COMMON NAME : Queen Anne's Lace, Wild Carrot, Birds Nest, Bee's Nest Plant, Devils Plague, Fools Parsley, Herbe a dinde, Lace Flower, Rantipole

ELEMENT : Fire

RULING PLANET : Mars (Cunningham for cultivated) Mercury (Culpeper for wild)

GENDER : Masculine

MAGICKAL POWERS : Fertility, Lust

DESCRIPTION : Queen Anne's Lace is a biennial that grows 2-4 feet high. The angular stem is branched and hairy. Young stems resemble Poison Hemlock, Conium maculatum.

The leaves are 2-8 inches long. They are arranged alternately along the stem and pinnately compound. They are finely divided. The lower leaves are larger than the upper leaves. The base of the leaf stem clasps the main stem.

The white to rosey-white flowers are in compact terminal umbels, slightly convex or flat, with many rays that form lace-like patterns. The peduncle divides from one point, each ray divides further and forms the umbel. One flower in the middle of the cluster is dark red-purple or black. 3 forked bracts are found under the umbel. Each of the main flower clusters may contain as many as 500 individual flowers. Flowers appear May-October.

Do not confuse Queen Anne's Lace with poisonous water hemlock - Cicuta maculata, poison hemlock - Conium maculatum, or fools parsley - Aethusa cynapium. Look for the dark red or purple flower in center of the flower umbel.

Spent flowers draw together to form the cup-like shape, hence the common names Birds Nest and Bees Nest.

Seeds are dull brown, and are convex on one side and flat on the other, and are released from mid-summer to early winter. To help dispersal of the seeds, they are barbed and easily caught on animals.

The root is yellow-white and fleshy and is strongly aromatic, with a pungent, slightly bitter taste.

CULTIVATION : You will find Queen Anne's Lace growing wild on waste ground, along roadsides, and on farmland pastures and meadows.

PART OF THE PLANT USED : The root, seeds and leaves are used.

PLANT ANALYSIS : The plant contains potassium salts, essential oil, carotene, flavonoids, volatile oil including asarone, carotol, pinene, limonene, carotinoids, polyynes, and saccharose.

MEDICINAL ACTION : Abortifacient, antiseptic, Antibacterial, astringent, Carminative, diuretic, Deobstruent, emmenagogue, stimulant, anthelmintic, carminative, mild vermifuge

Different parts of the plants have different properties. The seeds are an abortifacient, carminative, diuretic, and emmenagogue, and are used for edema, flatulence, hangovers and late menses. The root is an antibacterial, liver tonic, and urinary antiseptic.

MEDICINAL USE : Warning : May cause dermatitis and blisters.

Current uses include: tonsillitis, nutritional disorders and dietary agent for digestive disorders, photodermatosis and pigment anomalies,amenorrhea, bladder stones, cystitis, flatulence, gallstones, placenta retention, and teas for intestinal parasites.

Doucorin extract from cultivated carrots have been clinically prepared as a mild laxative, antispasmodic, for arteriosclerosis and coronary deficiencies with symptoms of stenocardia.

Traditional uses include: Tea of root or leaves used as a diuretic, a preventative for kidney stones and worms, and a treatment for hangovers. The leaves and seeds of Queen Anne's Lace was used in decoctions for flatulence.

A decoction made from fresh or dried roots was used for persistent cough and asthma.

It is a folk remedy that was used as a "morning after" contraceptive to stimulate menstruation. The seeds of Queen Anne's Lace were eaten for one week after unprotected sex. It is said to make the endometrium lining slick. The egg cannot implant itself. It is not recommended for this use.

Use the crushed whole plant mixed with honey externally as a poultice on skin ulcers and abscesses to relieve pain and lesson the discharge. The poultice may also be used on burns and scalds.

Carotene is converted by the liver to vitamin A, which improves night blindness and vision in general. Carotene is also believed to help prevent certain types of cancer.

An infusion of the leaves is a good diuretic and may be used to help cystitis and diminish and stop the formation of kidney stones.

DOSAGE : NOT TO BE USED DURING PREGNANCY.

For infusion or decoction : 1 tablespoon seeds or herb with 1 cup boiling water. 1 cup per day.

MAGICKAL USE : For women, use Queen Anne's Lace in rituals/spells for increased fertility. For men, use when an increase in potency and/or sexual desire is wanted.

HISTORY :

The common name Wild Carrot was given to this plant by William Turner in 1548. Queen Anne's Lace is an American name, but is also refers to a plant in England, cow parsley - Anthriscus sylvestris. The name Queen Anne is said to be derived from Saint Anne the patron saint of lacemakers, not from the Queen of England.

The name daucus is from the Greek daukos or daukon, a kind of carrot or parsnip.

Wild carrot was known to Greeks. It had several names: staphylinos, sisaron, elaphoboscum among them. The name pastinace was used for both carrot and parsnip in the time of Pliny. Pastinace is based on the verb pastinare to dig up ( the fleshy root.)

In the 2nd century the name Daucus pastinaca was given to Wild Carrot by Galen in an attempt to distinguish it from the parsnip, which became Pastinaca sativa.

Also in the 2nd century the name Carota can be found in the writings of Greek scholar Athenaeus. In the 16th century Linnaeus gave, as the official name of both wild and cultivated carrot, the name Daucus carota.

The common name Herbe a dinde derived from its use as a feed for young young turkeys-dinde.

There seems to be a discrepancy in the family name : (Umbelliferae, Fernald 1951; Ammiaceae, Rydberg 1971). Umbelliferae (parsley family) is a subfamily of carrot - family names seem to be interchangeable on this one.

The cultivated garden carrot is a descendant of this plant. The exact origins are unknown but it has been cultivated since the time of ancient Greece and Rome.

The seeds of Wild Carrot were recommended for relief of urinary retention and to stimulate menstruation by the physician Dioscorides.

The cultivated variety reached Britain in the 16th century. Women used the leaves to decorate their hair and hats.

The first colonists to America are credited with bringing carrots to this area. The plants were grown with seeds brought with them. The plants escaped local gardens and reverted to the wild state.

The Crow Native Americans used the escaped wild carrot as a diuretic, and stimulant to bring on menstruation.

LORE : To cure epileptic seizures, eat the dark colored, middle flower.

Legend says that dark colored flower is the drop of blood Queen Anne (1665-1714) lost when she pricked her finger making lace.

For cultivated carrot:

If a man wants to cure impotence andy increase lust, eat a few carrots.

CULINARY : First year roots are considered best and are used like garden carrots. They are best served as a cooked vegetable rather than raw.

If cows consume too much of this plant, it gives their milk a bitter flavor.

Dried and ground Wild Carrot root may be prepared as a coffee substitute, similar to chicory.

COSMETIC USE: To even out redness on your face use 4 tablespoons mixed juice from Wild Carrot and Parsley roots thickened with honey and yogurt. Wash your face and apply this mixture and leave it for 20 minutes. Rinse with lukewarm water and pat dry.