Wood Betony (Woundwort)

Wood Betony (Stachys officinalis)
Also known as: Woundwort, Bishop’s Wort, Purple Betony

Wood Betony is a beautiful and deeply revered medicinal herb with a long-standing history in European folk medicine and monastery gardens. This hardy perennial produces upright spikes of purple flowers, loved by pollinators, and thrives in meadows, woodland edges, and herb gardens. Once valued by herbalists as a remedy for nearly everything, Wood Betony is best known today for its calming effects on the nervous system and its use in treating tension headaches, anxiety, and stress-related conditions.

Key Characteristics

• Traditional Medicinal Use – Aerial Parts
  The leaves and flowers are harvested for teas and tinctures that support the nervous system, calm anxiety, and relieve tension headaches. Wood Betony is also gently astringent and was traditionally used for wound healing, sore throats, and digestive upset. Herbalists consider it a grounding herb that works on both the body and mind.

• Nervine Tonic and Headache Support
  Especially useful for tension held in the shoulders, neck, and head, Wood Betony is often combined with skullcap or lemon balm to ease anxiety and promote mental clarity. Taken as a tea or tincture, it gently restores balance to the nervous system without sedation.

• Pollinator Plant with Long Bloom Season
  The rich purple blooms appear from June to August, providing nectar for bees, butterflies, and native pollinators. Its long flowering season makes it a valuable mid-summer resource in pollinator-friendly garden designs.

• Adaptable Garden and Meadow Plant
  Wood Betony prefers medium soils and partial sun but is adaptable to full sun with moisture or light shade in drier spots. It’s excellent in medicinal herb beds, woodland margins, native meadows, and permaculture systems where gentle nervines and pollinator support are desired.

Product Details

• Native range: Europe and parts of Western Asia

• Plant life cycle: Perennial

• Sun requirements: Part shade to full sun

• Soil requirements: Medium (tolerates slightly dry or moist conditions)

• Mature height: 12–24 inches

• Bloom time: June to August

• Bloom color: Purple to rosy violet

• USDA Hardiness zones: 4–9

Wood Betony is a powerful yet gentle herb that deserves a place in every medicinal garden. With its calming properties, long bloom season, and pollinator value, it's as beautiful as it is beneficial.