* Please Note: This information is based partly on Traditional Medicine which uses natural materials to support health. This information has not been evaluated or approved by the FDA. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). These products are intended to support general well being and are not intended to treat, diagnose, mitigate, prevent, or cure any condition or disease. If conditions persist, please seek advice from your medical doctor.
Description
Medicinal Usage
Medicinal uses are somewhat limited. Borage is diuretic, demulcent, emollient, and diaphoretic. It is used in kidney ailments, pulmonary troubles, and for fevers. A poltice of the fresh leaves with the hairs scraped off is used for inflammatory swellings. A handful of fresh leaves steeped in a quart of water with a sprig or two of spearmint added makes a cooling, soothing summer beverage. Borage contains mucilages, calcium, and potassium nitrate.
General Herb Information
The genus Borago is represented by three species native to the Mediterranean region. Borago officinalis is the familiar species of the herb garden. This coarse annual usually grows to 1 1/2 to 2 feet tall, though in a rich soil it may exceed five feet in height. The leaves are thick, covered with stiff rough hairs, alternate, oval-shaped, and pointed at the ends. They grow from three to six inches long. The stems are succulent, hollow, and hairy like the leaves. The terminal flowers are star-shaped, bright blue, and distinguished by prominent black anthers forming a cone-like structure in the center of each blossom. The flower clusters nod downward. Each flower produces four brownish-black nutlets.
Borage grows well in an average garden soil and will tolerate poor dry soils. Soil pH should fall between 5 and 8. Full sun or partial shade are suitable. It grows readily from seed and self-sows profusely. Plant on a back border or central focal point. Borage sprawls and should be given two-foot spacings. The seeds produce broad large cotyledons similar in appearance to those of cucumbers. Borage develops a tap root making it difficult to transplant. Plants take about eight weeks to mature. They will continue blooming until the first frost when they wither to a black mass. One ounce of seeds will plant about a 500-foot row.
Harvest borage as it begins to flower. It can be harvested two or three times during the growing season, or you can make a couple of successive plantings. Drying must be done with care. If you are drying small amounts, carefully remove the leaves from the succulent stems, and if time allows, peel the stems for a noon salad. Fast drying under moderate heat is preferable. Borage tends to turn brown or black without good air circulation. If you spread it to dry on an open frame drying rack, make sure the leaves are not overlapping, potentially hampering air flow.
The fresh leaves and flowers of borage possess a delicate cucumber-like flavor. Young leaves are good chopped in salads. The leaves may also be boiled as a pot herb. The flowers are a colorful and tasty addition to salads. Gently grasp the flower stem directly behind the sepals, then pinch and pull the anthers, and the entire corolla will slip from its pedestal.
Preparation and Dosage: About 2 g of dried herb in a cup of boiling water is taken three times a day.
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Directions
Take 1 capsule, 3 times daily, with meals.
Cautions
PA intake should not exceed 1 µg per day. Since borage has much higher levels in leaves and flowers, a prolonged use of borage (as in herbal teas or spice) is not recommended. Borage seed oil should be used with caution in epileptic and schizophrenic patients.
Additional Information
The TerraVita Premium Collection uses only the finest, purest and most potent plant extracts from around the world.
The TerraVita Premium Collection is hallmarked by the highest possible standards of purity, potency, stability and freshness. Our highest possible standards are certified by independent laboratories and backed by our personal guarantee.
The TerraVita Premium Collection is packed in child-proof, tamper-proof pharmaceutical-grade recyclable containers.
ZooScape is proud to be the exclusive distributor of TerraVita teas, herbs and supplements in the United States, Canada and around the world. Please direct all wholesale and bulk inquiries to Simona Heather at 905-494-1785.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Products are intended to support general well being and are not intended to treat, diagnose, mitigate, prevent, or cure any condition or disease. If conditions persist, please seek advice from your medical doctor. The essence of the current American rule on Traditional Uses is, as stated by FTC, "Claims based on historical or traditional use should be substantiated by confirming scientific evidence, or should be presented in such a way that consumers understand that the sole basis for the claim is a history of use of the product for a particular purpose."
