Yarrow

            Beautiful examples of wild yarrow are blooming in Pine Valley right now.  The sparks of white flowers show up so clearly against the dark green of surrounding foilage on the roadsides, hillsides and low mountains where it is found. Look for a plant about a foot to three feet tall, with ferny leaves and white flowers in delicate flat heads.

Achillea is the generic name of the yarrow plant because legend says that Achilles used it to stop the bleeding wounds of his soldiers.  Because of this, yarrow has  been called Soldier's Wound Wort or the Military Herb.

The Mormon prophet Brigham Young said of yarrow "Fortunate is the person who knows how to use yarrow in the last days."    Yarrow, along with peppermint and elderberry flowers, made a tea that was traditionally used by colonists and pioneers as a remedy for influenza.    It has also been used in an emergency to stop a tooth ache and to promote sweating in the case of a stubborn fever.

Wild yarrow is stronger medicinally than the yellow or pink yarrows that are grown as decorative flowers.

*This article is for educational and historical information and interest, and is not meant to diagnose or prescribe for any illness or condition.