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The Healing Power of a Wild Lawn

  • Writer: Stephanie Hanlon
    Stephanie Hanlon
  • Mar 12
  • 3 min read

Welcome back to my journey converting my half-acre National Wildlife homestead in Historic Mableton into a food forest — trading with neighbors, supporting wildlife, and rediscovering what grows right outside our doors.

 

Last Saturday I was sick and congested and stepped outside just for fresh air. That’s when I spotted it: a beautiful ground cover everywhere, with fuzzy leaves and tiny orchid-like blue flowers.



I looked it up and was stunned — Bird’s Eye Speedwell (Veronica persica), native to Iran, used across the world for thousands of years to clear congestion and open the airways. The Irish popularized it in the West; travelers would see it clinging to their clothes — literally how it spread — and named it “Speedwell” to wish fellow travelers well. I made a tea immediately. My congestion cleared within hours. Three cups and two days later, I was all better. It’s blooming everywhere in Mableton right now. 

 

Lore & History

Speedwell has been used medicinally for over 2,000 years, documented in Persian medicine for respiratory ailments and skin conditions. As trade routes expanded, it moved into Celtic folk medicine — brewed for coughs, sewn into travelers’ clothing as a charm of protection. By the 1800s it appeared in European pharmacopeias, and the herbalist Nicholas Culpeper called it “a singular wound herb” for the lungs. It arrived in North America with European settlers, tucked in grain and fodder, and has quietly naturalized ever since.

 

Right Here in Mableton

Before the suburban lawn took over, families in Historic Mableton grew food, herbs, and medicine steps from their doors. Those seeds are still here. Bird’s Eye Speedwell is blooming across Mableton yards right now — one of the first nectar sources of the season for emerging pollinators, and one of the most generous gifts hiding in plain sight. It asks nothing of us except that we stop spraying it. 


Key Compounds & Benefits

Compound

Benefit

Iridoid glycosides (aucubin)

Anti-inflammatory, liver-protective

Flavonoids (luteolin, apigenin)

Antioxidant, antimicrobial

Saponins

Expectorant — loosens mucus in airways

Tannins

Soothes respiratory mucosa

Vitamin C

Immune support

Mucilage

Coats and calms irritated throat tissue

 

For educational reference only. Bird’s Eye Speedwell is used as a medicinal herb, not a dietary food source.


How to Use It


Congestion Tea

• Simmer 1–2 tbsp fresh leaves/flowers (or 1 tsp dried) in 2 cups water for 10 minutes

• Strain, add honey and lemon, drink warm — up to 3 cups per day


Skin Wash

• Make a strong tea, cool it, and apply to rashes or irritated skin 2–3x daily


Harvest & Dry for Year-Round Use

• Harvest in the morning, rinse, and dry on a screen out of direct sunlight for 1–2 weeks

• Store in a sealed glass jar for up to 12 months


  Allergy & Safety Disclaimer

Before using any wild plant medicinally: always confirm your identification, and check for allergies to the Plantaginaceae family (plantain, foxglove). People with hay fever may react to Speedwell pollen — stop use if you experience itching or hives. This blog is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice. Consult a doctor if you are pregnant, nursing, on medications, or before giving herbal teas to children under 12.


Final note: 


Since I stopped mowing, the most surprising plants keep appearing — remnants of seeds that traveled here generations ago. You can find Bird’s Eye Speedwell all over your yard right now. Scoop it up, dry it out, and use it all year long.

 

The more time I spend in the Garden, the more I realize that so many of our every day problems can be solved simply by remembering that the Earth already provides everything we need for free. 


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Revolution Garden is a column documenting my journey toward food independence and environmental stewardship — a process of relearning what our collective ancestors practiced for thousands of years: a mutually beneficial relationship with land and community.


Visit the Historic Mableton Trading Post on Mable Street near Peak Street to trade seeds, vegetables, books, and art.


If you’d like to learn more about me or support this work: 👉 🌱

 
 
 

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