If you have ever been stung by the prickly leaves of this wild herb, you may be reluctant to think of the nettle as a food. However, when dried or boiled, nettles completely lose their sting; pick them with gloves and scissors, and you will be master of the situation. Boiled, they become a spinachlike vegetable, tasty and high in vitamin A, iron, and a wide variety of minerals.
Either the leaves or the roots of the common stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) may be used to brew tea that has valuable powers as a tonic and blood cleaner, and it is extremely effective against kidney problems. When using dry nettle leaves, note that the greener they are, the more healthful.
A strong nettle tea, made by boiling a teaspoon of dried leaves in 2 cups water (or vinegar) for 30 minutes, is a very good hair rinse and is said to reinvigorate the hair and restore waning color. Slightly more obscure uses of nettle: beat rheumatic or paralytic limbs with nettle branches to restore vigor and circulation (this may also call for masochistic tendencies!); spin thread from nettle stems and weave table linen, as did the Scandinavians and Scottish in times of yore.
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