Dill weed is a safe treatment for colic in babies

Mar 17th, 2009 @ 03:56 pm › frann
↓ Skip to comments

dill Dill weed is a safe treatment for colic in babies Dill or Dill Weed, Anethum graveolens (occasionally labeled Anethum sowa), is a very well-known component of dill pickles. It’s also sometimes called Dilly or Garden Dill.

Dill is another member of the Umbellifer family, so should not be collected from the wild to avoid poisoning yourself with Hemlock by accident. However, it’s easy enough to grow from seed. It is a hardy annual which prefers moist soil, and a warm sunny position.

It’s often said that you should not grow dill near fennel or carrots, as they have a habit of cross-pollinating, and since it is the seeds that are used medicinally, this would not be useful. However, carrots are harvested before they flower in any case and there is little overlap in flowering period for the other two: dill flowers from April to July and fennel from August to October, so if you take care to remove any new flowers that occur at the same time (from both plants), you should not have this problem. If you’re worried, stick them at opposite ends of the garden! But remember, your neighbor may also be growing one or another as well (they may even be so lackadaisical as to have carrots that have run to seed), and bees are not known for staying within bounds.

Dill is best known as the herb used in dill pickles (pickled gherkins). You use the leaves for this, whereas the seeds are used for medicine, so if you are in the habit of making your own pickles, you have a dual purpose herb. The leaves are also used with lamb and fish in some recipes, usually added at the end to preserve the flavor.

Dill seeds should be left on the plant until they go brown, and then harvested. Spread them out in a warm dry area (but not in artificial heat) and allow them to dry off naturally before storing for later use. They have a pungent, bitter taste, but are a useful remedy for bad breath if chewed.

You can also make a standard infusion using 2 teaspoonfuls of seeds to 250ml (1 US cup, 4 fl oz) of boiling water; allow to brew for at least 10 minutes before straining. The dose is half a cup up to 4 times a day for adults. Use it for colic in babies (just a teaspoonful, and sweetened with honey or similar), to increase milk flow in nursing mothers, sometimes with other herbs* (which will also pass through to baby, and help to reduce colic), and also to treat flatulence and griping pains in adults. It can also be used in combination with Guelder rose to treat painful periods.

*A good combination of herbs to increase milk flow is star anise, coriander, fennel, caraway and dill. use 30g (1 oz) chopped dried herbs and dill seeds mixed together in equal quantities by volume, or 3 small handfuls of the fresh leafy herbs and half a teaspoonful of dill seeds to 570ml (1.5 US cups, 1 UK pint) of boiling water. It is also likely to be more palatable than dill seeds alone.

As with all herbs grown for medicinal purposes, dill should be grown organically to avoid its active ingredients being corrupted by foreign chemicals. To find out more about growing organic dill visit the Gardenzone.