By Cat Gina Cole
Today from my herbal journal I found one of my favorite herbs, chamomile. I love how the plant looks when it is growing: wild and bushy, pushing all its white and yellow flowers up at you. Its smell is delightful and the entire plant is just cheerful. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Chamomile
By Cat Gina Cole
I have to admit, I am enjoying the re-discovery of my herbal journal as I write this column each week. Each time, it is like finding something new and getting excited about it all over again. Today, I rediscovered this crumpled and handwritten note. It is crumpled because back when I was doing my studies, I had the habit of throwing away my notes once they were on the computer. My husband, Mike, was very against this and would rescue them from the trash bin. He would give them back to me saying “Here you lost this, it is something you need.” And I think he was right. Just look at the memories a crumpled bit of paper can have and the joy it evokes.
Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Purslane & Mallow
By Cat Gina Cole
This week in my herbal journal, I found a couple of oils to share with you. Since I have studied these and wrote the notes on them, I have made them and used them together in an oil for an irritable bowel or stomach with other ingredients. Sadly, I committed the sin of all herbalists and did not write down the recipe for it, but I will keep looking as it worked very well. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Basil & Bergamot Oils
By Cat Gina Cole
This week as I turn the page to my very disorganized herbal journal, I wrote years ago; I find Plants of the Zodiac. These are the magical spiritual uses for these herbs. Please know that this list is not a complete compendium, rather it is my study notes. The source for these notes is the book, Garden Witches Herbal by Ellen Dugan. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Plants of the Zodiac
By Cat Gina Cole
Today as I open my journal from 2014, I find angelica. What I find interesting about this herb is it has so many lookalikes. Pretty much the entire family of umbelliferae are lookalikes for angelica. The family includes about 460 genera and 4,250 species. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Angelica
By Cat Gina Cole
Today as I open my journal, I find an entry that is dated 4/26/13 and it reads, “For two months now, I have been taking “’The Brew’ (A herbal blend I made). Dose is 2tsp herbal blend to a large cup of water and steeped for ten minutes. I have lost five pounds and note it is not wise to make the brew too strong because the senna in the mix will make your bowels loose quickly and the gotu kola will sedate you at higher concentrated doses.” Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: The Brew
As I did my research into herbs in 2011, I remember thinking how interesting it was that so many of the things we have around all the time were so useful. Mostly, we either think of blackberry as a jam or a nasty bother but it is actually a very beneficial medicinal plant. Blackberry is high in tannins which are very helpful and known as antioxidants but if taken in extremely high doses, it can be linked with cancer. This fact is true of many of the herbs and plants we use to heal and we mostly avoid extremely high doses and concentration for long periods of time. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Blackberry
By Cat Gina Cole
Today in my journal as I turn the page, I find Magical Aroma Therapy and it begins with “Frankincense.” The first thing I wrote down is that frankincense heightened participants’ spiritual involvement in rites and has the word “euphoric” followed by a question mark. As it turns out, it can be euphoric as it contains the compound incensole acetate but for it to be effective one would have to use a very high concentration. Yet it is said the Greek philosopher Pythagoras used frankincense to enable him to prophesize.
By Cat Gina Cole
Today in my herbal journal from 2010 are notes about teaching an herbal class and I find some very good things to consider when using herbs. First up is the question Why use tincture over tea? A great question. The answer depends on the why. There are times when sitting down with a comforting tea is all that is needed. So many of the teas are for relaxation. The combination of aroma, heat, taste, and affect triggers all the cues for calming someone. Their effectiveness for medicine comes sometime later as an individual digests the tea, like teas for an upset stomach. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Tinctures & Teas
By Cat Gina Cole
You ever have that moment when you look back on something you wrote and cannot read your own handwriting? My herbal journal is like that today. This is the first list of herbs I made that I wanted for myself and those I might want to teach about later, with some short notes on each herb. At the time I wrote this list I really had no idea about how using a powdered herb was different from using a leaf herb. Boy, did I find out in quick order when I tried to make a cough syrup from wild cherry bark powder! As inexperienced as I was back then, it did not go well. Powders are more often used in ointments, poltices, or creams for the purpose of skin issues. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Herbal List
By Cat Gina Cole
It has been some time since I opened my herbal journal. As I open it today, the first things I see are the glossaries. Next, there is a list of herbal sources I used at the time so I will share those with you today. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Kitchen Witchery
By Cat Gina Cole
When I was young, I got to spend many hours in the gardens of my aunts, my grandma, and my dad. It was fun spending time with them like that, listening to their stories or hearing them talk about the plants like they were alive. Seeing how they cared for each one like it was their child taught me many things about animism. I did not know then, that was what I was learning because, like most kids, I was often bored or distracted from what they were trying to teach me. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Introduction