I've read about the multitude of uses for mullein, and had used it for several things. I went to order more from the Bulk Herb Store and they were out of stock. So I finally got around to searching for it in my yard. And we have plenty. It's considered a weed, grows nearly everywhere, smells good, and is pretty. So we'll be letting this weed grow.
I found it just in time. I picked some flowers, washed them, then put them in a jar with some olive oil and kept them at low heat for about 24 hours. Then I strained out the oil. Five of my kids had earaches, one or two at a time, and so I got to test this stuff out. I put a couple drops in each ear when they complained about earaches. Three of the kids still needed Motrin to get through the night, but it worked great during the day. The other two made it through the night without any additional pain killers--and the two month old baby was one of them.
Things we've used mullein for and been successful include cuts and scrapes, coughs, colds, sore throats, and ear aches. I tried to get one of the kids to try a leaf in her shoe when she had that bruised heel feeling, but she only wanted to wear flip flops so that didn't work.
I made the mullein oil for earaches. But for sore throats, coughs, and colds, we added it to tea. Mullein helps with pain, but it also can kill germs and help expel mucus from the body. The kids said their tea helped a lot with the cough and sore throat. I didn't just use mullein in their tea, but it helped more when I added it than when I didn't.
With the nice weather the kids have been playing outside a lot. That means they scrape themselves while climbing trees and fall and scrape knees while riding bikes and scooters. I get tired of handing out bandaids and suggested they crush or bruise a mullein leaf and put it on their cuts. They tell me it worked great! It helped it stop hurting right away. Of course, kids think bandaids help scrapes stop hurting too, so I can't be sure how well it worked. I don't fall down much so I haven't been able to test it myself quite yet.
