Photo of Stinging Nettle by Robert W. Smith, courtesy of Michigan Flora Online, https://michiganflora.net
MI BACKYARD
By Jennifer Devine
One of the first spring greens to pop up, nettles can be found in wetlands, swamps, nitrogen-rich soils, riverbeds, stream banks, old barns, moist areas, disturbed forests and in your own garden.
The nettles family Urticacrae includes about 500 species worldwide.
Nettles found in different parts of Michigan include Clearweed; Bog clearweed, which is often confused with Clearweed; False nettle; Wood or Canada nettle; and Pellitory.
Feel the burn
Our stinging nettles are Urtica dioica (Stinging nettle), Urtica dioica gracilis (a subspecies of dioica known as Selander or American stinging nettle), and the far less common non-native Urtica urens (European stinging nettle). Nettle is an Anglo-Saxon word meaning “needle,” and its Latin name Urtica means “to burn.”
Stinging nettle leaves and stalks bear trichomes containing formic acid which produce the sensation of an ant or bee sting. According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov), those little needle-like hairs on the leaves also contain histamine, acetylcholine and serotonin. Reactions can be delayed or present right away and last up to 12 hours.
Both of Michigan’s native stinging nettles are found all over the state, mostly near willows. These 3-foot- to 8-foot-tall perennial powerhouses have a ton of uses. Leaves are rough, dark green, opposite, and up to 4 inches long ⸺ with toothed edges. Use gloves and scissors to harvest. In the wild, stinging nettle is the most fuzzy and prickly of Michigan’s nettles; you may also find large patches of jewelweed and goldenrod growing nearby. Jewelweed sap is beneficial as a rash reducer for poison ivy and stinging nettle.
The young nettle leaves are heart shaped and edible. Pick from and trim this plant like you would an herb. The plant will continue to sprout new young tops with this method, much like mint (a cousin plant) and basil. You can grow nettle in the garden as an edging, to keep rabbits and other wildlife from further nibbling your yummy fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers. (Caution: Nettles spread easily.) Plant it purposefully near your spinach and kale because it is high in nitrogen. Nettles attract aphids, which may help draw the bugs from your other garden plants.
To make nettle tea fertilizer, simply pick a pound of your older nettle plants ⸺ and the longer, tougher leaves near the bottom ⸺ and place them in a 1-gallon bucket of water, (5 pounds for 5 gallons). Add a lid, then use a stick to stir the mixture daily for about a month or until bubbles stop rapidly coming to the top when you stir. This means the mixture has fermented enough to use as a natural garden insecticide, a powdery mildew/fungal spray, and a “miracle” type of fertilizer rich in potassium. Your tomatoes will thank you! Simply dilute your garden tea with about 10% water before spraying and pouring.
Nettle’s human uses
Nettle plays an important role in the lifecycle of butterflies, such as red admiral, small tortoiseshell and comma ⸺ just as milkweed is important to monarchs. Beneficial to insects, stinging nettle is useful to humans, too. Rinse fresh leaves (hands still in gloves) and use them steamed, fried or fresh. (When using fresh leaves, be sure to rub them during washing to remove their “needles.”) Try them as a spinach substitute in quiche, soups, pastas, sides and more. Stinging nettles can also be dried in a dehydrator, which also cuts the sting, and chopped and placed into an airtight freezer-proof container and stored for later use. Grind it into a powder and use it in smoothies, or bake with it.
It seems the usefulness of stinging nettle cannot be overemphasized. USDA and other studies confirm the leaves are rich in vitamins, minerals and healing properties. A blog post on the North Cascades Institute’s website states that Indigenous Peoples wound fibrous stalks into rope or fishing nets, and stalk fibers have been used as a cotton substitute in fabric for many years. During WWII, Germans used the plant to dye their fabrics green. In Roman times, Caesar’s troops stung themselves to stay alert. France used it to make paper. Back at the National Institutes of Health’s medical library, we find that stinging nettle is a popular wild edible in Nepal, Romanians use it in sour soup, and ancient Egyptians reportedly used an infusion for the relief of arthritis. This site, and others, explains stinging nettle is high in energy, proteins, fats and fiber. In fact, Mother Earth News writes, “..more than 100 chemical components have been identified in nettle, including: Minerals ⸺ iron, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, manganese, copper, boron, strontium; Vitamins ⸺ A, C, K, and B; (and) Phytonutrients ⸺ chlorophyll, beta-carotene, lutein, zeaxanthin, quercetin, rutin..”
I hope you befriend stinging nettle and get to enjoy all its amazing benefits.
Jennifer Devine is a homesteader. She and her husband are licensed to sell black cherry, white oak and white pine trees. They and their children live off grid, have a large garden and enjoy spending much of their time outdoors.
2 Comments
Ms. Devine,
Can Stinging Nettle in Michigan be used to make vegetable rennet for homemade cheese.
Absolutely! Rennet, usually made with animal, gets the cheesemaking process started by coagulating the milk to separate curds from whey. Vegetable rennet is made from plants with the enzymes that coagulate, such as Stinging Nettle. You can find them fresh in the wild, grow them yourself or order online (you’ll need about half dried to fresh). I have not mastered growing them myself from seed, but hoping one of these gardening years I’ll create the right conditions, which will probably happen when I throw the seeds out in frustration somewhere, forgetting about them until BAM surprise nettle patch. Once you know your source for nettles look up one of my favorite non-USA foragers at monicawilde.com. Find her post “wild vegetable rennet” and her other post “how to make nettle cheese”. In that same cheese post she says you can use the spent nettles for ravioli or pesto which lends to the self-sufficient foraging no waste lifestyle and sounds absolutely delish.
-Jennifer