White Horehound, Horehound
Marrubium vulgare

Family: Lamiaceae or Labiatae

What it is like

Marrubium vulgare is a PERENNIAL growing to 0.5 m (1ft 8in) by 0.5 m (1ft 8in). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 3 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from June to November, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Bees. The plant is self-fertile. It is noted for attracting wildlife. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil.

Height (m): 0.5

Where it is found

Downs, waste places and roadsides southwards from central Scotland, though perhaps only native near the south coast of England.

Europe, including Britain, south and east to N. Africa, the Azores, central and western Asia.

Conservation Status:

Countries/locations it is found in

How it is used

Food

Rating: 1

The leaves are used as a seasoning. Bitter and pungent, they are sometimes used to flavour herb beer or liqueurs. Horehound ale is a fairly well-known drink made from the leaves. A mild pleasantly flavoured tea is made from the fresh or dried leaves, it is a favourite cough remedy.

Condiment: the various plants that are used as flavourings, either as herbs, spices or condiments.

Tea: the various herb teas that can be used in place of tea, plus the genuine article.

Medicine

Rating: 3

White horehound is a well-known and popular herbal medicine that is often used as a domestic remedy for coughs, colds, wheeziness etc. The herb apparently causes the secretion of a more fluid mucous, readily cleared by coughing. The leaves and young flowering stems are antiseptic, antispasmodic, cholagogue, diaphoretic, digestive, diuretic, emmenagogue, strongly expectorant, hepatic, stimulant and tonic. Horehound is a very valuable pectoral, expectorant and tonic that can be safely used by children as well as adults. It is often made into a syrup or candy in order to disguise its very bitter flavour, though it can also be taken as a tea. As a bitter tonic, it increases the appetite and supports the function of the stomach. It can also act to normalize heart rhythm. The plant is harvested as it comes into flower and can be used fresh or dried. The root is a remedy for the bite of rattlesnakes, it is used in equal portions with Plantago lanceolata or P. major. The German Commission E Monographs, a therapeutic guide to herbal medicine, approve Marrubium vulgare for dyspepsia, loss of appetite.

Antidiarrhoeal: Provides symptomatic relief for diarrhoea. Also see Astringent.

Antidote: Counters poisoning.

Antiflatulent: Reduces flatulence, particularly gas from eating legumes. See also Carminative.

Antiseptic: Preventing sepsis, decay or putrefaction, it destroys or arrests the growth of micro-organisms.

Antispasmodic: Relaxes muscular spasms and cramps, calming nervous irritation.

Appetizer: Improves the appetite

Cholagogue: Increases the flow of bile and its discharge from the body.

Diaphoretic: Induces perspiration.

Digestive: Aids digestion.

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.

Hepatic: Acts on the liver (for better or worse!).

Stimulant: Excites or quickens activity of the physiological processes. Faster acting than a tonic but differing from a narcotic in that it does not give a false sense of well-being.

TB: Plants used in the treatment of tuberculosis

Tonic: Improves general health. Slower acting than a stimulant, it brings steady improvement.

Other

Rating: 3

An essential oil is obtained from the plant and used as a flavouring in liqueurs. The plant has been used as a cure for cankerworm in trees. No more details are given but it is probably a strong infusion of the flowering shoots, or the essential oil, that is used. The growing plant repels flies.

Companion: Companion planting is the careful placement of plants (especially vegetables and herbs) which have been shown to have beneficial effects on one another.

Essential: Essential oils that are used in perfumery, medicines, paint solvents, insect repellents etc.

Repellent: Plants that are said to deter but not necessarily kill various mammals, birds, insects etc.

Attracts Wildlife: Plants noted for attracting wildlife

Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.

Scented Plants: Plants noted for their scent

How it is grown

White horehound is an easily grown plant that succeeds in most well-drained soils, though it flourishes best in a poor dry soil. Another report says that the plant flourishes best where there is plenty of nitrogen in the soil. It prefers neutral to alkaline soil conditions and requires a warm sunny position if it is to do well. Often grown in the herb garden and sometimes cultivated commercially as a medicinal herb. If the plant is cut back after flowering it will normally produce a second crop of leaves. The fresh leaves have a pronounced musky smell, though this is lost once the plant is dried. A good bee plant. White horehound is a good companion plant for growing near tomatoes. The tomatoes crop for a longer period and also produce a heavier crop. In garden design, as well as the above-ground architecture of a plant, root structure considerations help in choosing plants that work together for their optimal soil requirements including nutrients and water. The root pattern is rhizomatous with underground stems sending roots and shoots along their length .

Propagating it: Seed - sow April/May or August/September in a cold frame. Germination can be slow and erratic. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and plant them out in the following spring. Basal cuttings in late spring. Harvest the shoots with plenty of underground stem when they are about 8 - 10cm above the ground. Pot them up into individual pots and keep them in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer. Division in spring. Larger clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the spring.

Best place to grow: Cultivated Beds;

Habit: Perennial

Hardiness: 3-7

Growth:

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Dry, moist

Things to keep in mind

Heart rhythm, blood pressure, and blood glucose levels affected by large doses. Avoid during pregnancy and breast feeding. Diabetes mellitus patients on allopathic medication to lower blood sugar should avoid .

Its other names

Local names

White Horehound, Horehound, Common horehound

Synonyms

Marrubium apulum. Marrubium ballotoides. Marrubium germanicum. Marrubium uncinatum.