The Interesting Story Behind Victory Gardens
Community gardening and composting have become common in the last 10 to 15 years, but their history goes back to World War I (1914-1918) and World War II (1939-1945) when gardens became a necessity both in the United States and in the United Kingdom. Food was an issue in World War I, and victory gardens…
What Every Clinical Herbalist Should Know About Supporting Clients With Stress
Everyone experiences stress to some degree, but a large percentage of people deal with chronic stress on a regular basis. Chronic stress can contribute to many serious health problems and is one of the most common reasons people seek the help of a clinical herbalist. But as a clinical herbalist, how do you support clients…
Introducing 3 New Herbarium Features To Help You Grow As An Herbalist
Over the last three years, The Herbarium has become a cherished resource, providing herbalists of all skill levels with in-depth resources to advance their herbal learning through constantly updated herbal monographs, thoughtful articles, and educational podcasts, videos, and charts. We are pleased to announce that even more resources are being released to The Herbarium community…
5 Foraging Guide Books To Help You Identify & Harvest Plants
I will always remember the first time someone pointed out plantain to me. I had been hiking with a friend who had studied herbalism, and after she mentioned plantain a few times, I finally asked if she was talking about the banana plant. After showing me the familiar curbstone sprout and explaining its uses and…
Keep Cool This Summer With A Homemade Floral Body Powder
Summertime finds forests, fields, and gardens flushed with the vivaciousness of all the things green and growing. With this life-filled energy comes plenty of sunshine and heat… heat that can make for sticky, sweaty situations which may not be so comfortable and pleasant. Floral body powder filled with the goodness of herbs can go a…
Simplifying Herbal Skin Care: 5 Basic Recipes To Get You Started
Have you ever searched for easy homemade herbal skin care recipes only to find complicated recipes with 15 steps and hard-to-find ingredients? Us too, which is why we have compiled this list of simple DIY herbal skin care recipes made with basic, user-friendly ingredients. Not only are these straightforward recipes easy to follow, but they…
All About Dandelion (For Your Materia Medica)
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is most assuredly a treasured plant in my local materia medica and is appreciated by herbalists throughout temperate regions of the world. Sadly, dandelion is not celebrated by all—due to its penchant to grow and blossom wherever it darn well pleases, it is loathed and poisoned by those who value a pristine…
Little-Known Ways To Use Lovage
If we were to walk back in time and enter a medieval medicinal or kitchen garden, in the back we would surely find a relatively unknown plant today—lovage. Unlike many herbs, lovage may have begun its journey with humans as a therapeutic plant and evolved into the culinary plant too few of us enjoy today….
Herbal Citrus Eucalyptus Hand Salve: A Gardener’s Best Friend
Do you itch to get outdoors and dig into the garden when spring finally arrives? Does your pent up motivation from a long winter cause you to dig in a little too far, leaving you with rough calloused hands? Or, inflamed blisters and insect bites? I can account for all three! Maybe it’s my motivation…
28 Skin-Friendly Essential Oils for Your Next Salve
Essential oils are often included in herbal and cosmetic preparations for aromas, their anti-inflammatory or antimicrobial actions, or their effects on our psyches. The problem with using essential oils topically is that many of them are drying or irritating to the skin and can even cause allergic reactions in some people. Which essential oils are…
