Although fairly busy with house and mouse care we did go the farm today for our weekly work share and vegetablepick up. While working I was stung by a bee or something like that (poor guy lost his life stinging me as he left his stinger in my foot which I had to pull out). Thanks to another bee sting I got last fall while I was at the farm with Mom Tougas I knew just what to do. I found a plantain leaf, plantain is found almost anywhere grass grows, chewed it up a bit and rubbed it directly onto my skin and the pain immediately went away. I had experienced this once, last fall, but I forgot how effective it was.
When I was done working (pulling weeds in the flower gardens) I mentioned this to Jill the farm's owner. She shared a story that happened on the farm. A few years ago an inexperienced farm apprentice cut a major blood vessel in a sheep's tummy while shearing it. The sheep was gushing blood but a couple people gathered lots of plantain, chewed it up and applied it to the wound and the bleedly stopped immediately. As it turns out plantain stops bleeding as well as skin pain from insect stings. It probably does a lot more that Mom Tougas would know about.
I just wanted to share this in case you are out and about with your kids etc... and someone gets stung. I've used plantain to relieve the kid's insect bites as well although it wasn't effective long term (more than 3 hours). Mom Tougas is usually the herb person on this family blog but I just wanted to share one of my own experiences.
When we where kids.....My Parents always put wet mud on our skin if we where stung by a bee. It also works great to take away the pain and the redness. I was once stung by my eye, and this took it away right away. Could have been much worse.