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Have you ever heard of Meadowsweet? Or walked through a meadow and noticed a distinct lovely sweet smell, like almonds and honey? Then chances are that you have passed meadowsweet blooming. It also goes by the names of Mead Wort, Queen of the Meadow, Lady of the Meadow, and Bridewort among other names. I like to think of it as the wild little sister of elderflowers, and you can use it just like elderflowers to make syrup/cordial, tea infusions, jelly, mead, champagne, or to infuse into vinegars.
After sharing a recipe for homemade elderflower cordial last summer, this year I'm trying out a variation with meadowsweet. So if you missed the elderflower season this year, don't be sad – because the little-known meadowsweet is still in full bloom! It can be made into cordial in exactly the same way that elderflowers would be, and it has a similarly sweet, though definitely heavier, more almond-y flavour, kind of like amaretto cookies. As a lifelong fan of elderflower cordial, it feels like a betrayal to say this, but I think I almost like the meadowsweet version better!
This delicate meadowsweet cordial is also great for flavouring ice creams, cakes, panna cotta, yogurt, kombucha, white wine, champagne or prosecco.
The Health Benefits of Meadowsweet
Meadowsweet
is a perennial herb that is mostly known for containing salicylic acid, which is the natural version of the synthetically altered version of salicin that aspirin is made from (the word "aspirin" is even derived from Latin "spirin", based on meadowsweet’s former botanical genus name, "Spiraea"). The medicinal plant also contains vitamin C, iron, calcium,
magnesium and silica, all of which are necessary for a good strong
healthy bone system, hair and nails.
Used internally, meadowsweet is an excellent natural remedy to
treat problems with joints and muscles such as rheumatic disorders, particularly inflammatory conditions like
arthritis and gout due to its anti-inflammatory properties, as well as being a mild painkiller. Its diuretic effect has proven effective in bladder and gallstone problems as well as fluid retention in the tissues.
Meadowsweet can also be used in a blood purifying cure, as well as a diaphoretic remedy for feverish colds. It's particularly useful in conditions like acid stomach, heartburn, gastritis, peptic ulcers, colic, flatulence etc. All parts of the plant have an astringent effect and are a mild remedy for diarrhoea.
Meadowsweet can also be used in a blood purifying cure, as well as a diaphoretic remedy for feverish colds. It's particularly useful in conditions like acid stomach, heartburn, gastritis, peptic ulcers, colic, flatulence etc. All parts of the plant have an astringent effect and are a mild remedy for diarrhoea.
Used externally in ointments and poultices, it can
help to relieve pain and improve wound healing.
Historically, meadowsweet has been used to flavour mead (hence the name "mead wort"), as well as being used as a strewing herb in Elizabethan times, strewn on floors (for example during weddings in churches, hence the name "bridewort") to give the rooms a pleasant aroma. Dried, the flowers are also used in potpourri.
It's also interesting to know that meadowsweet, water mint, and vervain were three herbs held most sacred by the Druids. Also, anything made with meadowsweet is ideal for using at the harvest festival Lughnasadh, also called Lammas, that is coming up on the 1st of August since this is one of the corresponding plants.
It's also interesting to know that meadowsweet, water mint, and vervain were three herbs held most sacred by the Druids. Also, anything made with meadowsweet is ideal for using at the harvest festival Lughnasadh, also called Lammas, that is coming up on the 1st of August since this is one of the corresponding plants.
Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria) prefers moist habitats and sunlit areas, and therefore is often found near water or damp meadows, alongside drainage ditches, roadsides, hedgerows, streams and lakes. They can reach up to 2 meters in growth. And believe me, even though they are not very prominent flowers, once you start noticing them you’ll see them everywhere!
Before going out to forage for any wild meadowsweet, do your research to make
sure you have the right flower. Plants that resemble the
meadowsweet plant include its close relative and non-toxic dropwort (Filipendula vulgaris) as well as the edible and equally delicious elderflowers, but it can also be mistaken for the deadly poisonous hemlock or the toxic fool's parsley.
There are four ways to identify meadowsweet (and as with all wild herbs, make sure your plant matches ALL of the identifiers! only pick when you are 100 % sure this is the right one!):
1) the environment, as described above.
2) the leaves which are easy
to identify because of their very distinctive pattern, with
serrated, crinkled leaves coming out in pairs and tiny little leaflets in-between the larger leaves along the stalk, and a three-pronged leaf at the end, similar to a Canadian maple. The leaf stalks come out alternately from the evenly pinkish red stem. if you are still not sure, take a leave and crumple it between your fingers. It should have a characteristic medicinal smell similar to Germolene antiseptic cream due to the concentrated salicylic acid.
3) the shape of the fragrant flowers, which grow in irregular shaped clusters of frothy flowers known as cymes. Each tiny flower has 5 petals. When fully in bloom, they look fuzzy, candyfloss-like and of a similar creamy-white colour to that of the elder. Their fruits have a twisted, spiral-like appearance.
4) the scent of the flowers, which is a very sweet and intense mixture of honey and almond. It resembles the aroma of elderflowers a bit, but with a distinct hint of marzipan.
Meadowsweet flowers bloom from June to August, so make sure to collect the flowers when they are in full bloom for their intense aroma. As the flower blooms in "stages" and there are several inflorescences on one stem, the harvest time is quite long.
When picking meadowsweet, you want to remember that the flowers that are open are the ones that have the most smell and flavour, so avoid ones that have got the buds still closed up. Aside from not giving off any flavour, when you pick closed buds those will not be able to blossom later on – which means you'd be wasting a great source of nectar and food for wildlife, particularly bees!
I always do my best to find as many plants as possible so that I can take a little from each instead of taking everything from only a few plants. That way I leave plenty for the animals, especially the pollinators. About a "bridal bouquet" of meadowsweet (see picture at the bottom of this blog post) is enough to make a little over 2 litres of delicious cordial anyway!
It's best to harvest meadowsweet later in the morning on a dry sunny day. Don't pick them right after a rain shower as they will lose some of their aroma. Clip your meadowsweet flowers with scissors, and put them in a basket or a paper bag to allow them to breathe (and for bugs to escape).
General Foraging Guidelines:
You should be 100 % certain you are identifying the correct plant. If you do not know what it is, DO NOT eat it! Do not pick if you're in doubt!
Don't harvest from contaminated areas such as busy roadsides, near industrial facilities, where dogs pee, along the edges of agricultural fields, old landfill sites etc.
Be mindful & harvest sustainably. Only pick from areas that have a plentiful supply, and never more than 1/4 of a plant, ideally only about 5 %.
Leave the harvesting area litter-free.
All parts of the plant are edible, and can be added to soups, sauces or stewed fruit for an aromatic flavour. The bitter roots can be used in tea infusions, as can the sweet flowers, and the leaves.
As the English botanist John Gerard once said: Meadowsweet »makes the heart merrie and joyful and delighteth the senses«!
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