Common names: Shepherd’s Purse, Lady’s Purse, Sanguinary, Pickpurse, Mother’s Heart, Witches Pouches, Ward Seed
Taxonomic name: Capsella bursa-pastoris
Family: Brassicaceae
Related herbs: Mustard, many vegetables, Rocket
Area of origin: Europe
Parts used: aerial parts
Can be used medicinally for: food, wound healing, fresh wounds, bleeding (especially of dark, thick, venous blood) anywhere in the body, bruising, congestive dysmenorrhea and menorrhagia and pregnancy issues such as uterine bleeding or failure of the labor to progress. Insufficient breast milk(?). Chronic diarrhea, remittent fevers, hyper or hypo-tension, arrhythmia, scurvy, nosebleeds.
Healing Actions: astringent, vulnerary, tonic, uterine stimulant, hemostatic, vasoconstrictor, coagulant, sympathetic nervous system stimulant, amphoteric for blood pressure, diuretic, anti-inflammatory, cardiac tonic
Taste: bitter, pungent, astringent
Tissue states: damp heat, bleeding,
Energetics: cooling, drying, decongesting, restoring
Organ/System affinities: veins, uterus, female reproductive organs, kidney, heart, intestines. Liver Heart, Large Intestine.
Healing constituents: amino-alcohols (choline, acetylcholine, aminophenols, tyramine), flavonoids (diosmin, luteolin-7-rutinoside, quercetin-3-rutinoside), saponins, mustard glycosides, tannins, alkaloid (bursine), essential oil, acids (malic, phosphoric, silicic, citric, fumaric, bursic, acetic), calcium, iron, potassium, sodium, sulphur, zinc, vitamins C,K.
Contraindications and warnings: being a uterine stimulant, avoid during pregnancy unless specifically called for by a professional. Contains oxalic acid, so should be used with caution for those with sensitivities to it. Sufferers of kidney stones, too should avoid this herb.
Drug/herb interactions:
Description
This humble little plant seems to favour sidewalks by north facing fences around Gawler. Until 2023, I’d not seen it growing anywhere else! This little relative of Mustard is quite distinctive once it’s flowering and the seed pods form. It’s from these seed pods that Shepherd’s Purse gets its name. Apparently, w-a-a-a-y back when, Shepherds used to make their coin purses from the scrotums of sheep. When made, they had the little ‘love heart’ shape that you can see in the seed pods. Is that where the ‘love of money’ came from?
Plants start with a basal rosette of lobed, hairy leaves that could, be mistaken for an immature specimen of Catsear (Hypochaeris radicata), which is the more common plant around here. A single stem rises from the rosette, to a height of up to 40 cm and bears pointed leaves, that clasp the stalk. There is a relatively large distance between leaf groups. Smaller leaves grow from the leaf axil of (usually) a single, larger one and a flower spike may arise from the axil too. As the leaves age and are lower down the stem, they become toothed and quite hairy.
White flowers grow in a raceme and have short stalks and and, characteristically of members of the Brassicaceae family, have 4 petals. The flattened, heart shaped (or sheep scrotum shaped – I’ve never had that close a look at a sheep) seed pods, called silicles have 2 sections and grow from the centre of the flower, which falls away and the pods become stalked at angles to the stem. Seed pods are borne continuously as old flowers are pollinated and new ones open and the stalk grows vertically.
An interesting fact that I learned while researching Shepherd’s Purse is that the tiny seeds contain a mucilage that becomes sticky when wet and trap small insects which then provide a food source for the new seedlings as they grow.
Shepherd’s Purse has a small taproot below the basal leaves.
Medicinal use
Shepherd’s Purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris) is one of the classic herbs for bleeding. Whereas Yarrow is called for in cases where bright red blood flows easily, Shepherd’s Purse is for dark blood that oozes and needs stimulation. Interestingly, this herb doesn’t just rely on tannins to stop bleeding as many other blood staunchers do. Rather, it stimulates peripheral circulation, moving blood away from the site of loss as well. It is also very good for nosebleeds. Fragile capillaries, varicose and and spider veins can also be helped greatly by Shepherd’s Purse, as the vitamins and flavonoids help strengthen blood vessel walls.
Shepherd’s Purse can be used for many types of internal bleeding, blood in the urine and feces. We can use it for diarrhoea too, especially when there is blood. It can be us safely in all cases where the blood is sluggish and congested, dark blue or black areas of circulation in the extremities. Used internally and/or externally, it can help with externally for hemorrhoids, especially if they are bleeding.
Another ‘blood related aspect of Capsella’s healing capabilities is its effect on the heart where it not only helps with blood pressure but it can also help correct arrhythmias. Large doses can actually cause heart palpitations.
Shepherd’s Purse is one of the pre-eminent ‘woman’s remedies’. It has a particular affinity for the reproductive organs of women and can be used internally as tea or tincture for heavy bleeding during menstruation, for periods when the blood is thick and dark, or continuous, or when the sufferer seems to go from one period to the next. It can also be used to stimulate the menstrual process. This wonderful plant can also help
In labour, being a uterine tonic and having a powerful affinity for the blood, this little herb can help stimulate contractions, expel the afterbirth and slow down postpartum bleeding. For these reasons, Shepherd’s Purse shouldn’t be used during earlier stages of pregnancy and only under experienced, expert, supervision later.
A gentle diuretic, this herb can be used when a diuretic is needed such as for water retention and kidney problems.
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So, next time you take a stroll along your footpath, keep an eye out for tiny Shepherd’s Purses! They won’t make you rich, but could come in handy later.
Preparing and using Shepherd’s Purse
You can eat these seed pods, fresh and green. They make for a tasty forager’s snack and Shepherd’s Purse is popular in Asia as an ingredient in several traditional dishes. Leaves too are edible but best when they’re young.
Midwives often carry a tincture of Shepherd’s Purse to help control bleeding after delivery. It is also used for other labour and menstrual issues.
An infusion of Shepherd’s Purse can be used frequently in acute problems, up to 4 times a day. Drunk or used as a wash or fomentation, Shepherd’s Purse infusion has been known to help with spider veins and fragile capillaries.
Large doses can cause heart palpitations.
Other herb pages on Ligaya Garden
We cover a lot of ground on many herb related topics here on our website. There are whole pages devoted to different topics as well as frequent posts. Some of the links are –
