We love stinging nettle, though We know many who don’t due to its sting. It is nutritious, medicinal, and makes beautiful fiber. I even have a nettle shirt! Dock usually grows near it and can be used to take away the sting. It is in the Lamiaceae (Mint) Family.

Edible Use: The leaves are edible. Stinging nettles have a flavor similar to mild spinach when cooked. I eat them raw by folding over the leaves but most people blanch them in water to remove the sting before cooking and eating. Only eat stinging nettle leaves before the flowers appear. Beyond that time, they can cause internal irritation, especially of the urinary tract. The seeds are also edible. Dried nettle leaves and flowers make a nice herbal tea.

Identification: Stinging nettle is a perennial, growing from 3 to 8 feet (0.9m to 2.4m) tall. It is dioecious and herbaceous, dying back in the winter.

The leaves are mostly oval or occasionally heart-shaped. The soft, green leaves are 1 to 4 inches (2.5 cm to 10 cm) long and are arranged oppositely on a square erect stem. The leaves have a serrated margin and cordate base. Both the leaves and stems are very hairy with non-stinging hairs and many stinging hairs. Numerous flowers appear June to September in dense inflorescences. They are greenish or brownish, growing in branched clusters. Male and female flowers grow on separate plants or branches. Stinging nettle is widely distributed, especially where the average annual rainfall is high. I find it in places with moist soil.