Mullein: The Stately Grandparent of Protection and Purification
This plant that protected Odysseus heals our lungs and spines too
Mullein is literally a stand-out plant. Its fuzzy leaves and tall stalk of cheery yellow flowers attract one’s attention from across a crowded field. In the 1800s it had over 40 different common names in English alone. Most of them have to do either with its fuzziness or tall stature. Some of my favorites are Our Lady’s blanket, Aaron’s rod, hig candlewick, and hare’s beard. It heals the lungs from all manner of infection, possibly even tuberculosis, heals the spine, calms bladder problems, and sedates fish so they can be caught by hand. It even protected Odysseus from Circe in The Odyssey. Let’s learn more about its protective and purifying powers.
Identification
Mullein is pretty distinctive in appearance. It has fuzzy, gray-green leaves. In its first year, the leaves radiate out from the stem and stay close to the ground (a basal rosette).
In its second year, it grows a tall stalk that can grow up to 10 feet high. As you go up the stem, the leaves get smaller. Sometimes, it will send up side stems that can look a bit like a candelabra.
At the top of the stalk are many yellow flowers, but only a few bloom at a time.
Foxglove and lamb’s ear bear some resemblance to Mullein. Foxglove is very poisonous, so make sure you are confident in your ability to differentiate before you harvest mullein.
How to Harvest
Leaves: To harvest the leaves, pick the late first year growth (leaves with no stalk) or early second year growth (prior to growing a stalk). Steven Martyn notes that Mullein is pretty flexible when it comes to harvesting times, but “the ideal is a full moon in late summer when we’re having our first cold nights, but the days are still sunny and hot” (i.e. yesterday, but we’re close enough). However, the quality of the herb will be good as long as the plants are healthy. He also notes that the medicine will be stronger in plants with lower soil quality, “where the plants have had to work”. You can take all but the inner core of leaves (don’t take leaves less than 3” in length). If there is a big cluster just take a few mid-sized leaves from each plant.
Flowers: Pluck blooming yellow flowers from the stalk, ideally finding the right pressure where you can pop out the flower without tearing (too little pressure) or crushing (too much pressure). Unlike many flowers, mullein flowers can be harvested when it is rainy and still be effective medicinally.
Root: Dig up roots in the fall (after the first year of growth).
Seeds: Poisonous to humans, so only harvest them to grow more mullein.
General: Steven Martyn recommends making offerings first to the grandmother/grandfather plants. If you don’t have an intuitive sense which plants those are, find the biggest ones, usually at the top of a hill. Don’t pick from those plants.
My Favorite Uses
Healthy Lungs Tea
I usually drink this tea when I’m sick with a cough, though I think it could be beneficial for people who have smoke exposure, asthma, or COPD too.
From Wild Remedies:
½ cup finely crumbled dried mullein leaves
2 Tbsp finely crumbled dried plantain leaves
2 Tbsp finely crumbled dried mallow leaves
¼ cup dried whole rosehips
2 tsp dried mint or tulsi leaves
3 cups of water
Place all herbs in a quart jar
Bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Pour water over herbs.
Stir well and cover
Infuse (let sit) for 30 minutes-8 hours
Strain well (I pour the tea through my aeropress, you could also use cheesecloth)
Drink within 24 hours
Facial Steam
I use this when I have bad sinus congestion. Have the tissues handy! It also makes your skin feel really nice too.
From Wild Remedies:
1 large handful of crumbled mullein leaves
1 small handful of crumbled dried yarrow leaves and flowers
Water
Place herbs in medium bowl
Boil enough water to fill the bowl and pour it over the herbs
Place your face over the bowl, then drape a towel over your head. Inhale deeply
Find a comfortable distance away from the steam. It should not be painful or you could burn your skin.
Stay under the towel for about 10 minutes or as tolerated.
Hag’s Taper
Take the dried out top of mullein in late fall, dunk it in beeswax several times, until it is thoroughly coated (I use an old crockpot for this, but you could definitely do it on the stovetop too). It makes a beautiful, intense candle. These were used as torches at funerals during Roman times. My favorite use for it is to use the snow as my candlestick and light them as part of my winter solstice celebration. They make almost no smoke until they are about to burn out. Exercise caution though, I have had a few mishaps with these because they burn hot. I cracked a glass that was holding one candle and caught another container on fire. Don’t be like me.
Earache Oil
Gather mullein flowers, enough to cover the bottom of a small saucepan (probably about 1-2 cups), add a smashed clove of garlic.
Cover the flowers and garlic in olive oil (preferably organic if possible).
Heat on the lowest setting on your stove for 1 hour.
Strain.
Add lavender essential oil to cover up the garlic scent (as many drops as needed to do that).
Note: If you have tubes in your ears, a perforated tympanic membrane (hole in your ear drum) or suspect that you might, you should not use any ear drops (especially homemade) unless instructed to do so by your doctor.
Toilet Paper in the Wild
Mullein leaves are hands down the best toilet paper when you “gotta go” out in the woods. The leaves are big enough to do the job and fuzzy enough to be quite comfortable.
Smoke Relief Tincture
I haven’t tried this tincture myself, but I thought those of you who live in wildfire territory might be interested in this tincture from Alexis Cunningfolk to help with lung health:
Either mix the following individual tinctures or blend dried herbs together to create your tincture from scratch.
4 parts Plantain Leaf (Plantago major)
2 parts Hyssop Leaf(Hyssopus officinalis)
2 parts Mullein Leaf (Verbascum thapsus)
1 part Elder Flower (Sambucus nigra)
Recommended dosage: 5 - 10 drops up to three times daily.
Mullein Infusion
Steven Martyn recommends this infusion for pneumonia, influenza, even tuberculosis.
Simmer two large handfuls of dried mullein leaves in 2L of water (he recommends in a clay or enamel pot with lid).
When this is a thick black liquid strain out the mullein leaves, store in the fridge
Drink ¼ cup every 4 hours, usually for 1-2 weeks, but may need longer in more severe cases.
I tried this with fresh leaves, in a regular pot and it did not turn black and the smell was such that I probably wouldn’t drink it unless I was feeling really crummy.
How to Prepare As Medicine
As you saw above, Mullein is used in a lot of different ways. I probably use dried mullein leaves to make tea most often. You can air dry or put on the lowest temperature in your oven if you don’t have a dehydrator. Steven Martyn states that to preserve the medicinal effect in dried mullein it needs to be kept cool and dark. Lately, I have found using brown paper lunch bags to store my dried herbs works quite nicely, otherwise a dark glass jar would also be good. It can be made into tincture too. To make tincture, harvest the leaves from the first year growth (a plant with no stalk) or early second year (before the stalk has emerged). You can learn to make tinctures from this video. If you need to avoid consuming alcohol internally you can make tinctures with food grade glycerin or apple cider vinegar. Alternatively, experiment with applying tincture to your inner wrist.
Medicinal Uses
Unless otherwise noted, my source for these medicinal uses is either my herbalism teacher, Heather Mashuga or Steven Martyn from The Sacred Gardener. Heather and Steven are both herbalists, so rely on information from that tradition rather than the biomedical system. There are not necessarily randomized controlled trials to prove all of these uses.
General:
Anti-inflammatory properties
Leaves have antibacterial properties
Pain relieving properties
Mullein is one of the most nutritious plants in the northern hemisphere, but can’t be eaten because the wooly leaf causes digestive issues for animals and insects (the solution is tea)
Ear, Nose, and Throat:
Flowers infused with garlic in olive oil is great for earaches and ear infections.
Lungs:
Mullein smoke or steam can be inhaled to treat asthma and bronchitis
Mullein is also helpful for whooping cough and croup
Opens airways
Used for deep hacking coughs, coughing so hard your vomit, and/or coughing so hard you break a rib
Use as a tea or infusion for chronic cough in older men
Can use leaf or tincture topically as a spot treatment for rib pain due to coughing
Urinary:
Root is used for incontinence caused by stress, pregnancy, menopause, or childhood incontinence (Source: Wild Remedies)
Can benefit those with interstitial cystitis or enlarged prostate as well (Source: Wild Remedies)
Rectal:
Leaves used as a poultice soothe hemorrhoids
Neurology:
Root is calming, relieves nerve pain
Endocrine (Hormones):
Good adrenal tonic
Musculoskeletal:
Relieves midline (spinal) back pain (some use the root, others use the leaves for this)
Useful in arthritis
Skin:
Leaves can be used as a poultice for skin ulcers
Medical Literature
Author’s Note: I wasn’t able to find as much research about mullein as I usually am about other plants. I suspect this is because quite a few articles are behind a paywall.
General:
Anti-inflammatory action because it contains multiple anti-inflammatory compounds
In an Iranian study, authors compared the antioxidant effects of 10 plants and found that mullein had the greatest ability to fight oxidation*
Verbacoside, a chemical found in mullein, relieves pain in animal studies.
Infectious Diseases:
Mullein tincture is more effective against gram + bacteria like Staph and Strep, than against gram - bacteria like E. coli, Pseudomonas, or Salmonella.*
Mullein flower extract in olive oil (typically used for ear infection) was found to be effective against several types of bacteria including E.coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa
An ethanolic extract (tincture) of mullein was found to be more effective than multiple antibiotics (like penicillin) and antifungal medicines for treating two common bacteria that cause UTIs and the yeast that causes yeast infections.*
One study compared tincture and infusion (tea steeped for hours) and found that tincture had more antibacterial and antifungal effectiveness.*
Mullein’s antiviral properties have not been well studied.
Mullein is effective against the parasites that cause African Sleeping sickness.*
Cardiology:
In a research study on rat hearts, verbacoside, a chemical in mullein, increased heart rate, blood flow to the heart, and how hard the heart squeezes.
Pulmonary:
In addition to its antibacterial and antifungal properties, mullein is also an expectorant, meaning it loosens mucus to help you cough it up. It also relieves irritation of the mucous membranes.
Liver:
In a study on dogs, a chemical present in mullein, called aucubin, protected the dogs from deadly poisoning by Amanita mushrooms.
OB/Gyn:
Mullein cream was significantly better than placebo at healing episiotomy scars after childbirth.
Oncology:
A chemical in mullein, called acteoside, has been found to slow the growth of breast cancer cells.*
Acteoside also slows the growth of glioblastoma cells (an aggressive form of brain cancer).*
Acteoside prevents growth of prostate cancer and its spread to other parts of the body.*
Neurology:
Can prevent the development of amyloid plaques, which are a key part of the development of Alzheimer’s dementia.*
A chemical in mullein, called verbacoside, also slows cell death and improves the function of brain cells, to prevent dementia. It is being studied as a potential treatment for Alzheimer’s dementia.*
Other:
Mullein leaves were put through a complicated extraction process (using methanol and chloroform) that sounded too difficult for a home herbalist to perform. However, this extract was found to have a better anti-anxiety effect on rats than diazepam (Valium) before starting anesthesia.
Mullein has not been studied for its cardiovascular effects or for treating diabetes, but acteoside from other plants has been found to be effective for these conditions. These are not part of the traditional uses of mullein as far as I could find.
*This research was conducted on a different plant in the same genus as mullein called Verbascum sinuatum.
Adverse Effects
Adverse effects have not been well-studied in mullein, but there are no known side effects or drug interactions. It is not included in a book that focuses on liver injury due to plants and medications. Some species of mullein can cause skin rash.
Ecosystem Services
Mullein restores disturbed soils. It pulls minerals up from the earth even when growing in sand or gravel. The thick, large leaves provide habitat for mice and voles. Insects love the flowers, and birds, especially woodpeckers, perch on Mullein searching for insects to eat. Interestingly, if a flower has not been cross-pollinated by the end of the day, it will self-pollinate. Carder bees gather hairs from mullein leaves to line their nests. Downy woodpeckers and goldfinches love to eat the seeds.
Mullein can pull heavy metals from the soil and store it in its leaves. In Serbia, researchers found that mullein was an ideal plant for healing polluted sites because it effectively removed heavy metals and could be used as fuel.
History and Folklore
Mullein has been used medicinally for at least 2000 years, Dioscorides wrote about Mullein in his book De Materia Medica, this book continued to circulate into the Renaissance. He wrote that Mullein was used for constipation, old coughs, convulsions, toothaches, inflammation of the eyes, wounds, and scorpion stings. Mullein, particularly the candle, was used to drive away evil in both Europe and Asia. In fact, Odysseus used Mullein to protect himself against Circe, although based on the description of the flowers, it is more likely a different species in the same genus. My favorite saint, Hildegard von Bingen, wrote about mullein in her book De wullena. She used a mix of wine, fennel and mullein leaves to relieve hoarseness. In Germany, the stalk used as a candle was called Himmelbrand (heavenly fire) or konigkerze (king’s candle). Mullein was one of the herbs that was picked as part of the rituals for Lammas (the first harvest festival, around August 1).
The book Witchcraft Medicine describes this ritual like this:
The herbs for the August festival (Lammas) must be picked before sunrise by women barefoot, speaking the charms, silently and naked, without being seen and without thinking any thought. Never cut with an iron knife or dig with an iron spade, for it would take away the herb's power.
Mullein was passed through the midsummer fire to make a charm to protect cattle herds. In Ireland, it was also placed in the butter churn if butter would not come.
In ancient Rome, Mullein was used to dye women’s hair yellow. It was also used as a fish poison in Germany and Britain, a practice that also followed immigrants to Appalachia. There is some evidence that Mullein seeds have a narcotic effect that subdues a fish enough to be hand caught.
Magical Uses
Mullein is associated with keeping away demons and sorcerers. However, it was also believed to be used by witches in their brews and as their preferred torches. In fact, it is certainly used by modern witches. Rebecca Beyer from Blood and Spicebush shares how to make a Mullein leaf candle for necromantic works:
Take a single Mullein leaf and when it is dry but not terribly crispy, roll it gently into a long tube. Dip this into beeswax or tallow and light. I stand them in sand in a fireproof bowl, like my cast iron cauldron. They are smoky, but the light and flame are lovely. Use these in Rites of the Dark year, or for spirit work.
Mullein is used in sachets or incense blends when extra courage is needed. It is placed under pillows, for those who are suffering with frequent nightmares.
In Appalachia, Mullein was used in folk magic. If you bent a stalk of Mullein toward the house of your love, you could tell how they felt about you. If it returned to its upright position after a few days, you feelings were reciprocated. But if the plant was dead, their love for you was dead too.
Plant Spirit Medicine and Flower Essences
As you might have been able to tell from its magical uses, mullein is known for its protective and purifying powers, as well as fortifying our own courage. Flower essence practitioner, Jack Braunstein, compares Mullein’s energy to that of Henry David Thoreau, an unswerving idealist.
Mullein calls us to:
Stand true to our inner guidance
Hear the spiritual call that guides us
Witness this truth to others
It also supports healing low self-esteem, imposter syndrome, and fear of being seen.
Blessing
Sacred Mullein, thank you for purifying our lungs and the earth
Thank you for healing our spines so that we may stand upright
Thank you for lighting our way in the darkness
Please help us to hear the voice of the divine when it calls us
And to stand tall in our convictions.
Help us to shine our own light for others.
Author’s note: Reviewing the medical literature for these plants is great fun AND takes quite a bit of time. Because the knowledge I’m sharing here has a bit more practical use and takes more time than me talking about my feelings I have opened The Nettle Witch, MD up for paid subscriptions. I won’t be putting anything behind the paywall because I want all of this information to be available to anyone who will use it, but if you find it valuable and are willing to support my work, I’d be honored. As a thank you, I am hoping to start recording a plant spirit meditation for paid subscribers starting with Elderberry in October. Thank you so much!
For any who are interested, I am hosting a pay-what-you-can COVID integration ceremony on September 14 and September 18 (each is a self-contained session). If you are interested in joining us, please fill out this form.
I am planning to host an in-person seasonal mini-retreat for healthcare workers near the fall equinox (probably September 23). It will include storytelling, grief integration in nature, creative expression, and a talking circle. If you live in the Twin Cities metro area, work in healthcare, and are interested in attending, please let me know.
I am also considering creating an online version of the mini-retreat for those farther away (or unable to attend in person). It will probably be on September 24. If you would be interested in participating, please let me know. We will go ahead with it if there are 4 or more people interested.
I contributed some creativity prompts to
’ new journal for mothers called Ember. If there’s a creative mother (or a mom who would like more creativity in her life), come check out the crowdfunding site to pre-order a copy.
Informative
This was so great! Thank you! I have dried mullein cant wait to use it this winter!