What is Meadowsweet?
Meadowsweet, alternately named meadowwort, bridewort, or Queen or Pride of the Meadow is an herb that grows wild in Europe and Asia, and that quickly became a popular perennial in North America. When left alone, you’ll typically find this plant in open meadows. Its stalks of green leaves, about 3-6 feet tall (1-2 m approximately), give birth to fragrant and tiny white flowers in late spring to early fall. Meadowsweet is part of the rosacaceae family, which includes other well-known plants like roses and blackberries. Its scientific name is Flipendula ulmaria. It’s long been used as an herbal remedy for conditions like diarrhea, or as a painkiller. There are excellent reasons why meadowsweet works as a painkiller, since it contains salicylic acid, the principal ingredient in aspirin. In fact, aspirin was initially created from meadowsweet. Other forms of salicylic acid tended to create digestive upset, but meadowsweet’s form of the acid proved slightly less irritating to the stomach. Th
Meadowsweet is a herbaceous perennial shrub native to Europe, but also grows in North America. Meadowsweet’s aromatic, ornamental wildflowers are creamy, yellow-white, and have an aroma reminiscent of oil of wintergreen. The dried herb consists of flower petals and some unopened buds, which are used as the drug.
