For thousands of years, knowledge of the herbs and wild plants that could increase fertility were the secrets of the village wise women. But after the holocaust against European wise women ("the burning times") and the virtual extermination of Native American medicine women, this knowledge virtually disappeared. In fact, many people erroneously believe that primitive people had no means of controlling the likelihood of pregnancy. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Many common plants can be used to influence fertility, including red clover, partridge berry, liferoot, and wild yam. Some of these grow wild, others are easy to cultivate, and all are also readily available at health food stores. In the Wise Woman Tradition, my preferred way of approaching health and healing, herbs are respected as powerful individuals and thus used simply, one at a time, not mixed together. (With the exception of a little mint, which can always be added for flavor.) Let’s look at these fertility herbs one at a time:

One of the most cherished of the fertility-increasing plants is red clover (trifolium pratense). Common in fields and along roadsides, it has bright pink (not really red) blossoms from mid-summer into the chilly days of fall. Red clover is a favorite flower of the honeybees. The tops (blossoms and appending leaves) are harvested on bright sunny days and eaten as is, or dried for medicinal use. The raw blossoms are delicious in salads and nutritious when cooked with grains such as rice or millet. To make a fertility –enhancing infusion, I take one ounce by weight of the dried blossoms (fresh won’t work for this application) and put them in a quart size canning jar. I fill the jar with boiling water, screw on a tight lid, and let it steep at room temperature overnight (or for at least four hours). Dozens of women have told me that they had successful pregnancies after drinking a cup or more (up to four cups) a day of red clover infusion. It is especially helpful if there is scarring of the fallopian tubes, irregular menses, abnormal cells in the reproductive tract, or unexplained infertility. It may take several months for the full effect of this herb to come on, and pregnancy may not occur until you have used it for a year or two. If you like you can improve the taste by including some dried peppermint (a spoonful or two) along with the dried clover blossoms when making your infusion. The father of the child-to-be will enjoy some red clover infusion, too!

That little evergreen creeper that carpets some parts of the woods around your house is partridge berry (Mitchella repens), also known as squaw weed, supposedly because of its ability to enhance fertility. (My teacher Twylah Nitsch, grandmother of the Seneca Wolf clan, says that "squaw" is a slang term meaning schmuck or, in the proper term, penis and therefore should not be used in denoting a plant meant to be used by women.) Keep an eye out this spring and see if you can catch Mitchela blooming. Then you’ll see why she’s sometimes called twin flower. Interestingly, when the paired flowers fall off, they leave behind but one berry to ripen. (The shiny red berries you’ve noticed in the forest winter or spring. Yes, they are safe to eat, but leave some for the partridges.) The symbolism of the two flowers forming one berry is certainly a suitable icon for fertility. I make a medicinal vinegar by filling a small jar with the fresh leaves, adding apple cider until the jar is full again. A piece of waxed paper held in place with a rubber hand and a label (including date) completes the preparation, which must sit at room temperature for six weeks before use. I enjoy up to a tablespoonful of the vinegar on my salads or in my beans.

By mid-to-late May, the yellow blossoms of liferoot (Senecio Aureus) enliven my swamp in upstate New York and the neighboring roads where there are adequate water and rich soil. A powerful medicine resides in all parts of this lovely wildflower. As the root has a dangerous reputation, I restrict myself to using only the flowers and leaves, which I harvest in bloom, and quickly tincture. (For instructions for making your own tinctures, please see any of my books.) Small doses of this tincture (3-8 drops a day), taken at least 14 days out of the month, will regulate hormone production, increase libido, normalize the menses, relieve menstrual pain, and improve fertility. The closely related Senecia jacobea and Senecio vulgaris can also be used.

An anti-fertility herb that has been tested by small groups of modern women is wild yam. (Diosorea villosa). Since birth-control pills were originally made from this plant, it is not at all surprising that is has the effect of blocking conception when taken daily in rather large doses; either a cup of tea or tow capsules taken three times a day. Does it have detrimental effects? Current studies are too small to show any, but there is a possibility that there could be. Interestingly enough, if wild yam is take in small doses (a cup of tea or 10-20 drops of the tincture daily from onset of menses until mid-cycle) it increases fertility! In either case, the effect seems to be triggered by the large amount of hormonelike substances found in this root. When taken daily, these substances may be converted into progesterone, thus decreasing the possibility of conception. When taken for the two weeks preceding ovulation, these substances may be converted into LH (leutinizing hormone) and FSH (follicle stimualting hormone), hormones which are needed to make the egg ready to be fertilized.

Other common weeds and garden plants that have been used to increase or decrease fertility include stinging nettle, oatstraw, seaweeds, pennyroyal, Jack-in-the-pulpit, rue, artemisia, and Italian or flat parsley. Never use the essential oils of any of these herbs (or any herbs) internally.

The earth is full of wonders, and green magic abounds. As more and more women remember that they are wise women, more of the wonders and the magic will be revealed. May your days be filled with many green blessings.