Avena sativa
Milky oats come from the seeds of oat grass (Avena sativa). When they are harvested at just the right time, they exude a milky white substance that looks a lot like milk. No, this is not how we get oat milk, however! To benefit from the deeply nutritive stage of the milky oats, we harvest them at this time and either work with them fresh in teas or preserve them in tinctures. If we were to allow them to harden, then you could technically make oat meal or sow the seeds for future crops.
Oats are not only beneficial to us, they are also beneficial to the soil in your garden! They fix nitrogen in the soil and they make an excellent cover crop! Milky oats are also a nervine that are high in vitamins and minerals such as B-vitamins, iron, manganese, and calcium.
Milky oats are moistening, slightly sweet and nourishing to the nervous system. It can be helpful to use milky oats in cases of exhaustion, excess stress, and even addiction to substances such as alcohol, opium, morphine, and coffee.
Contraindications: Oats can antagonize the antinociceptive effects of morphine and pressor response to nicotine.
This information is intended only as a general reference, and is not a replacement for professional health advice. This content does not provide dosage information, format recommendations, toxicity levels, or possible interactions with prescription drugs. Accordingly, this information should be used only under the direct supervision of a qualified health practitioner such as a naturopathic physician.