🌿 Meet the Plants: Nettle

The Springtime Surge of Vitality
By Lisa at Willow Moon

Each year, she finds me before I find her. Nettle, wild and electric, pushing through forgotten corners just as the earth exhales winter. I’ll catch a shimmer of green under a tangle of branches, or that unmistakable tingle on my wrist when I’ve reached too close. That sting is her calling card, a wake-up whisper from the land herself: “You’re alive. Pay attention.”

For me, nettle has always marked the turning of the wheel toward green life. I harvest her with gloved hands and reverent heart knowing she will nourish not only my body, but my spirit, my craft, and the apothecary shelves I tend with care.

✧ A Glimpse into Her History

Known botanically as Urtica dioica, nettle’s name comes from the Latin “to burn.” But to herbalists, this is no villainous weed she is blood-builder, joint-soother, hair-nourisher, and fierce plant guardian. Ancient Greeks praised her for strength and stamina, while in medieval Europe, nettle was cooked each spring to renew the blood and cast off winter’s sluggishness.

She’s woven through folklore, too. Hung by doorways for protection, planted to guard against lightning, used in love spells and purification rites. Some say nettle teaches us about boundaries — and isn’t that the truth?

🌿 Herbal & Traditional Uses

• Internal nourishment: High in iron, calcium, magnesium, chlorophyll, vitamin K, and silica. Supports fatigue, anemia, and depleted states.

• Reproductive support: Tonifies uterine tissue; used in pregnancy and postpartum tonics (under guidance).

• Hair & skin health: Strengthens strands, stimulates scalp circulation, promotes shine and thickness.

• Allergy & immune support: Anti-inflammatory, supports seasonal allergies and immune modulation.

• Joint & musculoskeletal support: Used for arthritis and gout; traditionally through teas, tinctures, or even urtication.

• Kidney & adrenal tonic: Especially the seed, used for burn-out, adrenal fatigue, and gentle kidney restoration.

• Energetics: Drying, cooling, mineral rich. Builds and clears, simultaneously.

• Emotional/spiritual: Encourages healthy boundaries, vitality, sovereignty.

• Preparations: Infusion, tincture, seed tincture, vinegar, infused oil, food, wine, pesto, salves.

“Wherever she grows, life follows. Wherever she stings, strength awakens.”

🧴 Why I Work With Her in My Apothecary

Nettle runs like a green thread through so much of what I create. She lends her rich, mineral-dense magic to my Rosemary Nettle Shampoo Bar, where she strengthens hair, balances the scalp, and restores shine.

Her fresh spring tops go into my Nettle Tincture, a vibrant green elixir I use for nourishment, seasonal support, and vitality. For deeper restoration, I turn to Nettle Seed Tincture, a remarkable ally for adrenal exhaustion, burnout, and gently supporting the kidneys and nervous system.

She also stars in my upcoming Green Root Revival Treatment, a deeply nourishing hair oil made with fresh nettle, rosemary, and horsetail, slowly infused into a base of organic coconut oil, olive oil, and jojoba. This treatment feeds the scalp, awakens the roots, and brings a forest-fed vitality to tired or thinning hair.

✨ The Power of Nettle Seed

While the leaf is beloved for nourishment and the root for male reproductive support and scalp health, nettle seed is something else entirely. These tiny green jewels offer support for:

• Kidney repair & support (especially in early-stage fatigue)

• Adrenal exhaustion ideal for those who feel “wired but tired”

• Hair & skin renewal from the inside out

• Energy & stamina without stimulation

Nettle seed carries a quiet but unmistakable vitality. She doesn’t push, she restores.

⚠️ Myth vs. Truth or Safety Notes

• The sting disappears when dried or cooked.

• Avoid large amounts of seed tincture late at night, as it can be energizing.

• Those on blood thinners should monitor use (high vitamin K).

• Harvest before flowering for leaf; after for seed and root.

• Consult a practitioner if you have chronic kidney disease before using medicinally.

☀️ Working with the Plant Spirit

Nettle doesn’t coddle. She’ll sting if you come half-present. But if you show up with intention, she’ll meet you with fierce love and boundless nourishment. She’s the guardian of sacred space, body and soul.

Simple ritual: Make a cup of nettle infusion and whisper your affirmations into the steam. Sip it under a tree or after a salt bath.

Affirmation: “I protect my energy and feed my strength.”

✨ Final Thoughts

Nettle is a plant I will work with for life. She nourishes me, challenges me, and brings me home to myself. Whether she’s feeding my cells or blessing my hair with new growth, she reminds me that true healing begins underground and rises up through the root.. I invite you to explore her in my herbal creations, or better yet — go meet her in the wild. But bring gloves!

Explore her gifts in the apothecary through my Rosemary Nettle Shampoo Bar, Nettle Tincture, Nettle Seed Tincture, and very soon, the Green Root Revival Treatment a deep drink for your roots, from crown to core.

🍵 Make It Yourself: Nettle Kitchen & Ritual Recipes

Nettle Nourishing Infusion

A mineral-rich tonic to restore, rebuild, and reawaken.

• 1 cup dried nettle leaf

• 1 quart boiling water
  Place nettle in a quart-sized mason jar. Pour boiling water over it, cover with a lid, and let steep 4–8 hours (or overnight). Strain and refrigerate. Drink 1–2 cups daily, plain or with a splash of juice or lemon.

Nettle Hair Rinse

Strengthens and soothes the scalp. Simmer 1 cup dried (or 2 cups fresh) nettle in 4 cups water. Cool, strain, and pour through clean hair as a final rinse. (You may also add other herbs such as Rosemary, Calendula, Lavender, Horsetail)

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Spring Nettle Soup (A Wild Green Revival)

A traditional spring tonic soup, simple and nourishing — a perfect way to welcome the green back into your body.You’ll need:

• 1 tbsp olive oil or butter
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2–3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1–2 potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 quart veggie or bone broth
• 4 cups fresh nettle leaves (rinsed, stems removed – wear gloves!)
• Salt & pepper to taste
• Optional: splash of cream or dollop of yogurt to finish

To make:

1. Sauté onion in oil until soft. Add garlic and potato, stir briefly.
2. Pour in broth and simmer until potatoes are tender.
3. Add nettle leaves and simmer just 3–5 minutes more.
4. Blend with an immersion blender (or carefully in batches) until smooth.
5. Season and serve warm with crusty bread and a swirl of cream if desired.

Bright green, earthy, and surprisingly rich. This is spring in a bowl.

Nettle Wine (For the Wild Herbal Winemaker)

Old-fashioned, quirky, and a perfect addition to your seasonal wine rotation.

You’ll need:

• 1 gallon young nettle tops (before flowering)

• 1 gallon boiling water

• Zest and juice of 1–2 lemons

• 1 orange, sliced (optional)

• 1.5–2 lbs sugar (to taste)

• 1 tsp fresh grated ginger or a cinnamon stick (optional)

• Wine yeast (or wild fermentation, if experienced)

To make:

1. Wearing gloves, collect a basket of tender spring nettles.

2. Place in a large, non-reactive pot and pour boiling water over them. Cover and steep 24 hours.

3. Strain into a clean fermenting vessel. Add sugar, citrus juice/zest, and spices if using. Stir until sugar dissolves.

4. Cool to room temperature, then add wine yeast. Cover with an airlock or breathable cloth.

5. Ferment 5–7 days, then rack into secondary fermenter. Ferment another 4–6 weeks, then bottle.

6. Age 2–3 months minimum (improves over time!).

Dry, herbal, with hints of green earth and sunshine — a wildcrafted ode to spring.

 

🌿 Explore my Nettle offerings at Willow Moon and experience her green strength for yourself

More “Meet the Plants” posts are blooming soon!

🌿 Image Use Notice
Many of the images on this blog are my own original photography, taken during my herbal work and seasonal wanderings. Others are drawn from a licensed image library. All photos are shared here for inspiration and education only, please do not copy, download, or reuse any images without written permission. Thank you for honoring the time, energy, and spirit woven into this space.