Back Porch Herbal: Horehound

I remember as a child laughing hysterically at the name horehound. My mother had brought home some horehound candy and it was wonderful. So when we moved to Central Oregon and found that our new home had some growing down by the house, I was thrilled to say the least. I knew that horehound was good for respiratory issues, particularly for coughs and I was eager to explore what I could do with it.

The thing about horehound, comfrey as well, is that if you try to get rid of it, it laughs at you as it comes up everywhere. The term eradication doesn’t exist in their world, trust me on this. So I’ve made my peace with it and now I simply harvest the horehound I don’t want growing in a particular area. It’s a win/win for both of us. The horehound gets to do its thing, and I do too.

Scott Cunningham tells us in Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs that some of the names of this herb include hoarhound, bull’s blood, Even of the Star, Llyd y cwn, Seed of horns, and of course white horehound. An herb of masculine or projective energy, Mercury, the planet of communication is it’s planetary correspondence with Air as its element. Magickal properties include healing, exorcism, mental powers, and protection, carried in medicine bags or sachets to guard against “sorcery and fascination”. I had no idea this plant was so versatile!

Anyway, now that we know it has a mind of its own, probably Mercury’s influence there, herbalists from David Hoffmann in Holistic Herbal to Mrs. Grieve in A Modern Herbal agree that horehound, marrubium vulgare, with its expectant properties is typically used for respiratory issues including cough and asthma. It also possesses vulnerary properties, so it can be included in topical applications as well for treatment of wounds. It also may be laxative in nature. Drinking it as a tea seems consistently recommended, with 1 oz per pint of water as the typical dosage. I’ve tinctured it using both glycerin and alcohol as menstruums and I add that to tea.

Horehound candy is made from the fresh plant, boiling it down, extracting its juice, then adding sugar to create a thick consistency as you boil it again. When it’s done, you spread it out to dry, cutting it into lozenge-sized pieces from there. I’ve never done this, but it sounds fun. I’ve never really been into making syrups or candies. My husband makes candy from hash, tyically with lots of cinnamon. You know..like a gallon of water isn’t enough to have on hand while you eat one of them. I’m not sure who creates the bigger hot flash, me or him.

I’ve created a respiratory tincture for the season as well as a glycerin infusion of horehound and nettle to add to tea as needed. We both stay fairly healthy, but it’s nice to have something on hand as the holidays approach. You never know what creepy crawlies you might encounter along the way.

~Blessed be the lovely horehound in all its expectorant glory!