NameaugHerbalist

06/10/2024

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. Busy foraging, gardening, and being poor

04/23/2024

03/22/2024

Sunflowers are such a beautiful flower.

Quick sunflower facts:
-The entirety of a sunflower is edible. Their leaves, stalks, and roots can all be used as food, and were grown in North America before other crops like corn became common. They were milled to create flour, and their seeds roasted and eaten.
-Young sunflowers follow the sun all day, and then reset their position at night to be ready for sunrise. Once fully grown, they stay facing east to attract bees and other pollinators.
-On average, sunflowers grow to be between 6 to 10 feet, but they can grow much taller. The tallest sunflower ever recorded was 30 feet.
-Sunflowers can absorb toxins, including toxic metals and radiation. Following the nuclear disasters of Chernobyl and Fukushima, scientists planted millions of sunflowers to help those areas recover.

They are remarkable plants!

02/05/2024

https://ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10223068/

Licorice, a natural medicine derived from the roots and rhizomes of Glycyrrhiza species, possesses a wide range of therapeutic applications, including antiviral properties. Glycyrrhizic acid (GL) and glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) are the most important active ...

12/12/2023

Next in the christmas botanicals series is the deadly poisonous yew tree (taxus spp.) with its shiny evergreen foliage and bright red berries. Yew’s association with christmas is documented back to 1605 in Germany where a bough of yew (or other evergreen) was brought indoors and decorated with candy, nuts, and fruit. Queen Charlotte was German and brought her regional custom of decorating yew boughs to England creating a sensation at court. In 1800 she used a full tree instead of just a bough. That tree was a yew, making the earliest christmas tree in England a yew tree. Over 50 years before Prince Albert’s “first christmas tree”.

Yews have been venerated by many peoples for thousands of years because the trees live for thousands of years and are technically immortal. Yew fossil records date to 200 million years ago. It’s kind of a big deal.

Yew is heavily associated with death and resurrection. The trees are in a perpetual state of simultaneous decay and new growth. It is the real life tree version of the Dionysus-Osiris-Esus-Jesus resurrection myth. Yew is the deified world tree and greenmantle ruling the dark half of the year. It is the literal Holly King.

Yew’s use to decorate for the winter solstice very likely dates back to prechristian times. Poisons are often considered some of the most powerful protection herbs in traditional folk beliefs and it’s no coincidence many botanicals used to make christmas wreaths and garlands are poisonous. Our animistic ancestors across the northern hemisphere were using them to protect their homes and the people within from winter’s ghosts and ghouls. Yew has long been believed to protect from ghosts and the restless dead, hence its use in graveyards ancient and modern. Today evergreen garlands are used for decoration but their origin was magical protection.

12/12/2023

Help migrating birds bulk up on fat and energy by planting native berry plants. Check out the superior fat content in the native plants compared to non-native plants. It is stunning! Here is a citation. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/269580502_The_Value_of_Native_and_Invasive_Fruit-Bearing_Shrubs_for_Migrating_Songbirds?

12/08/2023

Are Poinsettias poisonous? Yes, but not deadly. This beautiful shrub native to North & Central America contains latex which can cause nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea if ingested by humans or pets as well as eye and skin irritation if touched. Wash your hands after repotting or pruning and you’ll be fine, however. Most pets do not require a vet visit after ingestion, just time to pass the plant and recover.

In christmas folklore the poinsettia is associated with the star of Bethlehem due to the star-like pattern of its leaves.

11/29/2023

Interesting research on the phytochemistry of the pigeon pea. Science knows no borders, even *squints* North Korea, apparently

http://www.ryongnamsan.edu.kp/univ/en/research/journals/1/2015/1/165a59f7cf3b5c4396ba65953d679f17

11/06/2023

AMERICAN WITCH HAZEL (Hammamelis virginiana): The wildflower season is not quite over in spite of a light snowfall overnight. The mid to late fall is the normal time for the Witch Hazel to bloom. This species of small tree or shrub is found throughout the eastern half of North America. It has multiple arching stems. As a tree it can grow 20 to 30 feet tall. As a shrub it is about half that size.

The leaves are alternate, simple and broadly ovate with wavy margins. Each leaf is 2.5 to 6 inches long. The flowers are bright yellow with 4 slender petals that are 1/2 to 3/4 inch long. The blooming often occurs after most trees have lost their leaves and sometimes when there is a bit of snow on the ground. The flowers are fragrant and are pollinated by moths. Only mature plants over 6 years of age produce flowers.

The fruit is a small tan to grey capsule that remains dormant over the winter. In spring 2 tiny black seeds are forcibly expelled some distance from the plant. These need to be cold stratified and do not germinate until the following spring. This makes it possible, but difficult for the plant to be grown from seed. Often it has to be kept in pots for a few years before planting in a more permanent location.

The name of the plant comes from the use of its forked branches for dowsing or divining rods to search for ground water and good well locations. The Old English word "Wicke" means "lively." In Anglo-Saxon "Wych" means bend. Early settlers in North America noticed Native Americans using it for that purpose and originally called it "Wicke Hazel."

If grown it should be in semi-shade areas on north facing slopes or on the north side of buildings. It prefers moist rich soil. There are Asian hybrids available but they have no fragrance.

Theresa Jurich took this photograph at Raccoon Creek State Park on Nov 1, 2023.

11/03/2023

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10620813/

Medicinal and recreational uses of Cannabis sativa, commonly known as cannabis or h**p, has increased following its legalization in certain regions of the world. Cannabis and h**p plants interact with a community of microbes (i.e., the phytobiome), which ...

11/03/2023

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10620520/

Major listeriosis outbreaks have been associated with fresh produce contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. Strains that synthesize the Pss exopolysaccharide (EPS) have an estimated 10[2] to 10[4] -fold advantage over nonsynthesizing strains in causing ...

11/03/2023

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10597433/

This article shares preliminary results from current research on Chinese medicine in Nashville, Tennessee, a city in the American South known both as “Music City, USA” and “The Buckle of the Bible Belt.” The author has ...

11/03/2023

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10604084/

Background: Hypericum species are widely acknowledged for their biological attributes, with notable attention being paid to Hypericum perforatum, commonly known as St. John’s wort (SJW) within the Hypericum section of the Hypericaceae family. ...

11/03/2023

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10573080/

In a few Southeast Asian nations, seaweeds have been a staple of the cuisine since prehistoric times. Seaweeds are currently becoming more and more popular around the world due to their superior nutritional value and medicinal properties. This is because ...

11/03/2023

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10609487/

The genus Acorus, a perennial monocotyledonous-class herb and part of the Acoraceae family, is widely distributed in the temperate and subtropical zones of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Acorus is rich in biological activities and can be used ...

11/03/2023

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10579605/

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the most common clinical manifestation of cardiovascular disease. It is characterized by myocardial ischemia, which is caused by coronary atherosclerosis. CHD is a significant global health problem with increasing prevalence ...

11/03/2023

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10609241/

Natural environments possess a reservoir of compounds exerting antimicrobial activity that are forms of defence for some organisms against others. Recently, they have become more and more attractive in the food sector due to the increasing demand for ...

11/03/2023

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10610173/

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) predisposes individuals to chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like type 2 diabetes (T2D), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, atherosclerosis, and cardiovascular disorders caused by systemic inflammation, intestinal dysbiosis, ...

11/03/2023

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10607442/

Natural ingredients have been used for centuries for skin treatment and care. Interest in the health effects of plants has recently increased due to their safety and applicability in the formulation of pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. Long-known plant materials ...

10/16/2023

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2021/fo/d1fo01935j

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9269353/ #:~:text=Based%20on%20in%20vitro%20and,acid%20absorption%20in%20the%20gut.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4609100/

Cinnamon is currently marketed as a remedy for obesity, glucose intolerance, diabetes mellitus and dyslipidaemia. Integrative medicine is a new concept that combines conventional treatment with evidence-based complementary therapies.The aim of this review ...

09/14/2023

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRis9Wl5sKM

Join our Patreon for exclusive extras from this video! - https://patreon.com/FeralForagingAcorn Series - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qO1sCYj1B0GIVEAWAY ...

08/11/2023

08/09/2023

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gzn9e_8iWIg

Self heal (prunella vulgaris) is a very special little plant which has been used as medicine for centuries around the world. It is one of the more widely stu...

08/05/2023

I've gone back and forth on it but.... I'm opening the apothecary for sale. $20/bundle for teas. If folks can pay, the money will go towards making oils and tinctures later. Self-heal, mugwort, St John's Wort, plantain, and yarrow

07/31/2023

07/27/2023

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDe4zvjrnFs&list=PLW6MqoZ_-AKHNNXIF3KPZV7MUaC2WCoCR&index=14

If you're studying Traditional Chinese Medicine and about to take a big Herbology exam (finals, year-ends, NCCAOM boards, CALE, Pan-Canadian exams, etc.), th...