Burnet (Sanguisorba minor)
Folk Names: Garden Burnet, Great Burnet, Poterium sanguisorba, Salad Burnet
Description: Burnet is a Eurasian plant. It is also found in North America from Nova Scotia to Ontario and south to Virginia and Tennessee. Burnet is a perennial. A basal rosette of pinnate leaves surround slender stalks growing from ten to thirty inches. The serrate leaflets are oval and gray-green. Light green to yellowish flowers appear in clusters from May to July. The female flowers on the upper part have protruding red stigmas. Males on the lower have dropping yellow stamens.
Effects:
Planet: sun
Element:
Associated Deities:
Traditions:
During the American Revolution, soldiers took burnet as a tea, trusting that it would stop them from bleeding to death if they received any wounds the following day. This belief comes from the plant’s name, Sanguisorba, meaning, "blood absorber."
There is some tradition of burnet being used in tool consecration.
Magic:
Use burnet in healing spells designed to stanch the flow of blood. Burnet is protective against disease as well.
Burnet has also been used to banish negativity, depression, and despondency. For this purpose and to prevent contagion, Culpepper suggests that a few stalks be steeped in wine, specifically Claret.
Known Combinations:
none noted
Medical Indications: (Caution:) Parts used:
Burnet was once administered for any kind of “abnormal discharge,” including diarrhea and digestive disorders. In 16th century England, it was used for rheumatism and gout and during the 17th century as protection from plague and other infectious diseases.
Nutrition:
Young leaves have the best taste, reminiscent of cucumber. French and Italian cooks add fresh leaves to salad, soup, vinegars, cream cheese, herbal butter, and iced drinks,
Mercantile Uses:
There is some use for burnet as browse for livestock and for wild life. It is also useful to check soil erosion.