Herbs and Farm Envy:)

So today I sorted my collection of herbs. I am a herbalist in training with the Dr.Christopher School of Natural Healing and I LOVE IT! I have a million herb books, which I cross reference constantly. With the super overcrowded doctors' offices and hospitals I LOVE having the ability and knowledge and training to treat a lot of the simple things myself when my family is ill (IE: colds, flu, allergies, fevers, ear infections, etc.). It is really empowering too when I go the doctor with my kids and can speak intelligently(well, for me) with the Dr. It also helps me avoid unnecessary drugs that doctors sometimes prescribe as a matter of habit (to cover their tushes mostly in case your child gets sicker:).

Anyways, just for your growing curiosity, here is a current list of most of the herbs I own and use in my household and some of the things I use them for.:)

(PS. I must add that I am not advising anyone medically. Read with judgement and prudence.:)

Roots:

Yellow Dock-super source of iron, especially after labor
Valerian-AWESOME nervine- I suffer from super chronic insomnia
Turkey Rhubarb


Leaves(stems, flowers too):

Blessed Thistle-helps with milk supply
Red Raspberry-IT WOULD TAKE A PARAGRAPH TO TELL YOU EVERYTHING GOOD ABOUT THIS HERB! Strengthens all productive organs(male and female), excellent source of vitamins and minerals, expels mucus stored in the body, etc. LOVE IT!
Horsetail-super source of silica, which helps your body use and absorb calcium
Peppermint-yummy flavoring, also aids digestion
Skullcap-another superb nervine to help me calm down and sleep
Mullein-we use this one all the time for congestion, safe to use when pregnant and really does the job to expel mucus and help you breathe
Oatstraw-excellent source of calcium, my kids love it(I do too, it smells like a farm and I like that.:) Weird I know:)
Nettles-lots of iron, just a really great tonic herb
Comfrey-called the "bone knitter", we use the leaves internally in teas for building up bones and tissue.(Roots are recommended for external use only)
Spearmint-flavorful and kids tend to like it better than peppermint
Catnip-famous children herb, but good for lots of things. Digestion, teething, colic, calcium, etc.
Eyebright-eyewash, strengthens eyesight, rebuilds eye tissue.
Yarrow-EXCELLENT herb, said to be the one herb to help survive the flu plagues in the last days(sound like something we need now?:).


Powders:

Slippery Elm Bark-great gruel for ill children who need something nutritious. I also use this in a few recipes I have for different things.
Clove
Cinnamon
Chaste Berry
Barley Grass-I put a bit of this in my smoothies for extra vitamins and minerals
Ginger Root
Cayenne

I also have some herbs growing in my garden:

Chamomile
Lemon Basil
Greek Oregano
Italian Oregano
English Thyme
French Thyme
Lemon Thyme
Lemon Balm
Bee Balm
Mint
Sweet Marjoram
Two types of Lavender
Rosemary
Italian Parsley
St. John's Wort
Sweet Basil
Aloe Vera
Dandelions(excellent source of iron and minerals and vitamins you know:)


I am such a beginning gardener and have planted everything right on top of each other practically. I did space them out knowing they would grow, and I tried to put them in places according to what the little tags said as far as how tall they will grow, but I am afraid my garden is mostly a happy jumble.:)

I cut a whole bunch of herbs today to dry. I am so excited to use them in cooking, and teas, and herbal dream pillows!

We also are growing some vegetables in an effort to be more happy with what we put in our bodies(and we just really love gardening-this is where the FARM ENVY comes in.:) What with GMO foods, and chemicals, and pesticides, etc...lets just say I feel happier knowing what exactly is going in my family's bodies. I got to tell you too, food you grow yourself tastes MILLIONS better than food from the store. The cucumbers we harvested last year were AMAZING! It was so wonderful to not have a super thick coat of wax on them to uh....savor with their yummy crunchiness.:)

Here are the vegetables in our garden this year:
Cucumbers(two types)
Carrots
Beets
Spinach
Swiss Chard
Zukes
Tomatoes
Lemons AND GRAPES!(which aren't technically vegetables, but they grow in our garden too!:)

Not a huge amount of food, but our backyard is very small, and we are trying not to do too much since I am pregnant this year.:)

BJ and I both want to keep expanding our garden every year until we have at least an acre or two to farm on.:)(obviously we are going to have to move for that to happen, but all in good time dude! It is in the plans.:) We love the idea of growing as much of our own food as we can. I have had so much fun wandering around the blog world looking at people's farms, and how they are making naturally healthy changes in their lives too. Sometimes I feel very alone in my beliefs about herbs and what constitutes healthy wholesome food. It is hard talking to people about why I choose home birth and other natural medical options. The blog world has opened up new opportunities for making friends who feel the same as I do all over the world! I have found blogs where people have shared adventures in moving to Japan to learn organic gardening, and different degrees of living sustainably. I love reading the blogs by farm mothers who are taking the challenge to raise their children in a more sustainable and naturally healthy way. I love reading their adventures with learning how to raise chickens(it is appalling what constitutes a store bought egg-it can be up to eight months old for instance-ew.), and other farm animals. Their was one farmin' momma who seems to have been anti-farm animals, and then someone told the animal humane society that she was sympathetic to animals and ended up with a camel, among other animals.:) John Dunne is famous for saying, "No man is an island." I have thought about that a lot lately as I consider the impact I do or do not make on the world, and those around me. I am so grateful to have this medium of blogging to hear others voices sharing my same beliefs in a way I fail to communicate.

If you are interested in some of the AWESOME blogs I have been finding covering all sorts of topics(mostly sustainable farming:) here are some of my favorites:

http://tinyfarmblog.com/ This farm's story is really awesome

http://childreninthecorn.blogspot.com/ I love this website because the author is so personable. She responds to all the replies to her posts.

http://naturewithme.blogspot.com/ This blog is awesome and gets me excited about going Non GMO

http://potagergardengirl.com/ This blog has some really cute ideas of how to get your kids involved in the garden

http://freefarmgeek.wordpress.com/ This guy has written a really beautiful article called FOOD FREEDOM, I really recommend reading it, you go down on his blog a bit to find it in the May 7th post.

Ok, so like all those blogs are about gardening to some extent. I guess that is where my thoughts have been this weekend. I want my piece of land where I can grow all my own food and have a beautiful orchard, and ginormous u-pick herb garden for the public. I want my cashmere goats and horses and Southdown Babydoll sheep. I love heirloom veggies and heirloom chickens. I just love being outside and working in the dirt. I have had a passion for gardening since I was really young. My Mum can tell you all about how I would pour over seed catalogs as a ten year old and order all sorts of things, from butterfly bushes to sunflower seeds. I was always begging for more space to garden.:)

Well, that is enough garden chat from me. I have found I blather on quite a bit in my passion and have really loved reading other people's blogs who write much more prolifically than myself. There is a lot of beautiful writing talent out there in the world! Thank you all for sharing!
Have a healthy week!
C.:)

PS.I am so sad, my pix are having trouble downloading today-boo. So pix with the next post, I promise.