Goldenrod herb has SO many amazing uses! We talked last week about the historic uses and also what modern herbalists are doing with goldenrod.

With the cold and flu season moving in, we were able to test out some goldenrod right away. My oldest was starting with the early symptoms of a cold and had a sore throat setting in.

Making Goldenrod Tea

For the sore throat, we reached for dried goldenrod and made a simple tea. The variety that we’d harvested had a bitter flavor, so we added dried peppermint to the mix to enhance the flavor a bit, and sweetened it with honey. A pinch of echinacea flower or berry would also be a welcome addition to this blend.

Goldenrod is rich in antioxidents. Herbalist and researcher Robert Dale Rogers says that goldenrod contains 7x the antioxidant levels of green tea.⁴ It’s especially rich in the flavonoid rutin

My daughter not only drank the tea (the first step in a successful herbal remedy- getting it down the hatch!) but she said that she really felt it helped. She made herself another cup later that afternoon. I count that a success!

I’d also consider a tea of fennel and goldenrod as a great blend for handling a gassy, grumpy stomach.

Making Goldenrod Tincture

For full on “battling a virus”, I really like the power of a tincture. The alcohol extraction is able to pull out the most potent components of an herb.

Since I’m in experimentation mode, I filled a pint jar with dried or fresh goldenrod flowers and leaves, and covered it with rum. I like to let this mix steep for several months, and sometimes I forget to strain it until the following year. But as you can see from the fresh rabbit tobacco tincture here, you’ll still get good use and some action out of a fairly fresh batch.

Making Wound Powder

One of the actions of goldenrod is as a styptic- it constricts bleeding and has been used historically as a wound treatment. So I thought it would be a great ingredient in a wound powder.

Wound powder is used to help seal off bleeding wounds. I chose to use herbs traditionally used for wounds- to support healing, to help stop the bleeding, and to avoid infection.

I used a mix of goldenrod, plantain herb, and a lichen called Usnea that’s been used historically in many different cultures for treating wounds.

I ground the mixture in a coffee grinder that I use only for herbals, and then strained out the larger pieces. A folded piece of paper helps me bottle it up easily into a little glass vial.

I’m looking forward to testing this out, and will keep it on hand in my first aid kit.

With a wound powder, you can choose any combination of herbs. Other good options to consider would be: cayenne, turmeric, or comfrey leaf.

These are just a few simple ways that I plan on experimenting and using this fantastic herb! There are so many options to tailor how you use an herb to a specific situation. Do you have any experience or ideas for using goldenrod herb?

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