We will be accepting donations at the MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIR in Seven Springs, PA! Details to come! What to Donate: Aid Herbal Medics and Herbalists Assisting With Natural Disasters Many of you right now would like to know how to support the herbal medic teams and herbal people on the ground providing care for […]

4 Herbs for Mental Focus Video by MOTHER EARTH NEWS Boost brain health with safe and effective herbal remedies. The four herbs for mental focus covered in this video — chaste tree berry, saw palmetto, St. John’s wort and ginkgo — have stood the test of time and are proven to be reliable herbs for brain […]

Elder (Sambucus canadensis, s.nigra), known as the “people’s medicine chest”, is one of my favorite allies.  In my backyard “elder forest” they grow as something between a bush and small trees at a height of 10-13 feet.  In June, I use elderflowers in delicious edible and medicinal preparations, but leave plenty of flower umbrels to […]

Sweet spicy Monarda (Monarda fistulosa and sp.)  also known as Bee Balm, Sweet Leaf, Red Oswego (red monarda didyma) blooms late June through August, depending upon where you live. In my state, Kansas, early July is the perfect time of year for monarda to be in bloom, because I think the tubular flower appearance resembles […]

Sumac grows pretty abundantly here in the Midwest.  You’ll see it along highways, roadsides, in parks and on the edges of yards. I think it looks rather stately in late summer and early fall with its reddish fruit, called drupes, popping out from the green vegetation. There is a poisonous sumac, but it has white […]

Apothecary museums  featuring herbal remedies, such as the Stabler-Leadbeater in Alexandria,VA ,  are near and dear to my herbal heart. I hope you enjoy their apothecary video tour and find it as fascinating as I do. My father was a pharmacist of 50 years (from 1930’s to 1970’s). Before the advent of over-the-counter commercial products, […]

Image of Black cohosh flowering.  https://www.unitedplantsavers.org/species-at-risk For the benefit of the plant communities, wild animals, harvesters, farmers, consumers, manufacturers, retailers and practitioners, we offer this list of wild medicinal plants which we feel are currently most sensitive to the impact of human activities. Our intent is to assure the increasing abundance of the medicinal plants […]

Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca) All mints (Lamiaceae or Labiatae, as they were formerly called) have three features in common: square stems, rolling the stem between the fingers to feel the four sides opposite leaves—each pair of leaves emerges from the same level, on opposite sides of the stem “lipped” flowers—blossoms shaped like open mouths, the upper […]

Driving through the Flint Hills, the smoke from Spring prairie burns is thick and lingering. The foggy haze engulfs Kansas this time of year, coupled with dry condition wildfires and wind. Our respiratory systems become under assault with this noxious stimulant and can trigger allergic type reactions, irritation and damage to sensitive mucosa. Coughing, bronchial […]

Winter is cold, full of sickness and not much energy, it is the perfect tyme for thyme! The Greek word for thyme was said to mean “fumigate” for its strong balsamic odor.  It was often used as an incense to dispel illness and germs in the air.  Another derived meaning comes from the Greek word […]