Plants of Cancer are characterized by the Water of the Moon , a star associated with this zodiac sign, and which governs gastric secretions , those produced by the endocrine glands and the lymphatic system. 

According to the Ancients, four elements made up all things existing in nature: air, water , earth, and fire. In particular for the medicine of that period, water possessed the qualities of cold and damp  and corresponded to the mood of phlegm, which if in excess, produced the phlegmatic temperament . 

To treat diseases, the correspondences between plants and planets were taken into account and the Theory of Signatures  was used  to recognize the plant to be associated with an organ. In fact, each plant species showed in  its shape , color or flavor,  an imprint, or a ” sign ” that revealed its link with a bodily organ and with a planet . According to this system, plants would have the qualities of the planet that ruled them and the ability to heal that organ. 

Thus, the plants associated with the sign of Cancer are those with small white or pale yellow flowers, lily and jasmine  (because white is the color associated with the moon) ; plants with juicy, silvery leaves ( mugwort ), or moon-shaped ; and marsh aquatic plants .

Their therapeutic effect will be able to  burn off due to excess humidity and coldness ; drain  the lymphatic system and regulate the hormonal system by means of a anaphrodisiac action , capable of ” extinguishing the fire of the libido “. Let’s see why.

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The sign of Cancer and the star of the moon

With the summer solstice begins the period of Cancer, the second cardinal sign  (that is, which presides at the beginning of the season),  feminine.  Compared to the natural cycles, when the Sun finds itself in this constellation, it is the moment of the ” pregnancy of the Earth “. In fact, in Nature, after having witnessed the reproduction of life in all its forms under the sign of Taurus, the phase of fruit ripening and harvest begins , for the conservation of the species .

The sexual energy is converted into  recollection according to the gestation of the seed, well protected by the rind and pulp inside the fruit. The symbol of the sign, the crab , protected by its armor , recalls the principle of defense to preserve life . In the evolutionary cycle of man, it represents the recognition of one’s roots, of the world of origins. As a psychic process it is assimilation, introspection, emotional life. 

The natives of the sign are dreamers , prone to isolate themselves in their fantasy world , especially when they are a little sad or in love. They live in a world of their own, made up of dreams , forbidden desires , sometimes unspeakable . Many of these hide the  fear of daring , of getting involved.  Their sensitivity in fact triggers  protective mechanisms that make them stay in known situations for a long time, but not always satisfactory. Only by cultivating their secret life do they find the balance , often attacked by the harshness of reality.

Little inclined to express their emotions, they do not easily allow intrusions into their private sphere and tend to curb their most spontaneous reactions, because they have a soft core to protect , made of sensitivity and  delicacy of soul . Emotionally vulnerable, therefore, they have a great need for security and fixed points in life, which they identify above all in the affections . They hardly detach themselves from their original environment , from family ties and from their roots to which they always return with memory.

The Moon: expression of the Feminine principle , governs the element of water , whose attributes are passivity , cold and damp . In nature its phases regulate the waters and the tides , the reproductive cycles of plants and animals; in the human being it controls all electrolyte functions,  the lymphatic system , the stomach . In women, it also regulates the menstrual cycle which in fact follows the 28 -day lunar one . The Moon symbolizes the mother, home, country, childhood and origins.

Cancer presides over the gastric system , breast, breastbone, epigastric region, uterus in the man of the zodiac . Being particularly emotional, those born of the sign are subject to disorders caused by stress and which have a clear psychosomatic matrix among these include: ulcer and gastritis in the first place, digestive disorders , salivary hypersecretion , liver disorders.

A balanced and simple diet, a regular lifestyle and a peaceful life of relationships are very healthy for them , given that their body reacts negatively to every slightest disturbing factor present in the external environment. Sleep _ recharges them deeply and regenerates them above all from the expenditure of psychic energyIn women, disorders of the female organs can occur and during pregnancy.

Plants of Cancer

Cancer plants will therefore act on the anxious states that cause gastric disorders, on the drainage of liquids and on the hormonal system as they are rich in phytoestrogens, able to quell sexual impulses, mainly male!

• The white water lily: it is a perennial aquatic plant that grows in ponds, ponds and in all places where the water is stagnant or has a weak current; it is part of the Ninfeaceae family . Known since ancient times for its anaphrodisiac properties which have given it the name of ” destroyer of pleasure “. The rhizome and flowers were used to attenuate sexual arousal, as in priapism , in satirism , a male disorder caused by abnormal neuropsychic excitations which in women corresponds to nymphomania . The flowers and the root of the white water lily have a calming power of sexual activity and, according to popular tradition, the hermits used them to better endure the abstinence of celibacy ; they also have sedative , anti- inflammatory and emollient properties  of the mucous membranes. For external use the rhizome serves as an astringent and soothing the inflamed skin, especially for small ulcerations of the mouth and throat.

• The chaste tree : The name agnus which means “ lamb ” and castus “ chaste ” refers to the anaphrodisiac property (counteracts testosterone) in man . For this reason, the buds of the plant were placed in the clothes of the monks to suppress their libido . Chaste tree fruits contain a small amount of essential oil, flavonoids, casticin , vitexin, isovitexin, alkaloids, viticin, glycosides and bitter principles. These components give the plant the ability to act on the pituitary gland and exert an anti-estrogenic actionand antispasmodic , indicated for all those symptoms related to the premenstrual phase , associated with nervousness, irritability, mood swings, anxiety , depression; and in neurovegetative disorders of menopause. The specific action on the anterior lobe of the pituitary, with stimulation of the production of the gonadotropic hormone LH , which regulates the production of prolactin and decreases that of the follicle-stimulating hormone, makes the agonast a rebalancing of the progestin activity , with properties galactogenic (stimulates milk secretion). It also has a general sedative actionand, useful in palpitations, in pain in the solar plexus, in dizziness, in intestinal spasms, in insomnia , in psychosomatic diseases that are localized to the hormonal system level, in amenorrhea .

• Clary Sage : In ancient times, it was considered a sacred plant . Its name derives from the Latin, salvere , from which “to save “, because it is believed to be beneficial for any evil. In the Middle Ages it was customary to put some leaves, rich in essential oil, in the mouth, before going to sleep, to promote divinatory or problem-solving dreams. In fact, one of the names by which clary sage was defined in ancient times was ” light eye “. It was supposed to strengthen sight and inner gaze : which helped to “see” more clearly. Its use in the popular tradition was limited to digestive , female ailmentsand of nervous origin , such as anxiety, panic attacks and insomnia; as a disinfectant of ulcerations and to calm inflammation of the respiratory tract and throat.

• Asprello rennet:  ( Galium Aparine )  draining , diuretic , anti- inflammatory, light astringent increases the aqueous excretion , corrects the inability to eliminate the normal waste products of catabolism and reducing intoxication and edema . It is used for acute inflammation of the urinary tract, painful and burning urination, cystitis . It exerts a double action on the urinary system and on the lymphatic system , so that the plant is used in cases of lymphadenopathy.