Description

Wood nettles is a genus of plants in the family Urticaceae. They are herbaceous, either annual or perennial. Like many plants of the Urticaceae, they have stinging hairs. There are stinging and non-stinging hairs on the same plant.The genus was named after the French naturalist Francis de Laporte de Castelnau.  The native Wood Nettle is common in central and northern Illinois, but it is uncommon or absent in parts of southern Illinois. Habitats include moist floodplain woodlands, moist bottomland woodlands, mesic woodlands, shady seeps, and other moist places in wooded areas. Various deciduous trees (e.g., elms, maples, or sycamore) dominate the habitats where the Wood Nettle occurs. In malayalam it is Known as Anathuva(scientific name: Laportea interrupta) is a species of edible leaf species found naturally throughout Kerala. It is also known as Kuppathuva. Its itchy leaves are dipped in water once or twice to make a toran or curry. The preference is partial sun to medium shade, moist conditions, and a fertile loamy soil with abundant organic matter. Because of its stinging hairs and tendency to spread, you probably would not want to cultivate this plant near the house, except possibly as a privacy barrier.

Characteristics:

This herbaceous perennial plant is about 2-4' tall and either branched or unbranched. The stems are light to medium green and abundantly covered with stiff white hairs that have the capacity to sting when they are rubbed against. The lower to middle leaves are alternate, while the upper leaves are opposite. These leaves are up to 6" long and 4" across; they are medium to dark green, ovate-cordate to oval-ovate in shape, and coarsely serrated or serrated-crenate. Young leaves are densely hairy and wrinkled in appearance, while older leaves become less hairy and wrinkled with age. Leaf venation is pinnate. The petioles are up to 4" long and abundantly covered with stinging hairs, like the stems. The leaves may have a few stinging hairs as well, particularly along the central veins of their undersides. Some plants have a tendency to loose many of their stinging hairs as the season progresses. Individual plants are either monoecious (separate male and female flowers on the same plant) or unisexual. The male flowers occur in branching cymes from the axils of the leaves. These cymes spread outward from the stem and they are about the same length as the petioles of the leaves. Each male flower is greenish white to white and less than 1/8" (3 mm.) across, consisting of 5 narrow sepals, 5 stamens, and no petals. The female flowers occur in branching cymes toward the apex of the plant. These cymes are erect to spreading and 4" or more in length. Each female flower is more or less green and about 1/8" (3 mm.) across, consisting of 4 sepals of unequal size (2 large and 2 small) and an ovary with a long style. The blooming period usually occurs during mid- to late summer. The flowers are wind-pollinated. Each female flower is replaced by a small dry fruit that is curved and ovoid in shape. This plant often forms colonies of variable size.

Medicinal Uses:

Nettle root extracts have been extensively studied in human clinical trials as a treatment for the symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). As a food, wood nettle has a flavor similar to spinach when cooked and is rich in vitamins A, C, iron, potassium, manganese, and calcium.