Monthly Archives: October 2012

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Red Clover

Name:  Red Clover

Latin:

Other Common Names:

Family:

Parts Used:

Vitamins & Minerals:  Most, in good quantity

Used for:  This is a lovely tonic and nutritive herb, containing a long list of vitamins and minerals in good quantity.  Due to the flavour it adds to teas, it also helps to mitigate or cover that of some of the more bitter medicinals.  Mixed with mint, it makes a good cold remedy.  It ranks neat the top of herbal fertility promoters.  It is a liver and blood strengthener.  Because of the intense nutritive quality, it is also anti-cancer.  It can assist with calming nerves, and alleviating nervous disorders.  As with the products of the bees who love it so much, it can be used for a variety of skin issues.

Use in tandem with:

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Garlic (Allium sativum)

Name:  Garlic

Latin:  Allium sativum

Other Common Names:

Parts Used:  Bulb

Vitamins & Minerals:

Used for:  Garlic is one of the “magic” plants as far as its health effects and uses.  It mitigates the physical effects of stress.  It can lower high blood pressure.  A tea is good for sore throats, and can be used to lessen inflammation and infection in tonsilitis.  If used as a poultice on your chest (often in conjunction with onion), it can help with bronchitis and other chest ailments.  Along with being capable of lowering blood pressure, it can help to reduce your cholesterol, strengthen your heart, increase immune response, reduce stroke risk, and stabilize blood sugar.  Garlic and its relatives are a source of phytoestrogens, which not only reduce the risk of cancer, they can assist with the passage through menopause.  Garlic also has an antibiotic effect similar to penicillin, with the added benefit of not killing off the beneficial bacteria in the body.    Used in a cold poultice, it can help to lower swelling; as a hot poultice, can be used to help snakebites and wasp or hornet stings.  Crushed and packed in near a tooth, it can assist with toothache.  Most of the folkloric and historic beneficial effects of garlic have been proven scientifically.

Use in tandem with:  Hawthorn and Cayenne

Directions and Warnings:  As garlic is a natural blood-thinner, you should consult with a doctor before increasing the amount of garlic you consume, or using it in supplement form if you are on blood-thinning medication.

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Marigold (Calendula Officinalis)

Name:  Marigold

Latin:  Calendula Officinalis

Other Common Names:

Family:  Compositae (Sunflower)

Parts Used:  Flowers

Vitamins & Minerals:

Used for:  A lotion made from these flowers can be pain-relieving, and alleviates itching.  As a tincture or wash or ointment, it can be used for wound healing.  Only suggested for clean cuts, however, as the increase in speed to healing can be dangerous for jagged or dirty cuts.  Also useful for allergies.

Use in tandem with:

Directions & Warnings:

Others Uses for:

Growing:

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Pine

Name:  Pine

Latin:

Other Common Names:

Parts Used:  Needles, Sap, Gum

Vitamins & Minerals:  Vitamin C

Used for:  Historical records indicate that a daily tea of pine needles saved numerous old settlements from scurvy.  It is a strong source of Vitamin C, which was a saving grace in winter.  Due to the concentration of  Vitamin C, pine tea is also useful for prevention of colds and flu.   Chewing the sap can soothe sore throats and strengthen gums.  (Myrrh is a distant relative.)  Mixed with grease, the sap makes a good sealant.

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Hyssop

Name:  Hyssop

Latin:

Other Common Names:

Parts Used:

Vitamins & Minerals:

Used for:  This tea is primarily useful during a cold or flu.  It is a fever reducer, helps to expel mucous, and gargling it will ease a sore throat.  As a tonic, it helps with regulating blood pressure.  Used as a poultice, it can assist with healing bruising.  If boiled in vinegar, it helps with toothache.

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Burdock (Arctium lappa)

Name:  Burdock

Latin:  Arctium lappa

Other Common Names:

Parts Used:  Root

Vitamins & Minerals:

Used for:  This herb is used to cleanse the blood and strengthen the liver.  It is one of the primaries used for detoxification and health for the body’s cleansing systems.  It attracts heavy metals and radioactive isotopes and removes them, if eaten.  It is under research for cancer prevention as it is theorized that it will help to reverse pre-cancerous cell changes.  Burdock is also known as a “cooler” of inflammatory conditions, acting beneficially for arthritis and similar ailments.

Use in tandem with:

Uses for Pets:  Seborrhea, pyoderma, theumatoid diseases

Directions & Warnings:

Edibility:

Other uses for:

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Cramp Bark

Name:  Crampbark

Latin:

Other Common Names:

Parts Used:  Bark

Vitamins & Minerals:

Used for:  This is one of the rarer herbs that can be used for the female reproductive system.  It relaxes the ovaries and uterus, meaning that it can both help to stop a miscarriage, and ease a rough period.  It is also a stimulant to the kidneys, increasing their ability to clean the body.  The relaxant and anti-spasmodic effects are not merely useful for the uterus, so this herb can be used in preparations for other muscular issues as well.  This herb can also be used in pain preparations, as it has rejuvenating effect on the nervous system, strengthening and easing it over time.

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Oats (Avena Sativa)

Name:  Oatstraw

Latin:  Avena Sativa

Other Common Names:

Parts Used:

Vitamins & Minerals:  Silica, B Vitamins, Calcium

Used for:  This is a nutrient rich herb that is quite good used as either a tonic infusion, or as a solid foundation for herbal teas.  It is particularly high in silica, and assists in the assimilation of calcium.  I have found it to have a synergistic effect with other herbs, strengthening their effects.  Due to the action it has on calcium absorption and the amount of silica it contains, it helps to build stronger nails and bones, and makes hair healthier.  Due to the sorts of vitamins it contains, it also has mild anti-depressant effects, and helps to calm anxiety.  As it is also high in calcium, it can assist in relaxing the muscles and nerves.  The combination of nutrients and effects make this herb a nerve tonic, toning and rehabilitating the nervous system over time.  They also have enough mucilage that they function as a nerve cushioner, soothing and healing inflamed nerve endings.  Oats are also a good basis for foods for convalescing.  They are easy to digest, easy to flavor, and are gentle enough that they can usually be eaten following a high fever, a bout of food poisoning, or nasty flus.  Oats are also good for the skin, and a wonderful choice for toiletries.

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Tea

Name:

Latin:

Other Common Names:

Parts Used:  The leaves

Vitamins & Minerals:  Tea is an excellent source of antioxidants.  Also contains quercetin and Vitamin C.  Tea is a natural stimulant, rather like coffee, but adds more nutrients to the mix.  The longer you steep the tea, the more nutrients will be extracted, but some teas become unfathomably bitter if you let them steep too long.

Used for:  General bone and heart health.