I’m currently deeply in a love affair with an herb: Passionflower, passiflora incarnata. The beautiful vine grows natively in my beloved home state, Florida. The flowers have always sent me into a state of awe and wonder because they are so distinctive and almost other-worldly looking. Discovering that this is not only a beautiful flowering vine, but a beneficial herb that has grown mere steps from my front door for years was an eye-opening experience. Never discount the native plants that might hold the kind of magic that you need.

An Introduction

Passiflora incarnata is a nervine. It is an excellent aid for falling asleep - especially if you are one of those sweet humans who has circular thoughts that you can’t quite shut down to be able to drift off to sleep. (Hello, fellow thought ruminators.) This herb helps my mind finally get quiet and allows it to be still.

It is also used specifically to alleviate nerve pain in the face. I have dealt with trigeminal neuralgia for over a decade and I cried when I read that Passionflower has this particular effect. Over the last few days I have been relying on this herb as I’ve been experiencing a trigeminal neuralgia flare up. It is no heavy duty pain killer but it does keep the pain at a lower level helping me to not have to use a heavier medication.

How I Use It

I use dried leaves to make a tisane (i.e. herbal tea). I often blend it with another herb, like chamomile, because as a solitary herb it is not my favorite flavor. I usually use about a teaspoon of passionflower leaves, two teaspoons of chamomile to 8 ounces water.

Where to Find It

Passiflora incarnata grows wild in much of the southern United States. There are different varieties of Passionflower so make sure you are wildcrafting only what you can identify with absolute certainty. Also, if you are wildcrafting be sure to follow a guide of counting at LEAST four healthy stands of an herb in an area before harvesting.

I have a tiny bit left from last year’s harvest, but since I was running out I purchased a 1lb bag from Mountain Rose Herb. I enjoy it as much as the passionflower leaves I harvested myself and can fully recommend it to you as a source for this lovely herb.