Medicinal Shrubs and Woody Vines: Diervilla, Bush Honeysuckle

Only one variety of Bush Honeysuckle has documented use in Herbal Medicine, Diervilla lonicera - Bush Honeysuckle

Three varieties are native to my region: Diervilla lonicera (Northern Bush-honeysuckle)

Diervilla rivularis (Hairy Southern Bush-honeysuckle, Riverbank Bush-honeysuckle) and Diervilla sessilifolia (Smooth Southern Bush-honeysuckle)

Gerard wrote of Honeysuckle in general:

A. Dioscorides writeth that the ripe seed gathered and dried in the shadow, and drunk unto the quantity of one dram weight, forty days together, doth waste and consume away the hardness of the spleen, removeth wearisomeness, helpeth the shortness and difficulty of breathing, cureth the hicket, procureth bloody urine after the sixth day, and causeth women to have speedy travail in child bearing.

B. The leaves be of the same force: which being drunk thirty days together, are reported to make men barren and destroy their natural seed.

C. The flowers steeped in oil and set in the sun, is good to anoint the body that is benumbed, and grown very cold.

D. The distilled water of the flowers are given to be drunk with good success against the pissing of blood.

E. A syrup made of the flowers is good to be drunk against the diseases of the lungs and spleen that is stopped, being drunk with a little wine.

F. Notwithstanding the words of Galen (or rather of Dodonæus) it is certainly found by experience that the water of Honeyuckles is good against the soreness of the throat and uvula: and with the same leaves boiled, or the leaves and flowers distilled, are made divers good medicines against cankers and sore mouths, as well in children as elder people, and likewise for ulcerations and scaldings in the privy parts of man or woman; if there be added to the decoction hereof some alum or verdigris, if the sore require greater cleansing outwardly, provided always that there be no verdigris put into the water that must be injected into the secret parts.

Resources of The Southern Fields and Forests tells us:

BUSH HONEY-SUCKLE, {Diervilla trifida, Moench. and T. and G. Diervilla Canadensis, Ell. Sk. Muhl. Lonicera diervilla, Linn.)

Grows in the mountains of South Carolina and Georgia. Fl. June. Dem. Elem. de Bot. iii, 554.

The leaves possess a narcotic principle, inducing nausea, and are recommended as a gargle in catarrhal angina. The decoction calms the pain attending the disease; taken largely it causes stupor and catalepsy.

King’s American Dispensatory of 1898 states:

This is a woody shrub, growing in the United States from Canada to Carolina, in hedges and thickets, and by the sides of fences and rocks, flowering in June. The leaves, twigs, and roots are the parts used, and they yield their properties to alcohol, and boiling water in infusion.

Action, Medical Uses, and Dosage.—Diuretic, astringent, and alterative. A cold infusion of the bruised leaves and twigs, used freely, has been very beneficial in inflammation of the bladder, with gravelly deposit in the urine, in nephritic and calculous affections, and in gonorrhoea. The root, in decoction or syrup, has been lauded for the cure of syphilis. Externally applied in erysipelas, or erysipelatous inflammations, and over the inflamed surface occasioned by the rhus, ivy, or poison vine, it soon relieves the itching, burning, inflammation, and swelling.

Plants for A Future states:

Medicinal use of Bush Honeysuckle: The leaves are diuretic. A compound decoction has been used in the treatment of stomach aches. This contrasts with a report that the leaves contain a narcotic principle, inducing nausea. The plant is used as a gargle in catarrhal angina. The root is diuretic, galactogogue, laxative and ophthalmic. A cooled infusion has been used as an eyewash for sore eyes. The bark is laxative and ophthalmic. An infusion has been used to increase milk flow in a nursing mother and as an eyewash for sore eyes.

PS. New in my Woodcraft Shop: Serving Spoon #2 

Serving Spoon #2

 

This article is an excerpt from 

Medicinal Shrubs and Woody Vines of The American Southeast An Herbalist's Guide

Read about Medicinal Shrubs and Woody Vines of The American Southeast An Herbalist's Guide: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/06/medicinal-shrubs-and-woody-vines-of.html

Available for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B2T4Y5L6: by Judson Carroll

His New book is:

Read About:  The Medicinal Weeds and Grasses of the American Southeast

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2023/05/medicinal-weeds-and-grasses-of-american.html

 Available in paperback on Amazon: 

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His new cookbook is:

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Available for purchase on Amazon:

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His other works include:

Confirmation, an Autobiography of Faith

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Ferns and Fern Allies, an Herbalist's Guide 

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Available for purchase on Amazon:

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Growing Your Survival Herb Garden for Preppers, Homesteaders and Everyone Else

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Available for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09X4LYV9R

The Encyclopedia of Bitter Medicinal Herbs:

southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/03/the-encyclopedia-of-bitter-medicina.html

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Christian Medicine, History and Practice:

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Available for purchase on Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B09P7RNCTB

Herbal Medicine for Preppers, Homesteaders and Permaculture People

southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2021/10/herbal-medicine-for-preppers.html

Also available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09HMWXL25

Look Up: The Medicinal Trees of the American South, An Herbalist's Guide

http:///www.amazon.com/dp/1005082936

The Herbs and Weeds of Fr. Johannes Künzle:

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2021/05/announcing-new-book-herbs-and-weeds-of.html

Author: Judson Carroll. Judson Carroll is an Herbalist from the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.

His weekly articles may be read at judsoncarroll.com

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Disclaimer

The information on this site is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease or condition. Nothing on this site has been evaluated or approved by the FDA. I am not a doctor. The US government does not recognize the practice of herbal medicine and their is no governing body regulating herbalists. Therefore, I'm just a guy who studies herbs. I am not offering any advice. I won't even claim that anything I write is accurate or true! I can tell you what herbs have "traditionally been used for." I can tell you my own experience and if I believe an herb helped me. I cannot, nor would I tell you to do the same. If you use any herb I, or anyone else, mentions you are treating yourself. You take full responsibility for your health. Humans are individuals and no two are identical. What works for me may not work for you. You may have an allergy, sensitivity or underlying condition that no one else shares and you don't even know about. Be careful with your health. By continuing to read my blog you agree to be responsible for yourself, do your own research, make your own choices and not to blame me for anything, ever.