Name: Oxalis being derived from the Greek oxys, meaning sour or acid, and acetosella, meaning vinegar salts. Salts of Lemon, as well as Oxalic acid, can be obtained from the plant: 20 lb. of fresh herb yield about 6 lb. of juice, from which, by crystallization, between 2 and 3 OZ. of Salts of Lemon can be obtained.

Common Names: Indian-Sorrel, Lady's-Sorrel, Wood Sour, Sour Trefoil, Stickwort,Fairy Bells, Hallelujah, Cuckowes Meat, Three-leaved Grass, Surelle, Stubwort, and Sheep's-Clover

Parts Used: The leaves, fresh or dried.

Description: Leaflets delicate, heart-shaped, resembling clover. Flower light yellow to reddish. Seed pods erect, bent stalks which form a right angle. Slender, irregular creeping rootstock covered with red scales. Height: 6-15". Flowers May - October. Wood sorrels differ from clover in that their leaves are heart-shaped, not round like clover. The leaflets are usually folded somewhat along their middle, and are of a peculiarly sensitive nature. Only in shade are they fully extended: if the direct rays of the sun fall on them they sink at once upon the stem, forming a kind of three-sided pyramid, their under surfaces thus shielding one another and preventing too much evaporation from their pores. At night and in bad weather, the leaflets fold in half along the midrib, and the three are placed nearly side by side to 'sleep,' a security against storm and excessive dews. Some people call them fairy bells, since they have bell-shaped flowers. The blossom is white with purple streaks or soft yellow. Sometimes the whole flower is pinkish-purple. Although shamrock is a Celtic word that means "little clover", it is believed to be a plant called a wood sorrel. Nobody knows for sure the identity of the true Irish shamrock, since St. Patrick's three-leafed plant pre-dates the scientific naming of plants. They owe the acidity of their herbage to the presence of a special salt, binoxalate of potash, which is also present in Rhubarb. This, however, is absent in the common Docks. We find it to a marked degree in the Wood Sorrel which indeed receives its name on this account, and not for any similarity in the structure of the plant, which is in no way related to the Sorrels and Docks. As the flower fades, its stalk bends towards the ground and conceals the seed capsule under the leaves, till ripe, when it straightens again. The case of the capsule is elastic and curls back when the fruit is quite ripe, jerking the seeds out several yards, right over the leaves.

Habitat: Dry soils, roadsides, meadows, United States. Native, also found in Europe and Asia. It is a little plant of a dainty character, growing abundantly in woods and shady places.

Cultivation:

Uses: Taste a fresh green leaf for a wonderful spicy, lemony flavor. Herbalists believe that Wood  Sorrel can settle an upset stomach, check vomiting, and produce an appetite. The juice of the leaves can be used as a gargle to treat mouth sores. The Russians have used Wood Sorrel to make a drink to reduce fever. In England, during the reign of King Henry VIII, Wood Sorrel was sprinkled in salads to add a tangy flavor. Although a little Wood Sorrel can be added to salads, it is not recommended since it can cause stomach and kidney problems. The old herbalists tell us that Wood Sorrel is more effectual than the true Sorrels as a blood cleanser.

Miscellaneous: The ternate leaf has been considered to be that with which St. Patrick demonstrated the Trinity to the ancient Irish, though a tiny kind of clover is now generally accepted as the 'true Shamrock.' An excellent conserve, Conserva Ligulae, used to be made by beating the fresh leaves up with three times their weight of sugar and orange peel, and this was the basis of the cooling and acid drink that was long a favourite remedy in malignant fevers and scurvy.

Caution: The oxalic salts are not suitable for all people, especially those with a tendency toward gout and rheumatism.

Flower Essence: Centers us in the heart. Supports us in keeping our vibrational offering pure and on track with what we want to create, so that we are not sabotaged by the conflicting beliefs of our egos.