexpected or unwanted places.  For these, consider planting them in a pot (either submerged in your garden or on a patio, windowsill or inside).

Herbs that like to stick around or take over your garden include the mints, lemon balm, horseradish, comfrey and valerian

4. Make It Easy For Your Herb To Grow Big and Strong

Now that you have your list of ideal herbs, think about how they like to live. Some prefer full sun, some shade, some damp, some dry conditions. Write down their ideal growing conditions and start grouping them together. If you're not sure, check out my notes on various herbs as I include ideal growing conditions.

5. Map out your garden.

This is something to do over the year as the seasons change.  Map out the areas in your garden that are in sun, partial sun, shade. Are there parts of your garden that are naturally damp or naturally dry?  Go herb walking in your garden. Do you already have some herbal allies growing in your garden?  If they are happily growing, notice the environment that they are thriving in and write it down.

6. Create Specific Environments

If you have a herb that likes a particular habitat, you can recreate that habitat in a pot. For example, for years I couldn't grow marshmellow, and I really missed it because it's a great tummy herb and is amazing as a base for cough syrup. I ended up planting one sad little stem in a pot filled with heavy compost that was well watered (marshmellow likes things to be damp).

Here she is today growing in her pot, happy and vibrant. (You can just see the rim of the pot in the bottom right of this photo).

Now I keep all my marshmellows in a pot. My garden is simply too dry and the soil is too arid (a perfect combination for thyme but not for marshmellow).

7. Discover the Joy of Container Gardening

Don't worry if you don't have a garden.  Herbs can easily be grown in containers.

Check out this eBook on Container Gardening, no outdoors required!

Urtica dioica means two houses.  It's called this because you have a male and a female plant. This is best seen when the nettle is in seed.

Male Nettle

Female Nettle

Some Research on Nettle

Anti-allergic

A nettle (Urtica dioica) extract shows in vitro inhibition of several key inflammatory events that cause the symptoms of seasonal allergies. These include the antagonist and negative agonist activity against the Histamine-1 (H₁) receptor and the inhibition of mast cell tryptase preventing degranulation and release of a host of pro-inflammatory mediators that cause the symptoms of hay
fevers.

The nettle extract also inhibits prostaglandin formation through inhibition of Cyclooxygenase-1 (COX-1), Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), and Hematopoietic Prostaglandin D2 synthase (HPGDS), central enzymes in pro-inflammatory pathways. The IC50 value for histamine receptor antagonist activity was 251 (±13) µg mL-1 and for the histamine receptor negative agonist activity was 193 (±71) µg mL-1. The IC50 values for inhibition of mast cell tryptase was 172 (±28) µg mL-1, for COX-1 was 160 (±47) µg mL-1, for COX-2 was 275 (±9) µg mL-1, and for HPGDS was 295 (±51) µg mL-1. Through the use of DART TOF-MS, which yields exact masses and relative abundances of compounds present in complex mixtures, bioactives have been identified in nettle that contribute to the inhibition of pro-inflammatory pathways related to allergic rhinitis. (Roschek et al., 2009).

Antidiabetic

Urtica Dioica (UD) is a plant shown to reduce blood glucose levels upon oral ingestion; however, neither its active component
nor its mechanism of action has been identified. One active fraction of this extract, termed UD-1, was separated by molecular sieve column chromatography and purified by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). While UD-1 did not stimulate insulin secretion in glucose-responsive MIN6 clonal beta-cells, chronic exposure (24 h) significantly enhanced glucose uptake (1.5-fold) in
L6-GLUT4myc myoblast cells. Using HPLC and MALDI-TOF, we further purified the UD-1 fraction into two fractions termed UD-1A and UD-1B. Computational and structural analyses strongly suggested that the antidiabetic component of UD-1 was due to one or more structurally related cyclical peptides that facilitate glucose uptake by forming unique glucose permeable pores. The structure and function of these glucose-conducting pores are discussed herein. (Domola et al., 2009)

Antiplatelet

Platelet hyperactivity plays an important role in arterial thrombosis and atherosclerosis. The present study was undertaken to investigate the effects of different extracts of Urtica dioica leaves on platelet aggregation. Rat platelets were prepared and incubated in vitro with different concentrations of the tested extracts and aggregation was induced by different agonists including thrombin (0.5 U/mL), ADP (10 µm), epinephrine (100 µm) and collagen (5 mg/mL). The crude aqueous extract inhibited thrombin-induced platelet aggregation in a dose-dependent manner. At 1 mg/mL, the percent inhibition was 17.1 ± 4.2%. Soxhlet extraction of the plant leaves with different successive solvents showed that the ethyl acetate extract exhibited the most antiaggregant effect with an inhibition of 76.8 ± 6.1% at 1 mg/mL. Flavonoids isolated from the plant leaves, produced a strong
inhibitory effect on thrombin-induced platelet aggregation with an IC50 of 0.25 ± 0.05 and 0.40 ± 0.04 mg/mL for genins and heterosidic flavonoids, respectively. Flavonoids also markedly inhibited platelet aggregation induced by ADP, collagen and epinephrine. It is concluded that Urtica dioica has an antiplatelet action in which flavonoids are mainly implicated. These results
support the traditional use of Urtica dioica in the treatment and/or prevention of cardiovascular disease. (Haouari et al., 2006).

Hypotensive

Urtica dioica L. or Nettle (Urticaceae) is widely used in oriental Morocco to treat hypertension. Aqueous extract of Nettle (AEN) also exerts a hypotensive action in the rat in vivo. The aim of this work was to characterize the specific cardiac and vascular effects of AEN. In the isolated Langendorff perfused rat heart, AEN (1 and 2 g/l) markedly decreased heart rate and increased left ventricular pressure. Higher concentration (5 g/l) even led to cardiac arrest. Although carbachol mimicked the bradycardiac effect of AEN, atropine (a muscarinic receptor antagonist, 1 µM) did not modify the response. Beside its action on myocardium, AEN also
affected vascular contractility. Indeed, AEN (0.1-5 g/l) produced a dose-dependent increase in basal tone of isolated rat aorta. This effect was endothelium independent and was abolished by 1 µM prazosin (an 1-adrenergic antagonist). AEN had little additional effects when the aorta was precontracted by noradrenaline (1 µM) or KCl (40 mM). Our data indicate that AEN produces a
vasoconstriction of the aorta which is due to activation of 1-adrenergic receptors. However, AEN also induces a strong bradycardia through non-cholinergic and non-adrenergic pathways which might compensate for its vascular effect and account for the hypotensive action of Urtica dioica L described in vivo. (Legssyer et al., 2002).

Cleavers are one of my favourite springtime herbs.  Folk medicine says men will fall in love with ladies who drink this herb as a tea for a month, such will be the luminosity of their skin.

Galium aparine

It is traditionally used as a lymphatic and diuretic.

The best way to take it is as a cold water infusion.  To make, gather your Cleavers (preferably above dog height), wash and soak overnight in cold water.  Strain off and drink throughout the day.

I make a whole bunch and put it in a glass bottle in the fridge.  It's good for about 3 days.  I really like the taste, it reminds me of sweet pea.

I love the fact that you often find Cleavers and Nettle growing together.  If you are harvesting for your springtime detox, they're the perfect accompaniment.

Cleavers and Nettle

Actions: anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, slightly astringent, nervine tonic, sedative. Mildly bitter.

Traditionally used as a nervine tonic, antispasmodic (records dating back to 1800s).  It appears to act via the Central Nervous System to build and restore its tone and to allow relaxation and rest.  It's a sedative.

Caution: If fresh, the volatile oils act as a diaphoretic and emmenagogue (so avoid if you are pregnant).  Patients react differently to skullcap but its generally a hypnotic whilst allowing daytime activities (unless the patient has chronic sleep debt.

If fresh, the volatile oils act as a diaphoretic and emmenagogue.  Emmenagogues encourage menstrual flow, therefore avoid the fresh plant in pregnancy, unless under the care of a qualified professional.

Skullcap

Traditional Use

1. Irritability of the nervous system with restlessness and nervous excitability; inability to sleep without pain; general irritability with insomnia from local causes
2. A nervous disorder, characterised by irregular muscular action twitching, tremours and restlessness

More Modern Usage

Anxiolytic

A double blind, placebo-controlled study of healthy subjects demonstrated noteworthy anxiolytic effects (Wolfson and Hoffman, 2003).

Nervous Exhaustion

Often appearing as nervous agitation, restlessness, insomnia and musculoskeletal agitation and tension (Bergner, 2002).  It’s not appropriate for inflammatory conditions of the nervous system (Bergner, 2002).

Good herbs to start with include: chamomile (roman chamomile tastes more bitter than german chamomile). That's a lesson I won't forget in a hurry. Before I trained as a herbalist, I decided to grow some chamomile in my garden because I liked the idea of making my own herbal tea. I put 3 fresh chamomile flowers in my cup. Boy was it bitter? Of course, now I love bitter herbs.  It's amazing how your taste buds adapt.

Roman Chamomile

I love this picture because, if you look closely, you can seem Roman Chamomile and Dandelion growing together.  The perfect digestive combination.

The easiest way to tell the difference between German and Roman Chamomile is by the yellow centre or receptacle.  German Chamomile has a domed receptacle, Roman Chamomile has a flat receptacle. If you were to cut the receptacle open, Roman Chamomile's would be solid, German Chamomile's receptacle would be hollow.

Traditional Use

The flower heads are widely used in traditional and herbal medicine because of its anti-inflammatory, spasmolytic, antipeptic, sedative, antibacterial and antifungal properties. The German E commission has approved chamomile for internal use in the treatment of gastrointestinal spasm and inflammatory diseases and externally for inflammation of the skin, mucous membranes and ano-genital area, bacterial skin diseases and respiratory tract infection.  Traditionally used as a carminative, antispasmodic, mild sedative, anti-inflammatory and antiseptic.  Herbalist fondly refer to chamomile as the 'mother of the gut'.

Phytochemistry

Up to 10% of the chamomile flower head is made up of mucilage . Flavonoids and phenols have been isolated from the chamomile flower head along with mucilage which contains amino acids, polysaccharides and fatty acids. Major flavonoids include apigenin, quercetin, patuletin, luteolin and their glycosides. Chamomile contains large concentrations of apigenin  (McKay and Blumberg, 2006). The coumarins, herniarin and umbelliferone, have also been isolated and are water-soluble.

Components isolated in the essential oil of Matricaria recutita include the terpenoids α-bisabolol and its oxides (up to 78%) and
azulenes such as chamazulene (between 1 to 15%). The chamomile tea contains 10 to 15% of the essential oil found in the flower. Wild growing chamomile contains more minerals and cultivated chamomile has a higher ratio of K/Na and Ca/Mg. Approximately 10 to 26% of chamomile tea contains minerals, in particular potassium, calcium and magnesium.

Antioxidant

Chamomile has been found to be moderately antioxidant, largely due to the large quantities of apigenin found in chamomile.  A water extract was found to have a higher antioxidant potential then an alcohol extract. Chama zulene was found to inhibit iron/ascorbate induced lipid peroxidation.  Chamazulene is formed from the naturally occurring matricin as a result of high temperatures or acid conditions.

Antimicrobial

Camomile essential oil has demonstrated some antimicrobial activity. Moroccan chamomile (Ormensis multicaulis) was found to be the most effective; with German chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) oil found to be slightly more effective than Roman chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile). The efficacy was low when compared to other essential oils such as bay leaf, clove, cinnamon and thyme.

Antiplatelet Activity

An aqueous extract of chamomile demonstrated significant in vitro antiplatelet activity. Chamomile strongly inhibited ADP or collagen induced thromboxane B2 synthesis. Unlike alfalfa or nettle, chamomile did not significantly increase platelet levels of cGMP.

Anti-inflammatory

Apigenin was found to have in vitro anti-inflammatory properties. It was able to reduce leukocyte adhesion and up-regulate adhesion proteins in human endothelial cells. Apigenin was observed inhibiting interleukin-1 prostaglandin synthesis and the production of interleukin-6 and interleukin-8 by tumour necrosis factor–α. Research conducted on mice has demonstrated delayed-type hypersensitivity from apigenin.

Chamazulene, but not matricine, has been found in vitro to be anti-inflammatory. Research conducted in vitro on human basophils has suggested chamomile is anti-allergenic. Quercetin and apigenin were found to be the most effective
inhibitors of histamine released from basophils.

Research carried out on rats demonstrated chamomile’s ability to reduce inflammation and leucocyte infiltration.  Research has demonstrated the dose dependent antipruritic action of an ethyl acetate extract of dried chamomile flowers.  Further research demonstrated that an ethanol extract and an ethanol extract of a hot water infusion of chamomile tea were antipruritic. This effect has been compared to the anti-allergy medication oxatomide.

Hypercholesterolaemia

An aqueous extract was found to reduce serum cholesterol level in hyperlipidaemic rats without affecting the control rats
cholesterol or triglyceride levels.

Gastrointestinal disorders

Research has indicated antispasmodic activity may be attributed to α-bisabolol, herniarin, and flavonoids such as patuletin
and apigenin.

Gastrointestinal smooth muscle tone is regulated by cyclic nucleotides, cAMP and cGMP, which cause the smooth muscle in
the gut to relax.  Phosphodiesterases (PDE) trigger the hydrolysis of cAMP and cGMP to 5’-AMP and 5’-GMP.  Antispasmodic
drugs inhibit the phosphodiesterases.  The study conducted by Maschi et al., (2008) found that, like most antispasmodic drugs, chamomile is able to inhibit cAMP-PDE activity but not cGMP-PDE activity.  Maschi et al., (2008) found that the inhibitory effect was due to the flavonoids rather than the phenolic acids, α-bisabolol or coumarins.  It has been suggested that the flavonoid glucosides are metabolised in the gut creating aglycones, which in turn increases the effects of the flavonoids.

Aqueous and oil extracts of chamomile were found to be antispasmodic in guinea-pig ileum. Bisabolol was found to be 91% as effective on spasms as the drug, papaverine. Research has suggested that an ethanol extract of chamomile is effective in reducing spasm caused by acetylcholine and histamine. Apigenin and α-bisabolol inhibited the formation of gastric ulcers induced by indomethacin, stress and alcohol in rats. This research also demonstrated the ability of α-bisabolol to increase the rate of healing of gastric ulcers. Apigenin was found to reduce small and large intestinal transit time in mice suffering from diarrhoea brought on by castor oil.

Considerable research exists that demonstrates the effectiveness of chamomile in treating infant colic. A chamomile extract and apple pectin combination was found to be effective in treating acute, non-complicated diarrhoea in children.

Hepatic effects

Chamomile tea has been found to change hepatic cytochrome P-450 activity. Ceramide accumulates in tissue as a result of ageing and has been found to regulate the effects of ageing. The flavonoids found in chamomile such as apigenin, luteolin and quercetin have been found to reduce ceramide levels in the livers of elderly rats to a level similar to that of adult rats.

Anxiolytic via the central nervous system

An aqueous chamomile extract has been found to be anxiolytic when prescribed at a moderate dose (30-100 kg / millilitre)
and a sedative when prescribed at high doses.

Rats who had had their ovaries removed demonstrated the ability of an inhaled chamomile oil to reduce raised plasma
adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) caused by stress. Diazepam administered with the chamomile oil inhalation was able to
reduce ACTH levels further. The benzodiazepine antagonist, flumazenile, was found to block the effect of the inhaled chamomile
oil on ACTH.  This suggests apigenin, found in chamomile, affects the benzodiazepine receptors differently than benzodiazepine receptor ligands like diazepam.

It is thought that some of the sedative ability of chamomile is caused by compounds other than apigenin better able to
bind to benzodiazepine and GABA receptors in the brain.

Topical application

Research has demonstrated that chamomile is effective topical application in the treatment of atopic dermatitis or eczema,
radiation therapy and erythema.  Research has indicated that chamomile is as effective as a 0.25% hydrocortisone cream and more effective than a glucocorticoid and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory cream in the treatment of eczema.

Inhalation treatments

A hospital based study found that chamomile oil applied to topically or inhaled was affected in reducing pain during labour
and childbirth.  A study of chamomile essential oil showed that inhaling it significantly reduced alpha-1 activity in the parietal and posterior temporal lobes, and the subjects reported feeling comfortable.

Adverse reactions / toxicity

Allergic reactions have been reported, particularly in individuals with allergies to other plants in the daisy family.  There is a theoretical risk of Matricaria spp. potentiating Warfarin due to coumarin constituents.

Thyme is another favourite of mine. Although you can grown it from seed, it's a lot quicker to get a seedling from the garden centre. You don't need a large plant as it grows quickly but be sure you know which type of thyme you are getting. Garden centres often don't include the latin name.  The one you are after is Thymus vulgaris or Common Thyme.

Thymus vulgaris or Common Thyme

Thyme is strongly anti-viral, and therefore excellent for treating colds and flu. Gather it in spring / summer for use in tea for the winter cold season. Makes a good sore throat tea or syrup in combination with licorice root (available from health food shops)

Scutellaria baicalensis (Baikal skullcap; Huang qin) is an amazing anti-allergy herb.

Scutellaria baicalensis (Baikal skullcap; Huang qin)

Key Constituents: flavone derivatives - baicalein and baicalin; wogonin

Actions: antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory

Use:

• traditionally used to control airway allergic or inflammatory diseases
• anti-allergic – inhibits histamine release from mast cells
• antibacterial
• the phytochemical Baicalein is anti-inflammatory.  Animal models have shown baicalein to inhibit inflammation through inhibition of COX-2 gene expression and to suppress LPS induced degradation of IκBα and activation of NF-κB
• In vitro studies have suggested baicalein is a potent inhibitor of production of some inflammatory cytokines from human mast cells. The inhibitory mechanism may be due to inhibition of NF-κB activation pathway and IκBα phosphorylation and degradation
• Mucolytic – anti-inflammatory and analgesic by inhibiting inflammatory mediators and proinflammatory cytokines as
  well as neutrophil infiltration at sites of inflammation
• Inhaling baicalin was found to inhibit airway hyper-responsiveness (a really important finding in relation to asthma)
• baicalin and wogonin can regulate ‘ATP stimulated mucin release’ by directly acting on airway mucin-secreting cells.  The inhibitory actions of baicalin and wogonin on induced mucin release might explain, at least in part, the traditional use of Scutellaria baicalensis as a mucoregulator or antitussive for airway inflammatory diseases in oriental medicine

Other uses:

• anxiolytic - animal studies suggest wogonin is an anxiolytic due to its positive allosteric modulation by interacting with
  the benzodiazepine site at GABA receptors.
• Baicalen – CNS sedative

Contraindications: chronic low-grade cold diarrhoea

Althea officinalis (Marshmallow) is a beautiful herb, that feels amazingly soft to touch and is invaluable in respiratory and gastrointestinal disorders.

Althea officinalis (Marshmallow)

Key Constituents:
mucilage (water soluble = preserved well by cold maceration or syrup)

Actions: Demulcent, anti-inflammatory, relaxing expectorant, antitussive

Traditionally Used for: Bronchitis, catarrh & irritating cough

The high polysaccharide containing mucilage soothes and protects mucous membranes by forming a gelatinous layer over the membrane.

Pharmacological studies have found it to be an effective antitussive that, unlike codeine, supports expectoration

Contraindications: none reported

Phytochemistry

Alkamides, polyalkenes, polyalkynes, caffeic acid derivatives and polysaccharides have been isolated from the Echinacea species (Mahady et al., 2002).  The polyacetylenes and alkamides are lipophilic, whereas the polysaccharides and polyphenols are hydrophilic (Mirjalili et al., 2006).  There are significant differences in the secondary metabolites found in the roots and aerial parts of Echinacea angustifolia, Echinacea pallida and Echinacea purpurea (Pellati et al., 2005).

Isobutylamides have been isolated from the aerial parts of Echinacea purpurea, angustifolia and pallida (Mahady et al.,
2002).  Over 20 alkamides have been isolated in the root with the highest concentration found in Echinacea angustifolia, followed by Echinacea purpurea and the lowest concentrations have been found in Echinacea pallida (Mahady et al., 2002).

Cichoric acid, a derivative of the caffeic acid ester, is found in the aerial parts with the highest concentration being found in Echinacea purpurea, followed by Echinacea pallida and then Echinacea angustifolia (Mahady et al., 2002).  Pellati et al., (2005) isolated cichoric acid from Echinacea purpurea radix.

 Echinacea purpurea

The caffeic acid derivative, echinacoside, as found in highest concentrations in Echinacea angustifolia (Mahady et al., 2002).  It is found in trace amounts in Echinacea pallida and is not found in Echinacea purpurea (Pellati et al., 2005).  The caffeic acid derivative, cynarin, was isolated in the root of Echinacea angustifolia (Pellati et al., 2005).

Verbascoside has been isolated in Echinacea angustifolia and pallida (Mahady et al., 2002).  Echinacea purpurea contains two
polysaccharides known to stimulate the immune system (Mahady et al., 2002).  They are heteroxylan and arabinorhamnogalactan
(Mahady et al., 2002).

Trace amounts of the pyrrolizidine alkaloid has been isolated in Echinacea species (Mahady et al., 2002).  However this pyrrolizidine alkaloid does not have the 1,2-unsaturated necine ring found in the hepatotoxic pyrrolizidine alkaloid (Mahady et al., 2002).

Traditional use

The roots of the Echinacea species are traditionally used as an immunostimulant and to treat inflammatory and viral diseases (Pellati et al., 2005).

Immune modulation

Studies have demonstrated the ability of Echinacea angustifolia to activate the immune system by stimulating CD8 T-cells (Zwickey et al., 2007).  In a very small phase 0, double-blind, randomised study a 1:2 tincture of fresh Echinacea angustifolia root demonstrated an ability to activate CD4 T-cells within 24 hours (Zwickey et al., 2007).  This effect continued when reviewed after
seven days (Zwickey et al., 2007).  A combination extract of Echinacea purpurea, Astragalus membranaceus and Glycyrrhiza
glabra was not as effective as the herbs on their own (Zwickey et al., 2007).  It has been suggested that the ability of this herb to activate CD4 and CD8 T-cells demonstrates an adaptogenic action whereby the immune system is activated initially to respond to the immediate threat and at the same time sustaining cells involved in the longer term immune response (Zwickey et al., 2007).

Rats taking 3.3 g of Echinacea angustifolia each day for six weeks demonstrated a significant increase in primary and secondary IgG response to an antibody (Mahady et al., 2002).

Upper respiratory tract infections

Research suggests Echinacea may help to reduce the duration and symptoms associated with an upper respiratory tract infection due to its ability to enhance the immune response (Mahady et al., 2002).  Some research suggests a high dose (180 drops per day) as effective, whereas a low dose (90 drops per day) is not (Mahady et al., 2002).

Research suggests Echinacea is not effective as a prophylactic (Mahady et al., 2002).  A three-armed, randomised double-blind
placebo-controlled trial suggested that 91 mg (50 drops) of Echinacea purpurea root or Echinacea angustifolia root taken as a
prophylactic by healthy volunteers did not significantly reduce the incidence of upper respiratory tract infection (Mahady et al., 2002).  A double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial found that taking 300 mg three times daily of an Echinacea product
slightly improved resistance to rhino virus infection  (Mahady et al., 2002).  However, the results were not considered to be statistically significant (Mahady et al., 2002).

It is difficult to draw conclusions from the body of research available as there are inconsistencies in terms of the species
of Echinacea used, dosage applied and method of extraction (Mahady et al., 2002).  Research suggests an ethanol extract of Echinacea angustifolia or Echinacea purpurea is able to improve the phagocytic activity of polymorphonuclear neutrophil granulocytes (Mahady et al., 2002).  The same two trials noticed that leukocyte volumes had not changed as a result of taking either species of Echinacea (Mahady et al., 2002).

Anti-HIV

A phase 1 trial of HIV-positive patients that lasted 12 weeks found that a 1,000 mg capsule of the whole plant Echinacea angustifolia taken three times daily was able to reduce the viral load without affecting mean CD4 counts (Mahady et al., 2002).  The herb did not affect natural killer cell activity or encourage anti-HIV killing activity (Mahady et al., 2002).

Mechanism of action

In vitro studies found that a standardised extract of the herb comparing three Echinacea species increased phagocytosis (Mahady et al., 2002).  A separate study suggested this ability to stimulate phagocytosis was due to the lipophilic amides, alkamides and caffeic acid derivatives (Mahady et al., 2002).  In this study Echinacea purpurea was found to be the most active (Mahady et al.,
2002).  An in vitro study found that an extract of Echinacea was able to enhance natural killer cell activity and antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity in human blood cells (Mahady et al., 2002).

Antioxidant

Phenolics isolated in herbs have demonstrated an antioxidant activity (Pellati et al., 2005).  This radical scavenging activity
is thought to be due to hydroxyl groups found on aromatic rings with more hydroxyl groups resulting in greater radical scavenging activity (Pellati et al., 2005).  The caffeic acid derivatives, cynarin , echinacoside and cichoric acid demonstrated the greatest radical scavenging activity (Pellati et al., 2005).  Therefore, although all three species do exhibit antioxidant activity, Echinacea
purpurea has been suggested as a more potent antioxidant than Echinacea angustifolia, followed by Echinacea pallida (Pellati et al., 2005).  Research has suggested an 80% methanol extract in water is the most effective are extracting phenolic compounds from Echinacea (Pellati et al., 2005).

Side-effects and toxicity

Anaphylaxis after taking Echinacea has been reported in people suffering from allergies to plants and the daisy family (Mahady et al., 2002).

Onion Syrup is easy and quick to make.

To make it, layer equal amounts of onion and sugar, starting with sugar, then a layer of onion, then a layer of sugar. Make sure you finish with a layer of sugar at the top. It looks like this:

Seal the jar and leave overnight in a dark cupboard.

The next day your onion syrup looks like this:

Typical dosage is a teaspoon taken three times a day.