Chickweed, Common chickweed
Stellaria media
Family: Caryophyllaceae
What it is like
Bloom Color: White. Main Bloom Time: Early summer, Early fall, Early spring, Early winter, Late summer, Late fall, Late spring, Late winter, Mid summer, Mid fall, Mid spring, Mid winter. Form: Spreading or horizontal.
Stellaria media is a ANNUAL growing to 0.1 m (0ft 4in) by 0.5 m (1ft 8in) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 4 and is not frost tender. It is in leaf all year, in flower all year, and the seeds ripen all year. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Bees, flies. The plant is self-fertile. It is noted for attracting wildlife. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.
Height (m): 0.1
Where it is found
Growing almost anywhere, it is a common garden weed.
A cosmopolitan plant, found in most regions of the world, including Britain.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 2
Young leaves - raw or cooked as a potherb. They can be available all year round if the winter is not too severe. Very nutritious, they can be added to salads whilst the cooked leaves can scarcely be distinguished from spring spinach. The leaves contain saponins so some caution is advised, see the note on toxicity at the top of the page. A nutritional analysis is available. Seed - ground into a powder and used in making bread or to thicken soups. It would be very fiddly to harvest any quantity of this seed since it is produced in small quantities throughout most of the year and is very small. The seed contains 17.8% protein and 5.9% fat.
Seed: includes nuts, cereals, peas and beans.
Medicine
Rating: 3
Chickweed has a very long history of herbal use, being particularly beneficial in the external treatment of any kind of itching skin condition. It has been known to soothe severe itchiness even where all other remedies have failed. In excess doses chickweed can cause diarrhoea and vomiting. It should not be used medicinally by pregnant women. The whole plant is astringent, carminative, demulcent, diuretic, expectorant, laxative, refrigerant, vulnerary. Taken internally it is useful in the treatment of chest complaints and in small quantities it also aids digestion. It can be applied as a poultice and will relieve any kind of roseola and is effective wherever there are fragile superficial veins. An infusion of the fresh or dried herb can be added to the bath water and its emollient property will help to reduce inflammation - in rheumatic joints for example - and encourage tissue repair. Chickweed is best harvested between May and July, it can be used fresh or be dried and stored for later use. A decoction of the whole plant is taken internally as a post-partum depurative, emmenagogue, galactogogue and circulatory tonic. It is also believed to relieve constipation and be beneficial in the treatment of kidney complaints. The decoction is also used externally to treat rheumatic pains, wounds and ulcers. The expressed juice of the plant has been used as an eyewash.
Antirheumatic: Treats rheumatism.
Astringent: Produces contraction in living tissue, reducing the flow of secretions and discharges of blood, mucus, diarrhoea etc.
Carminative: Reduces flatulence and expels gas from the intestines.
Demulcent: Soothes, lubricates and softens irritated tissues, especially the mucous membranes.
Depurative: Eliminates toxins and purifies the system, especially the blood.
Diuretic: Acts on the kidneys, promoting the flow of urine.
Emmenagogue: Promotes or increases the menstrual flow. In early stages of pregnancy it can induce an abortion.
Expectorant: Clears phlegm from the chest by inducing coughing.
Galactogogue: Promotes the flow of milk in a nursing mother.
Kidney: Used in the treatment of kidney diseases
Laxative: Stimulates bowel movements in a fairly gentle manner.
Ophthalmic: Treats eye complaints.
Poultice: A moist, usually warm or hot, mass of plant material applied to the skin in the treatment of burns etc.
Refrigerant: Cools the body.
TB: Plants used in the treatment of tuberculosis
Vulnerary: Promotes the healing of wounds.
Other
Rating: 2
A dynamic accumulator gathering minerals or nutrients from the soil and storing them in a more bioavailable form - used as fertilizer or to improve mulch.
Attracts Wildlife: Plants noted for attracting wildlife
Dynamic accumulator: Plants that gather minerals or nutrients from the soil and store them in a more bioavailable form and in high concentration in their tissues. Used as fertilizer or to improve mulch.
Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.
How it is grown
A very easily grown plant, it prefers a moist soil and a position in full sun or partial shade. It can be very lush and vigorous when grown in a fertile soil, but in infertile soils it will flower and set seed whilst still very small. A very common garden weed, chickweed grows, flowers and sets seed all year round. The flowers open around 9 o'clock in the morning and remain open for about 12 hours. They do not open in dull weather. The leaves fold up of a night time, enfolding and protecting the tender buds of new shoots. A food plant for the caterpillars of many butterfly species. Special Features: Edible, Not North American native, Invasive, Naturalizing, Suitable for cut flowers, Suitable for dried flowers, Extended bloom season in Zones 9A and above. For polyculture design as well as the above-ground architecture (form - tree, shrub etc. and size shown above) information on the habit and root pattern is also useful and given here if available. A self-seeding annual. A clumping mat former. Forming a dense prostrate carpet spreading indefinitely. The root pattern is fibrous dividing into a large number of fine roots.
Propagating it: Seed - this species should not need any encouragement, you are much more likely to be trying to get rid of it than trying to introduce it (eating it is one way of doing that!).
Best place to grow: Cultivated Beds;
Habit: Annual
Hardiness: 4-11
Growth: Fast
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: Semi-shade, no shade
Moisture: Moist
Things to keep in mind
The leaves contain saponins. Although toxic, these substances are very poorly absorbed by the body and so tend to pass through without causing harm. They are also broken down by thorough cooking. Saponins are found in many plants, including several that are often used for food, such as certain beans. It is advisable not to eat large quantities of food that contain saponins. Saponins are much more toxic to some creatures, such as fish, and hunting tribes have traditionally put large quantities of them in streams, lakes etc in order to stupefy or kill the fish. Report of paralysis attributed to excessive intake. Should not be used during pregnancy or during breastfeeding .
Its other names
Local names
Synonyms
Alsine media. Alsine apetala. Arenaria vulgaris. Stellaria vulgaris.