B-12 is a very difficult thing to get into our body due to its complex nature - as a metal-based amino acid. Cobalt is pretty rare and the manufacture of the amino acid requires synthesis (typically in the gut) of a living organism such as a cow or sea creature. We have a difficult enough time getting it out of the food we eat and apparently cannot synthesize it ourselves in our own guts. Apparently, we do not have the right set-up. However, bacteria in the soil can do that, and the comfrey plant can exploit that with its extensive root system. I also note that it loves cow manure (which probably contains B-12 from its manufacturer which is one of the best sources for B-12 when its red meat is consumed).
I remember reading as a kid, that the early pioneer women used the plant to make tea that would calm nerves, etc - which is what a B-12 injection does. It was noted for fixing "womens' complaints" back in the day - whatever that entailed.....?
I am still trying to figure out how to fix those - and after nearly 20 years of marriage, I am happy to report, I am still a complete failure....LOL
But I digress, I am fascinated with what this plant can do and I would like to plant quite a bit of it in a "well watered" spot of our paradise to have on hand in difficult times.
Here is some more info on it:
Cultivation
The comfrey bed should be well prepared by weeding thoroughly, and dressing with manure if available. Offsets should be planted 2-3 feet apart with the growing points just below the surface, whilst root segments should be buried about 2" deep. Keep the bed well watered until the young plants are established. Comfrey should not be harvested in it’s first season as it needs to become established. Any flowering stems should be removed as these will weaken the plants in it’s first year. Comfrey should also be regularly watered until well established. Comfrey is a fast growing plant, producing huge amounts of leaf during the growing season, hence is very nitrogen hungry. Although it will continue to grow no matter what, it will benefit from the addition of animal manure applied as a mulch, and can also be mulched with other nitrogen rich materials such as lawn mowings, and is one of the few plants that will tolerate the application of fresh urine diluted 50:50 with water, although this should not be regularly added as it may increase salt levels in the soil and have adverse effects on soil life such as worms. Mature comfrey plants can be harvested up to four or five times a year. They are ready for cutting when about 2ft high, and, depending on seasonal conditions, this is usually in April. Comfrey will rapidly regrow, and will be ready for further cutting about 5 weeks later. It is said that the best time to cut comfrey is shortly before flowering, for this is when it is at it’s most potent in terms of the nutrients that it offers. Comfrey can continue growing into November, but it is not advisable to continue taking cuttings after September in order to allow the plants to build up winter reserves. As the leaves die back and break down in winter, nutrients and minerals are transported back to the roots for use the following spring. Comfrey should be harvested by using shears or a sickle to cut the plant about 2" above the ground, taking care handling it because the leaves and stems are covered in hairs that can irritate the skin. It is advisable to wear gloves when handling comfrey. Despite being sterile, Bocking 14 Russian Comfrey will steadily increase in size. It is therefore advisable to split it up every few years (and at the same time propagate more plants that can be shared with fellow gardeners!). It is however difficult to remove comfrey once established as it is very deep rooting, and any fragments left in the soli will regrow. rotovation can be successful, but may take several seasons. The best way to eradicate comfrey is to very carefully dig it out, removing as much of the root as possible. This is best done in hot, dry summer weather, wherin the dry conditions will help to kill off any remaining root stumps. Comfrey is generally trouble free once established, although weaker or stressed plants can suffer from comfrey rust or mildew. Both are fungal diseases, although they rarely seriously reduce plant growth and thus do not generally require control. However infected plants should not be used for propagation purposes.
Medicinal Uses
Rosemary Morrow writes that "Russian comfrey and garlic could together, according to natural health usage, cure almost half the present ills of western civilisation" (The Book Of Herbs, Pan 1976). An extravagant claim perhaps, but it does indeed have a wealth of medicinal uses. One of it’s country names was ‘knitbone’, a reminder of it’s traditional use in healing. The herb contains allantoin, a cell proliferant that speeds up the natural replacement of body cells. This means that it will promote the swift healing of damaged or injured tissues, as well as maintaining cell growth and preventing diseases. Comfrey has been used to treat a wide variety of ailments ranging from bronchial problems, broken bones, sprains, arthritis, gastric and varicose ulcers, severe burns, acne and other skin conditions. It is also said to have bone and teeth building properties in children, and have value in treating "many female disorders". In past times comfrey baths were popular to repair the hymen and thus ‘restore virginity’. Constituents of comfrey also include mucilage, steroidal saponins, tannins, pyrrolizidine alkoloids, inulin, vitamin B12 and proteins.
Excessive internal usage of comfrey should be avoided because of pyrrolidizine alkaloids, which have been linked by some research to cancer in rats. Avoid using comfrey on dirty or deep wounds, as the rapid healing properties of the allantoins may trap dirt or pus, leading to the formation of absesses.
Fertiliser Uses
Comfrey is a particularly valuable source of fertility to the organic gardener. It is very deep rooted and acts as a dynamic accumulator, mining a host of nutrients from the soil. These are then made available through it’s fast growing leaves (up to 4-5lb per plant per cut) which, lacking fibre, quickly break down to a thick black liquid. There is also no risk of nitrogen robbery when comfrey is dug into the soil as the C:N ratio of the leaves is lower than that of well-rotted compost. Comfrey is an excellent source of potassium, an essential plant nutrient needed for flower, seeds and fruit production. It’s leaves contain 2-3 times more potassium than farmyard manure, mined from deep in the subsoil, tapping into reserves that would not normally be available to plants.
There are various ways in which comfrey can be utilised as a fertiliser, these include:
* Comfrey for potatoes- freshly cut comfrey should be wilted for a day or two, then laid in potato trenches about 2" deep. Avoid using flowering stems as these can root. The leaves will rapidly break down and supply potassium rich fertiliser for the developing potato plants.
* Comfrey as a compost activator- include 2-3" deep layers of comfrey in the compost heap to encourage bacterial activity and help to heat the heap. Comfrey should not be added in quantity as it will quickly break down into a dark sludgey liquid that needs to be balanced with more fibrous, carbon rich material.
* Comfrey liquid fertiliser- can be produced by either rotting leaves down in rainwater for 4-5 weeks to produce a ready to use ‘comfrey tea’, or by stacking dry leaves under a weight in a container with a hole in the base. When the leaves decompose a thick black comfrey concentrate is collected. This must be diluted @ 15:1 before use.
* Comfrey as a mulch- a 2" layer of comfrey leaves placed around a crop will slowly break down and release plant nutrients. it is especially useful for crops that need extra potassium, such as tomatoes, and also fruit bushes like gooseberries and currants.
* Comfrey potting mixture- originally devised using peat, environmental awareness has lead to a leaf-mould based alternative being adopted instead. Two year old, well decayed leaf mould should be used, this will absorb the nutrient rich liquid released by the decaying comfrey.
* In a black plastic sack alternate 3-4" layers of leaf mould and chopped comfrey leaves. Add a little dolomitic limestone to slightly raise pH. Leave for between 2-5 months depending on the season, checking that it does not dry out or become too wet. the mixture is ready when the comfrey leaves have rotted and are no longer visible. Use as a general potting compost, although it is too strong for seedlings.
Original content from Quercusrobur at http://permaculture.wikia.com/
COMFREY
(Sent in by "Star")
Wild comfrey was brought to America by English immigrants for medicinal uses. The allantoin content of comfrey, especially in the root, has resulted in its use in folk medicine for healing wounds, sores, burns, swollen tissue, and broken bones. Allantoin, found in milk of nursing mothers and the fetal allantois, appeared to affect the rate of cell multiplication. Wounds and burns seemed to heal faster when allantoin was applied due to a possible increase in number of white blood cells. Comfrey has been reported to promote healthy skin with its mucilage content that moisturizes and soothes, while the allantoin promotes cell proliferation.
The allantoin applied to external wounds is either a 0.4% solution or a 2% ointment. An effective allantoin formulation is difficult to prepare from comfrey due to the low and variable content of this substance. Hart (1976) reported that dried comfrey leaves contain 0.1 to 1.6% allantoin while dried roots have 0.4 to 1.5%. Since fresh leaves are 85% water, they could not contain more than 0.2% allantoin. It would require anywhere from 8 oz to 8 lb of dried comfrey leaves per quart of water to produce a 0.4% solution that would be effective. Comfrey produces large amounts of foliage from late May until hard frosts in October or November. This crop has been used as a salad green and potherb because it was considered a good source of protein and a rare plant-derived source of vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 is produced usually by soil bacteria and fungi or in the small intestines of some animals.
Wild comfrey was brought to America by English immigrants for medicinal uses. The allantoin content of comfrey, especially in the root, has resulted in its use in folk medicine for healing wounds, sores, burns, swollen tissue, and broken bones. Allantoin, found in milk of nursing mothers and the fetal allantois, appeared to affect the rate of cell multiplication. Wounds and burns seemed to heal faster when allantoin was applied due to a possible increase in number of white blood cells. Comfrey has been reported to promote healthy skin with its mucilage content that moisturizes and soothes, while the allantoin promotes cell proliferation.
The allantoin applied to external wounds is either a 0.4% solution or a 2% ointment. An effective allantoin formulation is difficult to prepare from comfrey due to the low and variable content of this substance. Hart (1976) reported that dried comfrey leaves contain 0.1 to 1.6% allantoin while dried roots have 0.4 to 1.5%. Since fresh leaves are 85% water, they could not contain more than 0.2% allantoin. It would require anywhere from 8 oz to 8 lb of dried comfrey leaves per quart of water to produce a 0.4% solution that would be effective. Comfrey produces large amounts of foliage from late May until hard frosts in October or November. This crop has been used as a salad green and potherb because it was considered a good source of protein and a rare plant-derived source of vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 is produced usually by soil bacteria and fungi or in the small intestines of some animals.
The following is from the Chemist and Druggist of August 13, 1921:
'Allantoin is a fresh instance of the good judgment of our rustics, especially of old times, with regard to the virtues of plants. The great Comfrey or consound, though it was official with us down to the middle of the eighteenth century, never had a very prominent place in professional practice; but our herbalists were loud in its praise and the country culler of simples held it almost infallible as a remedy for both external and internal wounds bruises, and ulcers, for phlegm, for spitting of blood, ruptures, haemorrhoids, etc. For ulcers of the stomach and liver especially, the root (the part used) was regarded as of sovereign virtue. It is precisely for such complaints as these that Allantoin, obtained from the rhizome of the plant, is now prescribed. One old Syrupus de Symphyto was a rather complicated preparation. Gerard has a better formula, also a compound, which he highly recommends for ulcers of the lungs. The old Edinburgh formula is the simplest and probably the best: Fresh Comfrey leaves and fresh plantain leaves, of each lb.ss.; bruise them and well squeeze out the juice, add to the dregs spring water lb.ij.; boil to half, and mix the strained liquor with the expressed juice; add an equal quantity of white sugar and boil to a syrup.'
Comfrey roots, together with Chichory and Dandelion roots, are used to make a well-known vegetation 'Coffee,' that tastes practically the same as ordinary coffee, with none of its injurious effects.
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