Red Clover

(Trifolium Pratense)

Also called: Purple clover, wild clover, trefoil, purple cloves, suckles, bee-bread, cocksheads.

Description: It grows in grassland, fields and waysides. The flowers are purple-red in dense roundish oblong heads; the leaflets are broad, oval, or inversely heart-shaped, notched, often marked with a white crescent shaped spot.

Source: Native to Europe and naturalised throughout the United States.

Part used: Flowering tops.

Constituents and Action: Red clover contains, amongst other ingredients, silica and lime.
It is an excellent blood purifier and helps the healing of fresh wounds and any sores.
Skin eruptions of children respond well to this remedy: the affected parts should be bathed.
Folk remedy for blood purification, bronchitis, whooping cough, asthma, skin conditions and cancer.
Also a rich source of phytoestrogen Isoflavones, which may help prevent cancer.

Part used: Flowers.

Forms available: Teas, capsules, tinctures.

Directions for use: Use in place of tea and coffee and make as ordinary tea by adding 1½ pints of boiling water to 2 teaspoonsful of the dried flowers.
Any parts of the skin may be bathed with the tea.

Caution: Avoid if you're pregnant unless monitored by a qualified health-care practitioner.

A field of clover may vie with a bean-field or the hop garden in sweethess of odour.

Clover is a corruption of the Latin clava, a club, and the 'clubs' on our playing cards are representations of clover leaves.

It was introduced into England by Sir Richard Weston in 1645 and contains more nutriment for cattle than any other fodder.

This is a sensitive plant and Pliny said: 'Its leaves do start up as if afraid of an assault when tempestuous weather is at hand'.

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