Angelica (Angelica archangelica): Traditional Uses & Safety

At a glance

Botanical name: Angelica archangelica
Family: Apiaceae
Part used: Root, Seed, Leaf
Taste: Pungent, Sweet, Bitter
Temperature: Warm
Moisture: Dry

Taught in Eden's Table

Sprouts (grades K-2), Week 21

Our homeschool curriculum, one plant a week. Week 1 is free.

Safety at a glance

In pregnancy

Insufficient data; avoid

While breastfeeding

Avoid during breastfeeding — furanocoumarin and warfarin-interaction concerns, plus emmenagogue tradition.

For children

Avoid under 12

Cautions

Phototoxic (furanocoumarins — avoid sun after topical use); pregnancy caution; caution with anticoagulants

General contraindications

Avoid — emmenagogue, phototoxic constituents

Stewardship

Angelica (Angelica archangelica) is cultivated in Europe; distinct from Chinese Dong Quai (A. sinensis). Stewardship: the 'angel's herb' of European tradition — the legend that an angel revealed it during plague teaches herbal humility.

In the traditional record

Angelica (Angelica archangelica) — bearing its name from European Christian tradition that the Archangel Michael revealed the herb in a dream as a defense against plague; cultivated in medieval monastery gardens, recorded by Hildegard von Bingen, and detailed by Culpeper as a warming aromatic tonic for digestion and circulation.

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Educational use

The Apothecary is educational and does not constitute medical advice. Nothing here is intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before changing what you take, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or managing a diagnosed condition.

On our sources

These entries draw on public-domain materia medica, most of it published before 1900, alongside a smaller number of modern reference works. Energetic qualities such as warming, cooling, drying and moistening are a traditional framework for describing how a plant behaves in the body, not a laboratory measurement. Where a period source states one, we cite it. Where none does, and for many North American herbs none exists, the value reflects modern herbal consensus rather than a historical text. When we cannot support a caution with real evidence, we say nothing rather than guess.