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Pelargonium Herbal Remedy Hails Originally From South Africa

Alert! In the Southern Hemisphere, winter cold is settling in, while in the Northern Hemisphere, spring has begun to blossom – signalling a rash of colds, ‘flu, and hayfever headed your way!

Herbal remedies for these types of ailments being all the rage, some of you may have noticed the floral ingredient Pelargonium in your tinctures and capsules. This extract hails, in fact, from South Africa; the subspecies Pelargonium sidoides has been harvested here as a traditional remedy for coughs, scratchy throats, infections, and so on, for the regulation hundreds of years.


Pelargonium is sometimes (and incorrectly, I believe) known as “wild geranium”, but is related to “tame” geraniums in some way. The genus comprises more than 200 species, and it’s commonly found all over South Africa; its leaves, when broken or scraped, release a pungent perfume.