ReConnection Magazine ~ Summer 2008 Issue

No one can deny the power of summer, with the Sun beams so strong, the heat so warming – the culmination of winter’s deep freeze and Spring’s rains and the Winds of Change: its time for Celebration! I like to celebrate summer by going barefoot, wearing as few clothes as possible, lying prostrate in the meadows when I can, and enjoying the incredible blossoms that mark this season. Let’s talk flower power! I want to introduce you to some of my favourite herbal blossoms and their powers: Calendula, Yarrow and St. Joan’s Wort (aka St. John’s Wort).

CALENDULA
Some may know this plant as Marigold, but please take caution when identifying plants that you have her correct name. Marigold includes a variety of brilliant orange-yellow blossoms, but not all of them are edible. Calendula officinalis, also knows as Pot Marigold, is domestically grown in the garden, and has a large daisy like flower that is usually orange but sometimes yellow, with a dark centre. Plant it once, and allow some of the blossoms to go to seed, and she should come back every year. Some say it has a mild scent, while the other common Marigold (Tagetes species) is strong smelling, maybe even unpleasant. Once you know you have the medicinal Calendula, then you can discover its many uses and powers.

Calendula is definitely edible, and in a salad is hard to beat for its beauty – simply pick the blossoms when they are fully open, and pick off the petals to sprinkle freely amongst the greens. She’ll have a very slight bitter flavour, good for moving liver energy, which is a nice contrast to the sweetness of lettuce or the nuttiness of Arugula. As a medicine, Calendula is best known for her power to help ward off skin infections by opposing fungi, bacteria, viruses and inflammation. As an anti-microbial, it helps stimulate the immune system. Calendula salves are very popular and easy to make – I like to harvest the blossoms when they are wide open and dry (harvest in full sun to be sure they are free from dew), and lay them out on a basket to “wilt” them a little to remove moisture that may make the infused oil cloudy and mouldy. Then I put them in a sterilized jar, and cover them with extra virgin cold pressed Olive oil (Italian sources are usually organically grown) for 2 weeks (one can also heat this over a stove at the lowest temperature possible for 2 hours, making certain that it doesn’t ever boil). Strain the oil and either use this simply as a skin massage oil, or go the extra step and make a salve. To do this, pour the strained oil into a double boiler, and melt one ounce of grated beeswax per cup of oil as a general rule. Pour into jars while still liquid and let sit. Label it well, and voila – your own homemade and super powerful Calendula Salve! Use the salve on minor cuts, scrapes, insect bites and bruises. Other uses include making a tea and tincture with the blossoms, which I use both internally for gynaecological conditions to tone the uterus, as a mouth wash for canker sores and bleeding gums, and as an anti-viral in a blend specifically addressing herpes outbreaks, and externally as a first aid wash for deeper and more open cuts and wounds (dilute the tincture well for this).

Please harvest wild plants away from pollution sources such as roads, railways and industrial areas. If harvesting from a lawn or landscaped area, make sure no pesticides, fungicides or other chemicals were used to treat it.

YARROW
I love this plant so much we included it as one of my son’s middle names. Yarrow, or Achillea millefolium, is also known as stanchwort, or nosebleed, due to its incredible power to stop bleeding, both internally and externally. Yarrow grows wildly in most parts of the Northern hemisphere in open meadows and forests, and even on lawns if you let her. Many a time away from home or even just outside our home, we have used Yarrow to treat wounds by simply picking its leaves, chewing them briefly to break up their cell walls and expose its medicine, then placed directly onto the cut or open wound – its name is said to be derived from the Greek hero Achilles who used Yarrow to stop the bleeding in a deep wound on his heal (thus the achilles tendon). Try this and you will be amazed. You can also make an infused oil as with Calendula, and add it to your healing salve. More commonly, Yarrow is used internally for treating colds and flu. Picked fresh throughout its long season, the leaves and flowers can be infused in boiled water to make a tea that helps ease upper respiratory infections, reduce phlegm, and also encourage or reduce fevers. This is a confusing aspect of Yarrow, but traditionally, Yarrow was used to encourage a fever to help the body rid itself of infection from viruses and bacteria and also to induce sweating when a fever is too high and “stuck”. I use it with low-grade fevers accompanying a flu or cold that seems stagnant and without improvement, and combine it with Peppermint when the fever is high and the body dry. Yarrow is also a bitter, and bitters are necessary elements in our diet to stimulate the gall bladder, which in turn improves digestion. Stagnant digestion is often the cause or at least can be associated with inflammation of all kinds – skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis and acne, bone and tendon problems such as arthritis, bursitis, tendonitis, and gynaecological conditions such as menstrual pain and heavy bleeding. Please avoid its use during pregnancy as Yarrow is a uterine stimulant, though traditional midwives use it in combination with Shepherd’s Purse after birth to help stop haemorrhaging.

ST.JOAN’S WORT
Most everyone has heard of St. John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum) for its popularity in the last decade as an anti-depressant. She blooms just around Summer Solstice, or close to June 24th, St.John’s Day in the Christian tradition, thus the name. Being pagan-ly minded and bit of a rebel, I like to sometimes call her what Starhawk does, St. Joan’s Wort. Regardless of her many names, this plant, like Calendula and Yarrow, has many faces and uses, both externally and internally. First, let’s make sure we have the medicinal St. Joan’s Wort – there is another plant by the same name used in landscaping that is not edible or medicinal. Hold the leaf up to the sky and look for tiny perforations or holes, thus the latin name perforatum. Then squeeze the blossoms or leaves between your fingers and you will see red – in a good way; it should give you a purply red stain on your skin. It is found growing wild often on the sides of roads or railway tracks, but I like to grow my own patch in the garden to be sure she is not polluted. Watch out though, she spreads! Unfortunately, it is said to be harmful to livestock such as cows who may graze it, and so a beetle has been introduced in some areas to eradicate it – all the more reason to start your own patch and hope that the beetle doesn’t find it. I keep mine picked and free from self-seeding so it doesn’t get out of hand and reach grazing fields.

One of my favourite oils to make, I pick the top 4-6 inches when the blooms are dry from rain or dew, and just opening – some of the star-shaped flowers will be open and some of them will still be buds. I place them in a sterilized glass jar, cover them with cold pressed extra virgin Olive oil, and cover the jar with cheesecloth held on by elastic and tape to prevent insects from going in. Then I place the jar in a safe place (away from kids, dogs and sprinklers!) in full sunlight for 2 weeks – indoors by a south-facing window is good. This is the traditional way of making St.Joan’s Wort oil used in Europe still today. Watch over time as the oil turns red – a beautiful rich dark red is the colour you are trying to achieve. Sometimes I will have a gallon jar on the go all the time, since St. Joan’s Wort won’t blossom at once, and picking the tops will encourage more flowers to emerge. When ready, the oil is then strained without squeezing the herb (may contain moisture), and either bottled directly for massage oil, or made into a salve as discussed above. St. Joan’s Wort is best known externally as a remedy for burns, cuts, scrapes, insect bites, etc, and also for nerve damage – use as a massage oil for sciatica, neuralgia, and inflammatory conditions such as bursitis and tendonitis. Internally, the infusion or tea, and the tincture are both used to help ease anxiety, nervous tension, emotional exhaustion, PMS or emotional upsets associated with menopause. She has an important place in my Nerve tonic tincture blend. St. Joan’s Wort is widely used for mild depression, seasonal affective disorder, attention deficit disorder, and for drug and alcohol withdrawal (use only tea or capsules for this). With these conditions, it is best to take three times a day for a minimum of 2 months – remember that herbs work slowly but deeply unlike pharmaceuticals which work quickly but always with side-effects. More recently, St. Joan’s Wort has been found to be anti-viral as well, and there is current research looking into its ability to treat HIV and hepatitis. I use it in my anti-viral tincture blend that works quite well at reducing and preventing herpes outbreaks.

FINAL NOTE ON UNITY
Recently the Canadian Minister of Health introduced Bill C-51 into the House of Commons. If passed, this Bill will significantly alter the Food and Drugs Act
Bill C-51 so that many herbal medicines, vitamin, mineral and other supplements will be illegal to sell, purchase or even share! Here is a list of some of the implications of Bill C-51 should it pass (and apparently it has a good chance), from the website www.veggieboards.com

Bill C-51 will:
• Remove democratic oversight, bypassing elected officials to vote in laws and allow bureaucrats to adopt laws from other countries without our consent.
• Remove 70% of Natural Health Products from Canadians and many others will be available by prescription only.
• Restrict research and development of safe natural alternatives in favour of high risk drugs.
• Punish Canadians with little or no opportunity for protection or recourse for simply speaking about or giving a natural product without the approval of government. More than 70% of people in Canada use a Natural Health Product. The new law goes so far as to warrant action against a person who would give another person an “unapproved” amount of garlic on the recommendation that it would improve that person’s health.

Proposed New Enforcement Powers:
• Inspectors will enter private property without a warrant
• Inspectors will take your property at their discretion
• Inspectors will dispose of your property at will
• Inspectors will not reimburse you for your losses
• Inspectors will seize your bank accounts
• Inspectors will charge owners shipping and storage charges for seized property
• Inspectors will be empowered to store your property indefinitely
• Inspectors will levy fines of up to $5,000,000.00 and/or seek 2 years in jail per incident

I wanted to alert readers that it is time for us to UNITE on this topic, to help preserve what rights and freedoms we still do have in shaping our own health care, and being able to give our neighbours chicken soup for a cold!

Here is what we can do:
• Go to www.stopc51.com
• Read a legal discussion on Bill C-51
• Read bill C-51 on www.parl.gc.ca
• Talk to your local Press
• Contact your local MP
• Ask the leaders in your community to get involved
• Contact your MLA
• Tell your Friends

Remember also, no matter what happens, keep growing your own food and medicines!