Could burdock be as bad as my dad led me to believe?

When is a weed more than a weed? Yesterday, on my daily walk, I saw a huge burdock plant growing alongside the trail. Oh, how my father despised burdocks. He placed that tall, miserable weed, as he called it, right up there with bull thistles, which he hated with a passion.

I stopped to look at the burdock plant (arctium). Could it be as bad as my dad had me believing? I had watched him pull burdock burs from our farm dog many times.  And cussing the plant with every bur he pulled loose. I pulled a good many Burdock burs from my pants over the years as well. But as I looked at the plant, I wondered.  Could such an attractive plant be all bad? 

After a bit of research, I found some interesting information. First burdock is native to both Asia and Europe and was accidently introduced to North America in the 1600s.  Burdock was the inspiration for the hook-and-loop fastener, Velcro.  According to what I read, a Swiss inventor, George de Mestral in the early 1940s, was pulling Burdock burs from his dog, and he was struck by how well the bur worked—and voilà,  he came up with the Velcro fastener.

Burdock, historically has served as a food—both roots and shoots are edible, as well as a medicine. In Asian cuisine, burdock root is usually sautéed in a pan with soy sauce and sesame seed. Burdock flowers and leaves can be used to make tea. The roots can also be used as a medicine. Supposedly, burdock root is a liver detoxifier, aids digestion, is an anti-inflammatory, as well as a diuretic and treatment for eczema.

The lowly, often despised, burdock has an interesting positive history—including the inspiration for Velcro that we all take for granted today.

THE OLD TIMER SAYS: Be careful about dismissing a plant as a weed before you have more of its story.

Jerry Apps, born and raised on a Wisconsin farm, is Professor Emeritus at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the author of more than 35 books, many of them on rural history and country life. For further information about Jerry's writing and TV work, go to www.jerryappsauthor@gmail.com.