Dock - The Natural History Museum

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Country cures

Rumex spp.

Common herbs growing on neglected cultivated land and roadsides.

'For rheumatism: gather dock leaves, carefully dry them and bind them around the affected joint.'
Thorncombe, Dorset, 1986

'As children in the 1920s, dock leaves were picked to ease nettle stings and sunburn... we would wrap these around our arms and legs.'
Colwyn Bay, Clwyd, 1992

'My late mother-in-law... used to boil the roots of young docks to produce a liquor which was drunk to "clear the blood" of people suffering with boils.'
Bishop's Hull, Somerset, 1998

Dock is used to treat cuts and rashes, and by practitioners of herbal medicine to treat skin complaints, constipation, ringworm and gingivitis (inflammation of the gums).

Cures featured in this exhibition and on the website should be used only with advice from a qualified medical herbalist.