Results for Category: Herb Talk
Plant Personalities: How Growing Plants Deepened My Relationship With Them
I can proudly shout from the rooftops that I am a giant nerd! I am obsessed with herbalism, plant personalities, and creating deeper connections to the earth. This path is a lifelong study, which is one of the many reasons I am drawn to it. As an herbalist, I can continually read, study, play, and…
How to Source Sustainable Seaweed
Seaweed has been farmed in Japan since at least the 17th century (“Seaweed Farmingâ€, n.d.), when farmers cast bamboo branche...
Vining Herbs: Take Gardening to New Heights
Vining plants do so much for a garden. Vertical climbing plants take up minimal ground space and add height and texture to the gar...
California Poppy Benefits + Recipe
California poppy (Eschscholzia californica), the state flower of California, is a beautiful wildflower that has been an ally to western-dwelling Indigenous peoples for long before there was a United States, let alone a United States Pharmacopeia. In this post, I will share with you a materia medica on the beneficial California poppy benefits, which should…
Bioregional Herbalism
Bioregional herbalism is the oldest form of herbal practice. Before global trade people used what was close at hand. This taught herbal practitioners to develop relationships with the plants in their region on a much deeper level—beyond clinical knowledge and using herbs to address specific problems. This deep, experiential knowledge gave people a profound sense…
Herbal Trees
Trees are a lovely way to decorate and enhance the landscape in a multitude of ways. Some trees are large with dense canopies and ...
4 Options for Herbal Ground Cover
An herbal ground cover is a great option for gardeners looking to fill empty space in their garden beds or fill patches in the yar...
Echinacea and Goldenseal: When to Use One Over the Other
Echinacea (Echinacea spp.) and goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis) are popular herbal allies during cold and flu season. These plants can help cope with cold and flu symptoms and aid the body in its recovery process. Both echinacea and goldenseal have antibacterial properties; however, understanding them in this narrow context doesn’t fully inform their whole range of…
Mugwort Benefits & An Herbal Liniment Recipe
Many people think of mugwort as an herb for sleep and dream support, however, there are many mugwort benefits beyond sleeping and dreaming that are worth exploring. A tall, gangly member of the aster family (Asteraceae), mugwort is the name given to several species in the Artemisia genus, including Artemisia vulgaris, common mugwort, and Artemisia argyi,…
How to Recognize and Manage Hormonal Imbalance
Recognizing and managing hormonal imbalance starts with an understanding of hormones and the impact they have on our bodies. Hormo...
Your Guide to Winter Foraging
Something magical happens in the winter. Our pace slows, the world grows quiet, and we cozy up in our homes with a more inward foc...
How to Use Mugwort for Dreams, Sleep, and More
When I was camping in the Gifford-Pinchot National Forest as part of my studies at the Elderberry School of Botanical Medicine, I rolled an herbal smoking blend that I made with mugwort (Artemisia sp.) as one of the main ingredients. I shared it with the group while we were sitting around the campfire. That night,…
Health Benefits of Cinnamon + 2 Warming Recipes
(Excerpted from Spice Apothecary by Bevin Clare. Used with permission from Storey Publishing.) Cinnamon is one of the oldest and most well-known spices. There are four commonly available types of cinnamon, and they can be quite different in taste, chemical composition, and herbal action. All come from the inner bark of several Southeast Asian tree…
Queen Anne’s Lace Part II: Traditional Use of Daucus Carota
Queen Anne’s lace (Daucus carota) is a fascinating plant with a long and storied past. Because it has poisonous look-alikes, itâ...
Queen Anne’s Lace Part I: Folklore and Identification
Do you ever look at herbs growing around your home or in your local area and think to yourself, “I should really learn more abou...
Student Feature: Cat Seixas (@ The Olive Trees And The Moon)
In the first installment of our Student Feature Series, we chatted with Cat Seixas (@TheOliveTreesAndTheMoon) about how herbalism has impacted her life for the better and empowered her to more deeply understand her family’s health. Cat is an inspiration to us all. She and her partner have spent the last six years building their gorgeous…
Anise Monograph: Pimpinella Anisum
The following anise monograph is an example of the type of thorough, well-researched monographs available on our membership site, The Herbarium. This beautiful anise monograph is written by The Herbarium contributor, Michayla Conrad. Common Name: Anise burnet saxifrage, aniseed, anise, anise seed, sweet cumin Botanical Name: Pimpinella anisum L. Family Name: Apiaceae TCM Name: Hui…
Plantain Leaf Benefits and Recipes
Since the launch of The Foraging Course, we’ve had a renewed interest in the humble, helpful herbs that grow right outside our d...
How and Where to Buy Herbs in Times of Upheaval
At the outset of the current global pandemic, herbalists were more grateful than ever for the revered roots in our own apothecarie...
New eBook! Cooling Herbs for Hot Summer Days
Summer days are ripe with joyful pleasures, including fresh lemonade, cool mornings in the garden, and lazy afternoons by the pool or pond. While there are many uplifting moments and simple joys of summer, many parts of the country also endure soaring temperatures that can feel nearly unbearable. Whether you experience jungle-like humidity or bone-dry…
How to Use Herbs to Rebuild from Burnout
Long-term stress takes a huge toll on one’s body and mind. Sometimes that stress can chip away at vital reserves and one’s sense of wellbeing, ultimately leading to a state of burnout. In digging into the exact meaning and causes for burnout, it is clear that its defining borders can be quite nebulous. Unlike depression,…
Herbal Allergy Support Using Ayurvedic Herbs
Allergies manifest in many ways. There are food allergies, seasonal allergies, skin allergies, and allergic reactions to fragrance...
Lion’s Mane Mushroom: What You Should Know
For many years, mushrooms have received most of their attention as a popular pizza topping. But recently, these members of the fun...
Best Herbs for Lungs and Respiratory Support
When addressing viral respiratory infections, we want to think about herbs that have strong immune or antiviral actions in addition to herbs for lungs and basic respiratory support. During the current outbreak of viral infection, it’s better to use what you already have on hand than to spend an extended amount of time out of…
5 Essential Mushrooms for Your Home Apothecary
Mushrooms: they are as fascinating as they are mysterious. It seems as soon as you dive into the world of mycology, there is an overwhelming amount of information to learn, many rabbit trails to follow, and as many unanswered questions as there are answered ones. While the scientific community has dubbed the study of fungi…
Milk Thistle: A Spring Herb Your Liver Will Love
A number of herbal allies are especially well-suited for spring, such as alterative, bitter, and hepatic herbs. These categories o...
Reviving Horehound: 6 Ways You Can Use This Traditional Herb
Truly an age-old herb, horehound (Marrubium vulgare) was a staple in ancient Egyptian medicine and traditional Greek medicine for ...
The Comfrey Controversy: Can And Should One Use Comfrey Internally?
Can and should one use comfrey (Symphytum spp.) internally? This is a question that herbalists have been debating since safety concerns were first brought to light regarding the potentially negative health effects associated with using comfrey internally. While many herbalists have used comfrey internally for years with no known problems, others are heeding the warnings…
The Beginner’s Guide To Ashwagandha
Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) root is known by a number of names, including Indian ginseng and winter cherry, and its usages are even more plentiful than its aliases. Ashwagandha has become increasingly popular for its many applications as a tonifying (strengthening) herb and is one of the premier rasayanas, or rejuvenating herbs, in Ayurveda. This cream-colored…
3 Ways To Use Self Heal In Your Materia Medica
Although self heal (Prunella vulgaris) is an herb that commonly grows across the world and has been used traditionally for ages, i...
