What is Gaultheria procumbens used for?

What is Gaultheria procumbens used for?

The leaves and oil are used to make medicine. Wintergreen leaf is used for painful conditions including headache, nerve pain (particularly sciatica), arthritis, ovarian pain, and menstrual cramps.

Are Gaultheria berries edible?

Edibility. The fruits of G. procumbens, considered its actual "teaberries", are edible, with a taste of mildly sweet wintergreen similar to the flavors of the Mentha varieties M. ... Teaberry extract can be used to flavor tea, candy, medicine and chewing gum.

Is creeping wintergreen invasive?

Wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens) is a native plant with lustrous green leaves and red berries that give color to your yard in winter. ... Although Arum italicum may be aggressive or potentially invasive in some areas, elsewhere its attractive leaves add a touch of green and silver to flower beds in winter.

Are Gaultheria procumbens poisonous?

The pure distilled essential oil is toxic in large doses[222]. If used orally may aggravate stomach ulcers.

Which has a smell of oil of wintergreen?

Methyl salicylate (oil of wintergreen or wintergreen oil) is an organic compound with the formula C8H8O3. It is the methyl ester of salicylic acid. It is a colorless, viscous liquid with a sweet, fruity odor reminiscent of root beer, but often associatively called "minty", as it is an ingredient in mint candies.

How do you use Gaultheria oil?

It is also believed to increase the speed of healing for skin disorders, and when added to lotions, acts as a natural moisturizer. Mix Gaultheria Oil along with Warm Coconut oil in the same ratio (1:1), and apply it on painful region.

How do you grow Gaultheria procumbens?

Plants grow slowly and should be spaced 4 to 6 inches (10-15 cm.) apart. When plants are newly installed, wintergreen plant care should include regular watering and even established, mature plants require supplemental moisture in hot, dry summers. No pruning or mowing is required with this plant.

Is wintergreen plant poisonous to dogs?

Toxic Substances Although winterberry makes an attractive and colorful addition to a landscape, its leaves and berries are toxic to dogs, cats and horses.

Is wintergreen plant toxic to cats?

Many liquid potpourri products and essential oils, including oil of cinnamon, citrus, pennyroyal, peppermint, pine, sweet birch, tea tree (melaleuca), wintergreen, and ylang ylang, are poisonous to cats. Both ingestion and skin exposure can be toxic.

How big does gaultheria grow?

about 6 inches The Gaultheria procumbens plant is a native of North America woodland. It is a low growing shrub that can reach about 6 inches (15 cm) in height. It carries bellshaped flowers of white in early summer and has attractive showy and edible red fruits in the winter.