Results for Category: Live Well
Basic Essential Oils for Daily Living
This post is the first in a weekly, multi-part series on using essential oils. Here we will start with some basic essential oils. What are essential oils? How can you use essential oils? Which essential oils could you start with? We invite you to learn some basics here and then join us weekly for additional articles on […]
Herbs Work For Our Highest Good: Tonics, Adaptogens, and Alteratives
One of the views that sets herbalism apart as a philosophy of the human body is the way herbs teach us to see our relationship wit...
Introduction To Herbs For Kids: A Kid’s Herbal Pharmacy
An Overview of Simple Herbal Preparations Using our gentle herbal friends is simply a lovely part of life. Herbs can be used to ke...
Spring Reads for Children
Reading with children is a wonderful way to feed their imaginations and open their eyes to new ideas. Reading about the natural world with children — well, that’s just magical. There is something about the way their eyes light up and their natural curiosity is piqued that makes exploring nature with children through books especially […]
How to Make Your Own Soap + Herbal Recipes
One of my favorite ways to utilize herbs and essential oils is by adding them to my handmade soap. Soapmaking is a great skill to learn on your journey to a healthier life, as you control what goes into it so you know exactly what you’re putting on your skin. It can also be a […]
Introduction to Herbs for Kids: Meet My Friend, Herb! Part 2
Meet My Friend, Herb! Part Two Welcome! Thank you for joining us on our herbal adventure! In our last Introduction to Herbs for Ki...
Soothing Oatmeal Bath Recipe
My son and I suffer from eczema, and during the coldest parts of winter our eczema tends to flare up more often than usual. It can...
Can You Be Green and Glamorous? Part II
Editorial Note: This is the second part of a two-part post focusing on the use of cosmetics and personal care products. This post examines natural products and environmental impacts; the first part explored the subject of animal testing and cruelty-free alternatives. For many people, the idea of natural health and beauty products conjures up images of hippies […]
Introduction to Herbs for Kids: Meet My Friend, Herb!
Meet My Friend, Herb! Part One Hi Kids! I am so glad you are joining us! We are about to go on an adventure. An adventure into the green world of plants where we will find a magical world of healing and friendship. Here we will start with some basics. What is an herb? How can […]
9 Herbal Remedies for a Toothache
If you’ve been plagued with a sore tooth or swollen gums, you know that the pain it can cause is often completely unbearable. To...
Natural Homemade Lip Balm for Kids
Do you remember Lip Smackers? I can remember a time in my life as a kid that I had a necklace full of lip balms of every different...
Love It Up With Herbal Aphrodisiacs
In herbalism, aphrodisiac herbs aren’t just a means to an end! Aphrodisiac herbs nourish the nervous, heart, and reproductive systems on both physical and energetic levels. Physically, they tonify the body and support balanced function, enhance physical desire (libido), and improve performance. Energetically, they balance and love up the heart and sacral chakras and increase […]
Every Herbalist Should Set Goals
We look out our windows at the bare trees and snow-covered ground, and it is evident that winter is upon us. We’re only a little over a week into the New Year, which can be both an exciting and intimidating season of life. As we map out our calendar year and set our short and […]
5 Herbs that Attract Beneficial Insects to the Garden
If you’ve been interested in organic gardening but are wondering what to do about pests, consider planting herbs! Many herbs enc...
5 Natural Ways to Relieve Stress During the Holiday Season
Thanksgiving is over, and we are now officially in the middle of the holiday season. With the hustle and bustle of holiday shoppin...
Bee Warm: Wintering Honey Bees
This time of year, I get a lot of questions about wintering honey bees. Most people are under the misconception that bees hibernate, which is simply not true. Honey bees (Apis mellifera) are eusocial insects. Eusocial insects share three characteristics: A. Cooperative care of their young B. Overlapping generations C. Reproductive division of labor For […]
A Child’s Winter Herb Garden
One of the things we all miss most once the snows fall in our home town is the bounty of the herb garden. The herbs grow sort of grow thither and yon at our place and the children are very used to munching mint and having sword fights with lavender whenever they please. Well, this […]
Green Travel Tips for Happy Vacationing
For me, travel can be a double-edged sword—relaxing and blissful yet stressful and anxiety-inducing. With that in mind, I used a...
7 Tips from Nature for Keeping Healthy this Fall
Ayurveda: the science of life. Not everyone is familiar with the term, but that doesn’t discredit the physical and mental benefi...
A Closer Look at Essential Oils and Safety
Last week, the FDA sent warning letters to two very well-known essential oil companies. Here we would like to take a moment to take a closer look at essential oils and safety as well as explain what these letters mean for EO users. In the two documents (Letter to Young Living and Letter to doTERRA), the FDA […]
Taking Time for Self-Care
Our world is moving quickly. Many of us have very little down time and lots of pressure to constantly perform at a high level. We need to have a great career, be in the best shape, and have a fabulous marriage. Our kids need to be academic geniuses, athletically gifted, and get into Ivy League […]
What do you know about the Practice of Herbalism?
Herbalism is so much more than taking herbs to address symptoms. Part of becoming an herbalist is shedding this simplistic mindset...
What do you know about Weeds?
Humans have cursed, pulled, cut, fought, mowed, poisoned, and — yes — even waxed poetic about weeds for centuries. It seems th...
What do you know about Herbal History?
Herbalism is a practice found in every culture around the world, and in some continents up to 80% of people still used herbalism as their primary form of health care. Herbalists today are able to draw from Native American, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda, Siddha, Middle Eastern, the Eclectics, South American, Celtic, and many other herbal […]
An Ayurvedic Approach to Staying Balanced in Autumn
Fall is such an exciting time of year in New England. Unlike many parts of the world, we get to experience a transitional season, accompanied with explosions of color in Maple and Oak trees. September 23rd marks the Autumnal Equinox where the sun crosses the equator moving southward and summer releases its grip on heat […]
What do you know about Tree Medicine?
Trees are a critical member of ecosystems, providing habitat, stabilizing soil, moderating climate, and filtering air. They produc...
How Much Do You Know About Popular Herbs?
Almost everyone has heard of them, the popular herbs promoted in mainstream press and hyped by marketers. But every “herb du jou...
Goldenrod vs. Ragweed: They’re NOT the Same Plant!
Many of us who suffer from hay fever—allergic rhinitis—typically associate this annoying affliction with the spring. And yet, the late summer and early fall yields abundant amounts of ragweed (Ambrosia psilostachya), a plant that possibly creates the most allergic reactions of any of the flora that grows throughout the country. This parade of sneezing and […]
How Much Do You Know About Herbal Preparations?
Making herbal medicine is easy! While it may seem overwhelming at first, a little coaching from a book, friend, or online resource is all you need to get started. Medicine making is not relegated to the domain of the scientist in a white lab coat! The folk method of herbal medicine making is particularly […]
Five Fun and Fascinating Facts about Honey Bees
I love honey bees! I love to work around them, talk about them and observe their behavior. When it was suggested I come up with f...
