Synonyms in a broader sense
Plant synonyms: the milk thistle belongs to the family of Astericeae. It is also still known by its name: Latin name: Silybum marianum
- Stingweed
- Venus Thistle
- White Thistle
- Female Thistle
- Stomach Thistle
- Fright Thistle
- Milk thistle
- Stitch seeds
- Seedling
- Milk Thistle
- Fever thistle and
- Field Thistle
The Mariendiestel in homeopathy
Milk thistle (Carduus marianum) is also used in homeopathy as a medicine. You can find more about its use in homeopathy under our topic: Carduus marianumThe medicinal plant milk thistle has the botanical name Silybum marianum and belongs to the family of daisies, such as the artichoke, chamomile, coneflower or marigold. The stately 0.70 m to 1.50 m high plant with an upright, finely hairy stem is one to two years old.
The leaves of the Milk Thistle are green-white marbled, elongated, stem-clasping and are abundant. At the tips and edges, the milk thistle leaves have thorns. Milk thistle flowers consist of purple-red, spherical heads of four to 5 cm, which are very small in relation to the plant.
It is also known as the “wild artichoke“. The flowering time is from June to September. The fruits of the Milk Thistle are about 7 mm long and shiny, black-brown-yellow marbled with a white pappus.
The original home of the medicinal plant Milk Thistle is Southern Europe, North Africa, Asia Minor and Southern Russia. It grows on fields and roadsides and can be found in sunny and warm places. The medicinal plant is cultivated in Germany, Austria and Eastern Europe.
The fruits and the herb of the milk thistle are collected. The best time to collect the blossom is during the blossoming period. The seeds are harvested in late summer or early autumn.
History
Milk thistle was already cultivated in monastery gardens in the Middle Ages. It owes its name to a legend: on the flight to Egypt, Marie wanted to nurse her child. She sought protection under the canopy of leaves of the milk thistle.
As a few drops of milk fell on the leaves during breastfeeding, the herb was spotted and striped. The botanical name Silybum comes from the Greek (Silybum = tassel). The Greek doctor Dioscurides (40 to 90 after Christ) already mentioned the medicinal plant milk thistle.
In older books one can also find the name “Cardulus marianus”, as the name for the milk thistle. Paracelsus recommended the milk thistle already against “stinging inside”. The physician Johann Gottfried Rademacher (1772 to 1850) discovered the milk thistle as a medicinal plant for the treatment of liver diseases. It is still recommended today as a protective agent for the liver.
