Burdock has a long history of use in Europe, where the plant is also
known as Beggar’s Buttons and Sticky Willow. Nicholas Culpeper, the
noted 17th century English physician and botanist, wrote this of
burdock:
"...the roots themselves given to drink with old wine, doth
wonderfully help the biting of any serpents—the root beaten with a
little salt and laid on the place suddenly easeth the pain thereof, and
helpeth those that are bit by a mad dog..."
An infusion of the root, applied as a poultice to the soles of the feet,
is a Medieval remedy for “hysterical disorders.” The root is also
traditionally decocted for use as a skin wash, or is macerated in oil to
use as a base in shampoos and hair conditioners.
