Mullein ID and preparation

[Dante]

Hi everyone,

Today I found some plants near my house that seem to be of the Mullein genus, so I decided to take a couple of photos and show them to the Nexus.

Is my identification right? How should I prepare them to make a smoking/tea blend? At the moment I just took the leaf and the flowers off the shafts, quickly rinsed them under cold water and then put them to dry in the sun for an hour or so. Should I just finish to dry them in the dark or first I should get rid of other unwanted parts like the nervations of the leaf?

Thanks

 

[MelCat]

Looks like mullein to me.

I wouldn't set them in direct sun because that might evap some of the oils contained in the leaves and flowers.

I'd just set them somewhere warm with plenty of airflow so they don't rot or get funky.

You could clean up the veins now or wait until they are a little drier.

I'm interested to see others input on this as well.

Good find! I've been trying to grow mullein for awhile but none of my seeds germinated.

 

[blue lunar night]

Most definitely Mullein !

I second MelCat's suggestions for drying. A fan can expedite the process.

Mullein leaf tea is good for sore throats and respiratory ailments like bronchitis. It reduces inflammation while stimulating fluid production.

An infusion of the flowers in olive oil makes a good topical anti-inflammatory,
and Garlic (anti-bacterial) is often added to make ear-drops.

 

[Yerba]

Wait, I thought mullein looked more like the pic below. Are there different varieties, or does the plant change appearance as it matures? Are the leaves of the type shown below still ideal for changa?

 

[Pup Tentacle]

Both are mullein, leaves are usually fuzzier when newer... I like them that way

 

[MelCat]

EDIT: I'd go with Pup's answer

Hard to say Yerba. That does look similar to mullein, but I'm not 100% sure.

Mullein always has a large shoot coming from it's center when it flowers. Maybe wait another week or so to see if it produces the shoot? Some more pics that aren't so zoomed in might help too.

 

[Dante]

MelCat, I put them in the sun only for an hour after the rinse, because I dint want them to stay wet for too long. Im pretty sure all the goods are still in there.

I think I will wait till they are completely dry before getting rid of the veins, it will be probably a much easier process.

You should check around your area, here in Italy they are popping up on the side of every road!


blue lunar night, thanks for the healthy tips!


Yerba, there are indeed many different varieties! Although, like MelCat said, you should wait till it grows a bit more to get a correct ID.

 

[Phlux-]

does dry mullien flower smell like raisins to anyone else?
this post confirmed that the plants iv been seeing in a kronies garden are infact mullien - yay

 

[Wax]

Is there a particular season in which mullien becomes more potent?

I know it's probably a good idea to harvest the buds in the spring/summer since the seeds contain poisons, but do the leaves get more potent with age?

 

[Dante]

I red somewhere that the best period is late spring/early summer, but it didnt explain why.

 

[Felnik]

Mullein is pretty ,
Easy to identify , large fuzzy leaves ,
Central stalk , seed bunched in rows top of stalk
Yellow flowers bursting around top of stalk ,

It seems to grow everywhere , Very hardy .
I,ve seen them growing through pavement .
And green in winter as well .

 

[DoingKermit]

I have one large mullein plant that sprouts up every year (it does indeed grow through pavement, Felnik). I'm going to pick some leaves in the next day or two and dry them out for my next changa blend. I read somewhere that they shouldn't be dried out completely... Is this true? Smoking it slightly moist just sounds like a bad idea.

 

[Vodsel]

I have one large mullein plant that sprouts up every year (it does indeed grow through pavement, Felnik). I'm going to pick some leaves in the next day or two and dry them out for my next changa blend. I read somewhere that they shouldn't be dried out completely... Is this true? Smoking it slightly moist just sounds like a bad idea.

It's not a bad idea, on the contrary... pretty much like rolling tobacco, crispy dry mullein is harsher, less pleasant to smoke. If you manage to dry mullein leaves to a 15% moisture or so, you'll have optimal flavor and it will smoke nicely. Try and find the sweet spot for you.

And if what you got is already completely dry, you can either mix it with non-crispy-dry smoking herbs for a day, or simply add to the mullein container a slice of apple or lemon to re-hydrate the herb.

 

[Tokapelli]

Mullein grows everywhere here like a weed I think its a pretty cool plant. I have read that in its first year, the plant will not get that big stalk in the middle. For the first year it will stay low to the ground only growing those fuzzy leaves. Then in the second year it will grow the big stock in the middle that produces seeds, after spreading the seads in its 2nd year it dies and doesnt come back. If i remember right i think i read that the seeds are poisonous so dont smoke em!

 

[DoingKermit]

I have one large mullein plant that sprouts up every year (it does indeed grow through pavement, Felnik). I'm going to pick some leaves in the next day or two and dry them out for my next changa blend. I read somewhere that they shouldn't be dried out completely... Is this true? Smoking it slightly moist just sounds like a bad idea.

It's not a bad idea, on the contrary... pretty much like rolling tobacco, crispy dry mullein is harsher, less pleasant to smoke. If you manage to dry mullein leaves to a 15% moisture or so, you'll have optimal flavor and it will smoke nicely. Try and find the sweet spot for you.

And if what you got is already completely dry, you can either mix it with non-crispy-dry smoking herbs for a day, or simply add to the mullein container a slice of apple or lemon to re-hydrate the herb.

Thanks Vodsel! I have yet to pick the massive furry leaves, but will definitely take your advice regarding moisture. I'm guessing once I make my changa blend with it, it will most likely dry out anyways though.

Tokapelli, it is indeed a cool plant. I had one grow randomly in an old plant pot in my garden last year and this year it started growing out of the pavement just near where the pot used to be! So it is definitely weed-like in nature.

 

[realmsundiscovered]

ive picked mullein for a couple years now. It helps get rid of phlem in the throat due to sickness or smoking. As tokapelli posted before, it is a biennial plant and produces a rosette the first year then a flowering headstock the next year. I enjoy picking mullein. Its the perfect base for any smoking mixture i just picked some today and im going to roll a mullein cigar. Theyve just started growing around my house. I find the leaves grow stronger with age unless they are under constant battering from the sun.