Plant Detective, The
Each week Flora Delaterre a.k.a. The Plant Detective investigates a new medicinal plant somewhere around the globe--and it could be in your backyard. Beth Judy writes and voices this minute-and-a-half program in consult with Bastyr University, Tai Sophia Institute, and the Vermont School of Integrative Herbalism. Produced by MTPR.
Latest Episodes
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The alkaloid atropine occurs naturally in plants like deadly nightshade, datura, and henbane. It can keep your heart rate steady after a heart attack,…
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The powerful anti-inflammatory action of harpagoside, a compound in the roots of devil's claw, relieves the pain of osteoarthritis, and many herbalists…
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This feathery plant from the deserts of Afghanistan and the mountains of Iran stinks - until you cook it, that is, when its pleasant flavor and active…
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The gigantic leaves of devil's club barely hide its sharp thorns - if you're ever sliding down a mountain slope, this is not a plant to grab. But inside…
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The causes of migraine aren't well understood. Neither is the mechanism behind feverfew's proven ability to stop or prevent a migraine headache. Feverfew…
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Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis) grows in eastern North America, where it's now threatened in the wild. An alkaloid in goldenseal, berberine, shows…
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There's a persistent urban legend concerning the herb, goldenseal: take it before a urine test and you'll get false-negative results for a variety of…
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In the 1930s, scientists trying to synthesize estrogen and progesterone for therapeutic uses - and possibly to create a new kind of contraceptive - faced…
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Indigenous Australians use the twigs and leaves of the melaleuca (tea tree) medicinally, and science has confirmed the tree's antimicrobial, antifungal,…
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In southern China, where Camptotheca acuminata is native, people call these big-leafed trees "Happy Trees." Chinese herbalists have been prescribing…