Herb to Know: Jewelweed

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Jewelweed’s effectiveness against poison ivy is supported by clinical trials, although the cure is not guaranteed. In 1957, R. A. Lipton found that complete cures from poison ivy were effected in 108 of 115 people treated with jewelweed extract.

The most common way to use jewelweed as a poison ivy treatment is to break off a stem, crush it, and rub the juice on the affected area. Another common method is to make an extract as follows: fill a six-quart pot full of jewelweed stems and leaves, cover them with water, boil the water down to half its original volume, then strain out the plant material. The brownish-orange extract maintains its potency for less than two weeks under refrigeration; frozen into ice cubes, it can be stored indefinitely. The cubes can be rubbed directly on poison ivy eruptions or insect bites or stings, and the cold gives additional relief. (Always use a water rather than an alcohol extract of jewelweed; the latter occasionally has been reported to cause adverse reactions.)

Topical application of jewelweed juice or extract not only cures the discomfort of ivy poisoning; it also protects against the reaction if you rub it on before venturing into poison ivy habitat. You may also wish to rub jewelweed juice on the handles of tools that have been used in areas where poison ivy grows.

My own experience has confirmed the numerous claims that jewelweed juice is effective against the discomfort of stinging nettles, bee stings, and mosquito bites. An encounter between my lawn mower and a huge nest of yellowjackets gave me an opportunity to test it on yellowjacket stings as well. Rubbing jewelweed ice cubes on the stings almost instantly relieved the pain and swelling, but the effect was only temporary. However, whenever the pain returned, I reapplied the jewelweed, and I felt no more than ten minutes’ discomfort altogether in the three days before I felt I was cured.

Culinary Possibilities

The edibility of jewelweed has been the subject of considerable controversy. Raw, the plant is rather acrid, and no animals other than goats will eat it. Boiled in two changes of water, it is bland and the nutrients are probably pretty much gone, so I see no reason to use it as a potherb, although Euell Gibbons liked it a lot. Those interested in trying it can follow these guidelines:

If you eat shoots longer than 6 inches, you risk vomiting and diarrhea. Young shoots up to about 2 inches long can be eaten raw, and shoots from 4 to 6 inches long, cut into bite-sized pieces, may be eaten if cooked in two to three waters for 10 to 15 minutes each. (The first cooking water can be frozen into cubes as a first-aid treatment.) Season the shoots with butter, salt, pepper, and perhaps a bit of vinegar. The cooked shoots can also be served like asparagus or poke in a cream sauce on toast for a light spring supper.

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