Arnica montana
Family: Asteraceae
Herbaceous perennial. Native to the mountains of Europe and Asia.
This is the official Arnica which provides the basis for homeopathic remedies,
oil infusions, compresses and salves. Many sources list Arnica as
“not for internal use,” but I have used it successfully and without the
listed side-effects, internally, for many years. In my experience,
an adult dosage of 6 drops of the tincture of the flowering tops, taken
in a full glass of water, is both helpful and well tolerated. Cultivating
this increasingly rare species of European Arnica is a commendable act
of plant conservation. Cultivation: Extra care. Arnica
seed is of short viability, and should be sown within a year of receipt.
Sow seed in a mixture of loam, peat moss and sand in the greenhouse
in the spring. Expect germination in 1 or 2 weeks. The plants
like acid pH (5 to 6), moisture, partial shade and high altitude. The plants
which produced this seed are organically grown from seed which was harvested
wild in the French Pyrenees.
Return
to Herb Seed Index