Tag Archives: herbs

January 14, 2026 · 4:36 pm

Epilogue on Clinical and Herbal Medicine Together

Elderberries
Native to the Northern Hemisphere and a modern staple in many households, elderberries, in the form of elderberry syrup, help the body fight the flu by blocking the virus’ replication.

By way of an epilogue, the flu (Influenza A to be precise) had a short stay of about 4 days in the house, thwarted as it was by the raft of anti-flu remedies I mentioned in the last post.

For my part, I did feel it coming on but the blend of elderberry, echinacea and goldenseal capsules, and fire cider were successful – no flu days for me and I didn’t need to call on the Tamiflu. Same for Jon – he took only herbs and did not have the flu, although he had he had the added protection of a flu shot.

Clinicians often suggest avoiding herbs to their patients because they don’t know much (or anything) about their effects. And most herbalists don’t think the living is better through pharmacology. But there is room for both in everyone’s lives–and which to choose depends on the change you are trying to support or effect.

Wishing everyone a healthy flu season. I heartily recommend picking up some Elderberry (Sambucus) Syrup, just in case.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

January 5, 2026 · 1:01 pm

Clinical or Herbal Medicine? Both!

capsules in a capsule maker, a bowl of powdered herbs, a bag of vegan gelatin capsules
Cold care caps made in a pinch

Flu season medicine … in a house occupied by a seasoned clinician and an herbalist … amounts to a comparison of tamiflu and elderberry plus echinacea and goldenseal where the comparison is not made since occupants take BOTH. With some fire cider as a chaser.

It works out, actually. In this house the flu hasn’t lasted long. We could engage in speculation over which remedy is most effective but no one wants to hedge their bets in favor of one or the other. We just take everything we can get our hands on.

My son came home with the flu this week; we tested to him to be sure it was flu rather than covid or some other virus. Naturally we threw every remedy at it and his recovery has been speedy – particularly since he didn’t have a flu shot. But when I woke up feeling a touch of something in my throat and went to the cabinet for some elderberry syrup … it was gone. Oh, no.

a pot with a deep purple liquid in it
Elderberry syrup has a deep red-purple color

Elderberry is shown to prevent the virus from replicating in our bodies, so this morning was spent making the syrup pictured here from some dried elderberries I had on hand.

And the cold care caps… also an empty bottle. So I whipped up some of those … pictured at top. And downed a few tablespoons of fire cider. I will be looking for a prescription for tamiflu too, if I get hit by the flu bus.

This was not how I planned to spend the morning, but life happens.

Wishing everyone a flu-free January.

Part of a recipe for Elderberry syrup in a book
Rosemary Gladstar’s Elderberry syrup recipe.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,

December 30, 2025 · 12:31 pm

Big Little Things

This little thyme plant is a cutting from one of my garden plants. A joyful little being in my kitchen window, it gives me a warm feeling in my heart to see it there leaning toward the winter sun. It’s getting leggy and could use a trim to encourage a fuller, bushier look.

Thyme is culinary, medicinal, and ornamental. Aromatic, warming, and delicious, it’s stimulating for digestion and makes an amazing steam to treat cold and flu. Soothing, safe for adults and kids, it helps prevent respiratory infections.

And it’s adorable. Look at those precious little leaves.

It’s also easy to grow. To bring my little friend inside, I just took a snipping of one of my plants, dipped it in rooting hormone purchased at a garden center, and popped it into moist potting soil. I kept it moist in the window while it established some roots and voila! In the garden it likes a moist sunny spot.

Little things sometimes bring deep contentment.

Leave a comment

Filed under Herbs and Healing, Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,

June 21, 2025 · 3:07 pm

A Spot of Calm

chamomile flowers

Chamomile blooms right around the height of the sun’s arc, beginning before the summer solstice in the Northeast

Thoughts of chamomile seem apropos of the moment. Calming and helpful with digestion and anxiety, chamomile is, in its small but lovely way, an antidote to the fever pitch of the news this summer.

It’s easy to grow, not picky, not overly flashy or showy; in fact its a bit ordinary. All it asks for is a sunny spot and a bit of water during a dry spell. In return it gives a profusion of cheerful blossoms all summer long that you can snip and dry for tea or put into alcohol to tincture for the same benefits. Simple, lovely.

chamomile flowers in a bowl
chamomile grows alongside roses and peonies in my garden, giving me cheerful blooms all summer.

Wishing everyone a bit of sunny calm today on the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

January 22, 2025 · 2:19 pm

There When You Need Them

Recently my husband, who’s an ER doc, agreed to work an extra shift to help a colleague who needed the time off. It was a late night shift at a hospital over two hours from our house, which meant sleeping in the sleep room they reserve for doctors who are wiped out and need to rest. It also happened to be back-to-back with another late night shift, so it promised to be a tiring 48 hours.

Jon doesn’t sleep well at the hospital, though he’s done it many times in this situation. It’s a good idea because a long drive after a ten hour shift is sometimes not safe; that said, in general he gets a rotten night’s sleep because of traffic through or noise outside of the room.

This time I thought to send him with some Valerian tincture and some Passionflower capsules. The Passionflower is relaxing, quiets an overactive mind. Jon doesn’t have that problem but with all the commotion around him I thought it wasn’t a bad idea to have Passionflower on board to ease him back into a restful mental space. More valuable though in this setting was the Valerian. It’s a sedative herb – inducing sleep for most people who take it. I figured the herb would put him to sleep and help him stay asleep.

Every once in a while I’m told Valerian meets a person that it keeps awake – having the opposite effect it usually has. But I’ve never met a person that has had that experience, so I felt reasonably confident sending it with Jon to help him rest.

blue bottle with dropper full of brown liquid tincture

He came home the next day saying “wow! that’s some powerful sh*&#t!” It really helped; he’d been able to sleep, and had a better couple of days for having rested. In fact, he asked for more on a follow-on night when he was feeling wired at bedtime. In the second case I thought maybe a back rub would be better, and he settled for that and fell asleep.

All the same, Valerian has a new friend in Jon.

If you are interested in learning more about Valerian or other herbal remedies you can find me at bespoke-herbals.com. Wishing you a restful winter’s rest.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , ,

December 10, 2024 · 2:10 pm

Great in Bed: Passionflower

That may seem a little provocative but this is a concrete statement I’m prepared to stand behind. I’ve never met a plant that did more for people during the night than Passionflower.

Sure, Valerian helps you sleep… but Passionflower quiets the night-time ruminating, worrying, anxious, and repetitive thoughts that are so common for people. Categorized as sedative, nervine and anti-spasmodic, Passiflora incarnata is a perennial native to the southeastern US, and the flowers and fruits are the medicinal parts of this plant.

People for whom I’ve recommended it say things like “the best night’s sleep I’ve had in as long as I can remember,” and “wow the Passionflower is awesome!” For my part, I can say that when I take passionflower tincture or a capsule before bed I reliably sleep much more soundly than I do without it. My mind is calm. Also, I am prone to grinding my teeth at night and the passionflower eases that noticeably, too.

There’s more to passionflower than its bed-time virtues. Great for over-active and anxious minds it can be taken during the day, too, to help with anxiety. But I think that Passionflower’s super power is it’s ability to calm the mind for sleep.

I’ll leave it there for now, except to note that I’ve seen in some recent literature that Passionflower isn’t recommended for people who take beta-blockers, or for young children. On reviewing this in the American Herbal Products Association’s Botanical Safety Handbook, though, no safety precautions are reported with the exception of some people reporting allergies to Passionflower.

Safe, effective, and sure to support a better night’s sleep – a pretty good bed partner, wouldn’t you agree?

The content presented here is for informational and educational purposes only and does not substitute professional medical advice with healthcare professionals.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

December 4, 2024 · 1:52 pm

Simple Natural Remedy for Upset Stomach: Peppermint Tea

white teacup with a tea bag on a bench.

That last piece of leftover pie I had for breakfast this morning left me thinking “I need a cup of peppermint tea.” Too many sweets over the last few days has taken a toll.

I drink peppermint tea whenever my stomach’s unhappy. Peppermint, the binomial name is Mentha piperita, is known to have other health benefits but it’s enough for me that that it tastes great and soothes my stomach. It’s fabulous after dinner with honey (and maybe even a dollop of cream) for a sweet treat, too.

To make it:

  • Boil water
  • Pop a peppermint tea bag into a mug of the boiling water.
  • Cover the tea – this keeps those volatile oils in your teacup. You can use a little dessert plate over the cup if I don’t have a proper teacup.
  • Let the tea steep for at least 5 minutes (10-15 minutes is better).
  • Enjoy the mint on its own or add honey or milk if that appeals.

You can buy peppermint tea bags at the grocery. Or you can grow it! It’s easy… so easy, in fact, that it will spread if left alone.

Peppermint plants

The peppermint show above is in my garden. Peppermint is perennial. If you plant it in good soil it will grow in sun or part shade. It isn’t fussy and I’ve never needed to water it once it was established, though it thrives with periodic watering. But be careful! It will take over your garden if you let it!

To make tea just cut the stems and hang them up to dry or use a dehydrator.

peppermint hung to dry.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , ,

December 1, 2024 · 4:04 pm

Chill Out with Easy Breezy Linden Tea

yellow and white Linden flowers blooming

Last June during a work day at the Herbal Apothecary in Brewster Stephen asked me to help him harvest Linden from the tree that grows out behind the shop. It’s a beautiful, towering tree and to get to the flowers and bracts he raised me up in a tractor bucket with a basket. It was great fun.

Bees love Linden flowers so we had to be careful, but we came away with a giant heap of beautiful fragrant flowers that he made tincture from in the shop.

Right now I’m sitting with a hot cup of fragrant Linden tea, made from the flowers and bracts. I noticed as I was working on some paperwork that a nice warm feeling of mellow calm swept over me, relaxing me. Chilling me out. And yes, that was the effect I was looking for. I love this feeling.

This tea is lovely. I didn’t even add honey, and I have a sweet tooth; I add honey to almost everything.

linden tree leaves and flowers,

A few related notes, just to round off my notes here about Linden.

  • Linden is relaxant and cooling. It gives wonderful support for conditions like high blood pressure, and stress related heart problems.
  • Soothing to the nerves it is helpful where Fibromyalgia or other nerve pain are present.
  • Linden is very safe, even for children and pregnant women.
  • Linden grows large and abundantly in the northeast and in many places, so we are free to harvest as many flowers as we like.

I have tinctured it and enjoyed it as tea. Bur during my Herbalism class (Commonwealthherbs.com) I learned that infusing linden in white wine makes a lovely cooling summer drink. Nice idea, right? They also suggest tincturing it in honey and vodka for a sweet and refreshing tincture/drink.

So much to love about Linden.

1 Comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

November 11, 2024 · 5:02 pm

Green Magic in Late Autumn

calendula blossoms on their green stems
calendula blooming in late fall

It’s always a good time to appreciate plant world magic. It’s a reason to be cheerful or grateful that is always there, always happening. We just don’t always notice.

A couple of magical little things at work in my garden right now: Calendula pictured above, still blooming beautifully (at least until a hard frost!)

white sage in afternoon sun

White sage – not a native of this area. And in danger. But this lovely plant pictured above grew in a pot for me this year from seed. White sage is the plant people buy to smudge a new apartment. As a traditional energetic cleanser it’s been over-harvested. I’m grateful it chose to grow in my garden!

a bunch of leeks
leeks, dirt still in the roots, from the vegetable garden

Leeks. We don’t think about mid November as a time for harvest but my carrots, leeks, and swiss chard are still going strong. Not interested in tempting the fates, I harvested them today. Pictured above.

Swiss chard, a spring green, loves the fall, too. Yum.

Green spirits to feed, protect, and nourish us- still afoot in the garden. At least for now. And when the snow fairies arrive to bring the fallow season, some lovelies will sleep until spring – even more magic.

Oregano, still tender and green after a summer haircut, winters over beautifully to emerge again in the spring…

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , ,

September 24, 2024 · 5:21 pm

Presto Pesto: Food as Medicine

basil on a cutting board with garlic and scissors
basil just cut from the garden or bought in the produce section of the grocery makes delicious pesto

Basil is easy to grow. The secret is watering with some seaweed emulsion fertilizer. If you don’t garden you can pick up fresh basil or even a plant at the grocery store and make pesto fresh at home. It’s *so* much better than jarred pesto.

As to basil’s health benefits: it’s soothing to the digestive and nervous systems. It can ease gas, stomach cramps, and nausea. It can be helpful for fatigue, depression, and nervous irritability. Full of antioxidants, it’s been shown to support healthy blood sugar, heart and vascular health, immunity, and cognitive ability. A delicious food that’s great for your health – truly food as medicine.

It’s easy to make Pesto with or without nuts. For that matter, the french make something very similar, Pistou, that omits the cheese and the nuts and focuses on the garlic and the basil. So you can make this sauce in whatever way you please. Here’s a variation recipe:

  • a blender full of fresh basil (blanched or not, optional)
  • 2-4 bulbs of garlic, roasted.
  • 1 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 1/4 c parmesan or romano cheese
  • olive oil
  • salt and pepper.
  • optional – pine nuts or walnuts

Roast garlic by putting unpeeled bulbs in a toaster oven or toaster and toasting at 350 until the peels are starting to brown.

Roasting the garlic really adds a warm, nutty flavor to the pesto that I love.

To make your pesto place the basil in the blender with the roasted garlic, cheese, salt and pepper, lemon juice, and nuts, and blend away.

Delicious on pasta, toast, chicken, sandwiches, whatever… And so good for you.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , ,