The Herbmonger

Herb Soceity logo

Be Wise, Use Sage!

As with a number of our common cooking herbs, sage, Salvia officinalis , originated from the Mediterranean. The plant will withstand a few degrees of frost in colder climates once established. If planted in a sunny spot, perhaps backed by a brick wall, sage can even overcome wet and cool British springs.

For centuries sage has been highly regarded as a medicine, as shown by the traditional saying, 'Why should a man die whilst sage grows in his garden?' It is a general tonic, useful for weak and exhausted states and particularly good for the tiredness that typically follows a viral infection. It tones the central nervous system and lifts spirits.

Sage Teas

Sage is one of those herbs whose benefits change depending of how you take it.
A hot infusion, perhaps with some honey, can serve as a pick-me-up from the end-of-the-day tiredness and can ease a sore throat. Hot with a pinch of cayenne (Capsicum frutescens), will help break a fever. It also helps concentration and therefore is a good tea for students.
Sage tea, taken cold, is the best treatment for excessive sweating. Two or three cups a daily, take for three weeks, will usually do the trick.

Basic Method - The usual proportions are 1 tsp dried herbs to 250 ml (8 fl oz or 1 cup) boiling water. You can certainly use fresh sage leaves, but you may have to use more than 1 tsp. The taste is more concentrated in dried herbs, so you need less rather than more. Vary amounts until you get a taste that suits.
Always cover the cup (or teapot) with aromatic herbs such as sage. Let steep for 2-4 minutes. Strain. City or country, today's living creates tensions in the body. Is tension behind your eyes moving into a headache? Are you tired or having trouble focusing? Your eyes, and you, need to relax. These kitchen remedies are simple things you can do at the end of your day to ease your eyes, and ease your body, for a better, relaxing evening and sleep.

Sage Leaves - Eating fresh sage leaves, in a sandwich, is an English country cure for low-grade fevers and flu symptoms. You'll do yourself more good with this simple remedy and you'll be protecting echinacea, an endangered medicinal plant. Overconsumption (and often for the wrong reasons) at home has caused overcollection of echinacea in the wild. One small step…

Sage & Vinegar Poultice - For bruises, swellings and stings.

Basic Method: Bruise a handful of fresh sage leaves by flattening them with a rolling pin. Place in a pan and cover with cider vinegar.
Simmer very gently until the leaves are soft. Wrap the leaves in a cloth and apply warm.

Contraindications: Not as a medicine for pregnant or lactating women. As a culinary herb, in the small amounts used in cooking, it should present no problems.

Purple Sage
Salvia officinalis 'Purpurea'

Blackcurrant Sage
Salvia microphylla

Golden Sage
Salvia officinalis 'Aurea'

The purple leafed sage, Salvia officinalis 'Purpurascens' is regarded more as a medicinal than culinary herb. All the Salvia officinalis variants are frost hardy. You can protect your sage plants by taking some cuttings each autumn (fall) or by layering a branch so you'll have new plants in the spring. Good pruning in the early spring or after harvesting in mid summer should keep your plant from getting too shrubby. Some experts say that sage should be renewed every 4 years to prevent it from getting woody.

For further information on growing and using sage check out our Sage Herb of the Month article.

Coming Next Month...

Learn how to make herb, fruit and flavoured vinegars and how to use them to make herbal remedies.

This recipes above are courtesy of Christopher Hedley, AHG and Non Shaw. The Herbmonger first appeared on the Herb Society website in 1998 and continued until about 2002. It is the creation of Christopher Hedley AHG and Non Shaw. And reappears back on the Herb Society website with the kind permission of Chris and Non.

Both are practising medical herbalists in London and have co-authored Herbal Remedies: A Practical Beginner's Guide to Making Effective Remedies in the Kitchen. Parragon Press, 1996 ISBN-10: 0752577514 .

Click here to go back to Herbs In Medicine main page

To make comments on this article, go to our Forum.