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Over the last couple of weeks I’ve been out and about collecting and trying to identify the plants and herbs around me. As I walk through my favorite forest, I see trees with these yellow flowers. It was not until later I realized just how many WITCH HAZEL trees are there. (Hope I can remember which ones they are next time I go back!)
Anyway, along the pond there are Cat tails and also this odd plant which I have now identified. No good uses for it that I can see at this time but who knows:
Bur-Reed, Sparganium americanum
I also found several large patches of the following two herbs which are very useful:
Wintergreen, Gaultheria procumbens
Squaw Vine (Partridge berry), Mitchella repens
Lastly, I found a small plant that I have not been able to identify. Anyone with any ideas, PLEASE drop me a line.
Not so melodic as parsley and rosemary, but I didn’t pick those today. 
As I roamed around my parent’s yard during a visit, I gathered some supplies for the winter. Goldenrod whose flowers are infusing in oil for those sore muscles after over doing the Yoga. Pokeweed berries and leaves for those aches in the bones from a certain someone’s broken foot last year and a salve in the works for skin ailments. Sage for the anti-viral teas and elixirs to save us from our colds and sore throats. Plantain to boost the already made oil infusion and make a salve for all itches and ouchies. Last but not least thyme to add to the yum and boost the immune system for the sage elixir. If only it wasn’t too late in the season for the Black Walnut husk and Burdock.
note: OK, so it isn’t really too late for Burdock since I can dig up the roots now. I’m just not too sure how keen Mum would be about me digging up around the sheds.
I’ve been busy wildcrafting and IDing everything in sight! On Father’s Day I was driving home, turned a corner, looked over to my left and BAM! HUNDREDS of Mullien plants. Yes, I turned the car around, picked a couple of whole plants (roots and all) and topped off a few flower stalks.
I have mullien flower oil and tincture going. I put the flower stalks in a glass of water like any cut flower and await the blooms to add more to the tincture or oil. (Note: soak the things under water for a few hours to help extract any little “bibbits” crawling or flying about in them. Bugs love mullien.) I also started an oil and tincture of the leaves and am drying out some leaves for medicinal and magical uses later on.
I have also collected some Dandelion flowers which I’m making an oil from. What? No tincture? No. From the uses of this plant, I would only really want a tincture from the leaves for the health benefits but I only collected the flowers this week. (me and my handy empty coffee cup from work after hours in the field already would have looked suspicious, LOL) The picture doesn’t do it justice though, even now after a few days it’s a much brighter yellow than it shows.
Another plant I’m currently playing with is Yellow Wood Sorrel. Medicinally it’s nothing compared to the others but it is edible and a good vitamin C source so I’m tincturing a little bit to see if the sour of the leaves transfers that way. If so I might consider doing a vinegar tincture to add to oils for a salad dressing. I’m drying some too since magically it is used for healing spells. Never know when you might run into a need for it.
So that is what I have been up to lately. I also made an AWESOME scrub but it’s not “herbal” per say so that will be for another time.
You may have noticed my use of baby food jars. I think these are the best things on earth for a beginner herbalist like myself. I’m playing and experimenting and learning (which means making mistakes) and it’s better to mess up with 2 oz of olive oil than a whole quart. Besides, I haven’t figured out what I’d do with a quart of Mullien leaf oil yet. It saves on if I don’t use it and it goes bad. It also makes gathering easier. It took no time at all to fill a small jar with mullien flowers where I don’t know if I could have had the patience to fill a quart jar.
Things have been so topsy turvy lately. So much to do, nothing as it should be, reorganizing and readjusting to strange places. Finally, a trip into the “happy place” brings some relief and focus. Not as much time as I’d like to sit and soak in the calm (or I’d be soaking in the rain that fell where I sat!) but it was nice. I took the time to take pictures of the area and unknown flora in hopes of indentifying later.
I love the idea of the wise medicine woman who can go out into the wild and know every tree, every bush, what can be used for which ailment and how best to prepare. I’ve walked in the woods before but my eyes were closed then, I couldn’t see the forest through the trees. Once I found some odd leaved little saplings and I really wanted to know what they were. SASSAFRASS! I never realized. And right near home? My awe turned my eyes to other trees and plants around me. Funny how I always thought the trees were predominantly Maple in this area but when I ACTUALLY looked, I saw more oak than anything. (And not just one kind!)
Here are some of the pictures:
With all my latest explorations into herbal usage, I decided to follow through with a long time dream of growing some of my own. A while back I purchased some soil, little pots and a few seeds. I am pleased with the progress of my little babies and decided to share. Here is my first attempt using some Chives, then came lovely Thyme, Basil, and Mint. Mint worried me a while thinking it wasn’t going to pop up it’s pretty little leaves, but it’s a quite, shy, delicate little plant and it just took a little more time.
January 25—Burns Night
The birthday of Scotland’s most famous poet, Robert Burns (1759–96), has become an occasion for Scots around the world to gather together for a Burns Night Supper of haggis and song. What is haggis? See more.
January 26—Chinese New Year
The Chinese New Year is based on the lunar/solar calendar, rather than our Western (Gregorian) calendar. It’s the year of the ox! What is your animal sign?
Healing Plants
• To fight winter colds and flu, look to herbs with strong scents—rosemary, thyme, sage, basil, oregano, and others; their oils have immune-boosting antiseptic and antibiotic qualities.
• For relief from dry winter air, try a warm compress made from a decoction of cloves and gingerroot to clear sinuses.
• To ease sore throats, make your own gargle by adding a teaspoon or two of cider vinegar, sage, chamomile, or lemon juice to warm water.
• For fever, take cayenne pepper (in food, broth, or tea) to warm the body, promote sweating, and enhance the body’s infection-fighting ability.
• Cinnamon toothpaste can be used for its antiseptic qualities to kill bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Soak toothbrushes in mouthwash to prevent colds from circulating.
Flu season often peaks in early February. Did you know that there’s a new way to predict when the flu might hit your state? See this tip and more advice on how to avoid getting sick.
