Chickweed

An amazing plant that is highly undervalued these days, historically chickweed has been grown as a vegetable crop for humans as well as poultry hence the name) and sheep. It has also been valued as a powerful medicinal plant known for its cooling properties, reducing inflammation.

Chickweed's botanical name is Stellaria media. The plant is native to Eurasia but these days has naturalised throughout the world so successfully that it is also considered a weed in many places. Chickweed is an annual plant in colder climates, but perennial in warmer areas, where it will thrive in any shady moist area where the soil is rich. It germinates in late winter and early spring and grows luxuriantly as a ground cover to about 40cm high with weak slender stems and can form a thick mat over time.

Nutrient powerhouse

Chickweed is highly nutritious and compared to spinach it contains 12 times more calcium, five times more magnesium, 83 times more iron and six times more vitamin C. It also contains zinc.

The aerial parts of the plant (leaves, flowers and stems) contain saponins, anthraquinones (emodin and parietin), flavonoids (including apigenin compounds and kaempferol), phytosterols and fatty acids such as hexacosanol. Proanthocyanidins are also present in the seeds. Chickweed also contains substantial amounts of fibre.

Chickweed metabolites have shown diverse pharmacological activities including anti-obesity, antifungal, antibacterial, antioxidant, antiproliferative, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antidiabetic and anxiolytic properties.

Chickweed as a food