While it hasn’t been a good year for rain and snow in the Sierra Nevada Foothills, its been a great year for collecting wild rose hips! Rose hips, the fruit of the rose flower, are high in vitamin C, antioxidants, and have a delicious sweet and tangy taste. They can Read more…
Wildcrafting, as my partner Matt and I practice and promote it, is making a commitment to deepen your connection to the natural landscape and take responsibility for its regeneration. It is learning about the plants around you, how they reproduce, where they live, and what they need to thrive. It’s Read more…
Fortunately for the home herbalist, most of the supplies needed for medicine making are likely in your kitchen.? In addition to the herbs themselves, here’s a list of what is helpful to have on hand: Basic supplies –Recycled glass jars or mason jars in a variety of sizes (4 oz, Read more…
There’s no need to order a bunch of dried herbs from faraway places if you want to make your own herbal care at home. You can easily grow many of your own – many of them may already be in your garden! Here is a short list of some very Read more…
Most all of us have some association with pine pitch ? ranging from the frustration of having the sticky black resin stuck to our car (or hands!), to the joy of inhaling that heavenly, sweet aroma it provides on a warm summer day walking through the woods.? But pine pitch Read more…
Even after years of making herbal products, one of my favorite things to do is get together with a couple of friends and make herbal potions in the kitchen.? Some dear friends came for a visit last weekend and we experimented with two things I have been wanting to do Read more…
We?ve all heard of sowing your wild oats, but have you thought about harvesting them? Most of us are familiar with Avena sativa ? the cultivated oat used for oatmeal and animal feed.? This oatmeal grain has been shown to reduce cholesterol, blood sugar level, and risk of heart disease. Read more…
If you are a gardener, you will probably recognize this weedy beauty called chickweed (Stellaria media).? I always welcome the arrival of this world-wide weed in my garden.? Although it has a history of being used as chicken fodder (especially the seeds), I tend to gather it for the humans Read more…