Cleavers
Cleavers is a classic spring tonic
and can be found growing in parks and gardens throughout the UK.
It can often be found throughout the winter, growing low to the ground,
but the onset of spring triggers a profusion of leggy growth
and it is this new growth, the young cleavers leaves and stems,
that are used for the spring tonic.
Being such a common plant in the UK,
cleavers has had a variety of local names
including goosegrass, mutton chops and sticky-willy,
and it is easy to identify - its square stems are covered in tiny bristles.
These bristles tend to hook themselves onto passersby
which children through the ages have taken great delight in
as they stick them onto each other’s clothing like plant velcro!
It's leaves are arranged in a rosette around the stem
and it has tiny star-like white flowers.
These flowers in turn become grey seed balls,
covered in tiny hooked bristles which enable the seeds
to be carried far and wide by humans and animals.
Cleavers has a reputation for being a powerful blood purifier,
though nowadays we might say that it helps improve lymphatic drainage.
In this way, cleavers helps the immune system
by relieving the toxic load on our systems.
It is also a powerful diuretic
which means that it helps take excess water out of your body via your kidneys
which means it makes you pee more!
As always, there are a variety of ways you could prepare your herbs
and cleavers is no exception
but today, we're going to show you how to prepare a cleavers succus.
'Succus' is a Latin word meaning 'juice'
In herbal medicine, a succus is a herbal juice
to which you add an equal amount of honey
it's a yummy way to preserve the medicinal qualities of fresh leaves
and is a particularly brilliant way to deliver herbs to children
as the sweetness of the mixture hides the not-so-delicious tasting herb!
To get the cleavers juice, either juice it in a juicer or
Or as shown here put the sticky stems and leaves into a blender
with a little water and blend until you have a green liquid mixture.
There will still be some solid plant bits in there
so strain this mixture through a sieve into a measuring jug.
Measure how much juice you've got
and then add an equal amount of honey (or maple syrup if you prefer).
For example, if you produce 100ml of cleavers juice,
add 100ml (or 100g) of honey.
Stir the mixture well, pour into a sterilised jar and label.
You have now made Cleavers Succus.
Because the water content of this succus is so high,
it will only last a few months and must be refrigerated.
Alternatively, you could freeze the succus in ice cube trays
to have on hand throughout the year.