I've always liked to make my own Valentine love letters....all handwritten and colored with leaves and sticks and twigs and rocks and plant dyed spots, or whipping up my own chocolatey and sticky and sweet confections, and irresistible luscious liqueurs....but this year, I'm stringing wild jewels too. A little something special for my girls. They're easy enough to be a children's project but I'm keeping this one a secret because I'm making these ones for my Valentine girls. I will say though, that my fingertips didn't go without the occasional needle poke so some children my need help with this one.

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"One may live without bread, not without roses."

The rose hip, or rose haw, is the fruit of the rose plant, and typically is red or orangeish, but ranges from dark purple to black in some species. Rose hips begin to form in spring, and ripen in late summer through autumn.  And me, I like to get them while I can, and eat them up!

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I'm thrilled to finally be adding some new herbals to the website that I spent all Spring, Summer and Fall growing, loving, tickling, singing too, harvesting and now are ready to be shared! 

Even though I had to leave behind my ever so loved food and medicine garden in California, I was able to harvest a little bit from almost everything before setting off on this new journey. And now, as I cozy up for the Winter I'm busy planning out my new garden space where there is sure to be an abundance of herbals in the years to come.

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Mallow is one of the earliest cited plants in recorded literature. Horace mentions it in reference to his own diet, which he describes as very simple: "Me pascunt olivae, me cichorea, me malvae" ("As for me, olives, endives, and mallows provide sustenance")

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Marrubrium vulgaris is one of the first non-native herbs I learned when I was working as field biologist for Cal State Stanislas to protect native species. I knew the plant as a cough remedy and a candy, but didn't have much experience recognizing the plant back then. In college as a horticulture student we studied landscaping plants rather than "wild" plants; which is truly where my heart was. But none the less, I learned a lot.

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For those who have learned to respect its sting and recognize its amazing herbal attributes, stinging nettle truly is one of our most delicious, nutritious and medicinal foods. Even though this plant can offer a crash course in plant identification, as well as contact dermatitis, painful tiny blisters, and possible burning like sensations, (OUCH!) get to know it, nettle has so much to offer.

Besides being very high in iron, calcium, potassium, manganese, and vitamins A, C, and D; it is nutritive, astringent, diuretic, tonic, and antihistamine. Nettle is particularly effective in treating allergic rhinitis, relieving nearly all the symptoms of itchy, watery eyes, sneezing and runny nose. This herb can be taken in the form of tincture, capsule or as I prefer in tea; two or three times daily throughout hay fever season. Some herbalist recommend nettle for dogs that suffer seasonal allergies as well.

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