Search-mi-heart

noun SAACH-mi-HAAT ˈsaːtʃ mi ˈhaːt

Also spelled search-mi-heart-and-soul, search mi heart, shepherd needle

A common Jamaican weed used as a bush medicine, its vivid name — 'search mi heart' — reflecting the folk belief that its tea searches out and cleanses what ails the inside of the body. It springs up in yards and along paths and is gathered and boiled as a traditional home remedy. Like many bush names, the striking phrase captures how the plant is felt to work rather than how it looks.

  • Boil some search-mi-heart fi cleanse yuh system.

    Boil some search-mi-heart to cleanse your system.

  • Search-mi-heart grow wild pon di roadside.

    Search-mi-heart grows wild on the roadside.

  • Granny swear by di search-mi-heart tea.

    Granny swears by the search-mi-heart tea.

A vivid folk name (the tea 'searches the heart/inside'); a Jamaican medicinal weed. See [[bush-tea]], [[cerasee]].

A medicinal weed brewed as a cleansing bush tea; name reflects folk belief. See [[bush-tea]], [[cerasee]].