Jewelweed (Impatiens pallida), a.k.a. Pale Touch-me-not...

Nodding in the damp edges along the Little Miami River, this beautiful yellow jewelweed flower dangled from its stem like a perfectly crafted pendant...

Yellow Jewelweed (Impatiens pallida)

I always assumed this flower was named Jewelweed because of the brightly colored yellow and orange jewel tones of the flowers, but it's not. I just read in my "Wildflowers of Ohio Field Guide," by Stan Tekiela, that it's named after the leaves. When water droplets form on the leaves, they shine like tiny, silvery jewels, and according to "Wildflowers of Ohio," by Robert Henn, when the leaves are placed under water, they shine like silver! I tested it out, and it's true.

Pale "Touch-me-not" seems like a strange nickname for such a beautiful, jewel-like flower, but if you touch the seed pods when they're dry, they burst open and spray seeds in every direction. Jewelweed is an annual, so it needs to reseed itself every year, and the old "send the seeds flying method" really gets the job done!

If you find yourself in the middle of a stinging nettle patch, look around for jewelweed (the plants often grow near each other because they share the same habitat). Crush the stem of the Jewelweed and spread the liquid on the areas of the skin touched by the stinging nettle leaves. The anti-inflammatory in the Jewelweed helps relieve the sting and burn caused by the leaves. 

I read a lot of accounts where jewelweed could be used the same way on poison ivy and mosquito bites to relieve the itch, but then I read just as many accounts that disproved the notion. I read no accounts, however, that disputed its affect on stinging nettle burns.

This summer while looking for turtles with Paul along the Great Miami River I went off trail a lot and went through several patches of stinging nettle. Ouch...those teeny weeny urticating hairs go through anything, including jeans! The stings burn intensely for about 15 minutes, but then fade, so it's not too bad. The hairs on stinging nettle work like the urticating hairs on stinging caterpillars like the American Dagger Moth Caterpillar (click here for a post) and the Buck Moth Caterpillar (click here for a post). Basically, the hairs are like tiny needles that break off in the skin and dump in several chemicals: acetylcholine, histamine, 5-HT or serotonin, and formic acid (source: Wikipedia). The result is a burning sensation or sting that lasts about 15 minutes. On some, the sting can last much longer, even a day or so!