Weeds & Seeds Swap

Many know about hops because it is used in making beer, to the left is a hops cone, a picture that can be found on Wikipedia.

Hops goes by the botanical name Humulus lupulus, and is a nervine, which means it calms and soothes the nerves.

I am going to share a story that I’m pulling up from way back in the memory source of my mind, so it is not detailed, but I recall learning that there was a place that hops was being farmed.  The calming, soothing nervine affect was first noted when the people harvesting the hops were affected by handling the plants, the actives traveling through their skin into the bloodstream.

One source I have says that 10 American Indian tribes used hops for nervine purposes.

The German Commission E recommends using this herb for health disorders such as restlessness, anxiety states and insomnia. It can be found in some herbal formulas for insomnia and nervous tension. It is high in calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, Vitamin C and selenium.

Picture above from this link at Flickr

Living in New Jersey during this cold time of year, as the holidays end, and we look into a couple of months of cold weather before Spring, it is fun to dream of beautiful days at the Jersey Shore.  You may remember some of the posts I put up on this blog showed some plant life that we saw when we traveled down the Jersey coast stopping at various shore sites in the Spring of last year.  The sand dunes, like those pictured in Wildwood above are always covered with interesting plant life that can only survive in sand, mostly tall grasses.

These days my husband and I can take off on vacation alone, without the children, and they are wonderful, but sometimes we find ourselves missing the activities that we would fit into our vacations when we had young children….and back when we had young children we wondered what it would be like to be just the two of us.  We’re so happy to have had the opportunity to enjoy the best of both worlds.

When you are planning a vacation and want to enjoy the beauty of the shore, the wildlife, the sand dunes, the plant life…but have children that you want to entertain as well, then you will need to do a little planning. We have been to the Cape May and Wildwood Jersey shore areas at least a few times, and regret not visiting a place that I know our children would have loved, Morey’s Piers, with all of the park rides and boardwalk attractions. They are offering good holiday specials right now, in fact I’d check the link to Jersey Shore and Wildwood hotels fairly quickly because there is a good special going on right now.  Plan ahead while you can save up to 40% on season passes to their water parks.  Also, while you’re there, look at the many “drop down” menus along the top of the page for information about events and so much more in the area.

Are you living in a warm part of the country or world where you are dealing with garden and household insect pests?  We are in very-cold-right-now northern NJ, but even in the cold of winter, the basement of our cabin has little crickets, cave crickets, that my husband is always dealing with.  So far he hasn’t been using a home-made safe pesticide in his war against these critters, but I would prefer it.

I’m a member of a nice new group called “Gals Go Green” an a while back someone posted a great pesticide recipe. I can’t use it until Spring, but those of you that are in climates where you can garden may like to try this:

All- purpose insect pest spray
(Organic Gardening, 1996)

1 tsp powdered red hot pepper
1 garlic bulb
1 small onion
1 liter of water
1 tbsp of soap
Knife
Strainer
Chop onion and garlic. Add powdered red pepper.
Mix the above ingredients into the water.
Soak for 1 hour. Strain. Add soap. Stir well.
Fill the sprayer. Spray plants thoroughly.
Repeat spraying when necessary.

Posted by
http://www.ritasweetsoaps.com/home.html

I visited a site recently that has pure medicinal products, and makes the claim that their products are proven effective in medical studies.

Since they use medicinal formulas from the earth, I was naturally drawn to the site. Now this particular site deals with remedies for such things as cold sores, warts, Genital Herpes (caused by a virus similar to what causes cold sores), and HPV. Because of the fact that forms of the herpes virus are transmitted sexually, some of the content on the site is best viewed by adults only. There is nothing indiscreet on the landing page, however, just a warning for those who are sensitive. There is a tremendous amount of educational information provided that is helpful for those dealing with this condition, and the balms and creams, are all natural and 100% organic.

One of the popular items mentioned at the site is called “H-Balm” which is “composed of the highly prized essential oils of Melissa, Lemon Balm, and six separate anti-viral essential oils and plant extracts all medically proven to inactivate the herpes virus. H-Balm and H-Balm Daily are 100% pure and all natural”.

If you are dealing with any of these conditions, like so many other posts on this blog, it’s wonderful to know there is a natural solution that works!

I remember as a young girl a large bush my mother had with small flowers that formed large and pretty round blue or white clusters of flowers called a Hydrangea bush.    The kind that you can cut and dry if you wish for a dried flower arrangement.

In this post, we’re referring to the wild variety that grows in the eastern states of the US, we have bushes in our yard down near our lake, the plant likes to be near water. The bark has many layers, of various colors, easy to peel so that you can view the layers.

The Cherokee Indians used this as a remedy for kidney stones, and early settlers were introduced to it for this use by the Indians. It is said to have diuretic properties, currently the most common uses as a medicinal herb are cystitis, urethritis, urinary calculi, prostatitis, and gravel in the kidneys.

It was right here in my state, New Jersey, that a physician, also an herbalist, Ellingwood, demonstrated to the medical community that hydrangea had the ability to remove gravel deposits. It also eased the pain associated with the process. Grieve’s “A Modern Herbal” states that Ellingwood said “I am convinced after a lifetime of experience that it is more specifically, more universally a sedative to pain and distress in the kidneys and urinary bladder than any other one remedy”. He suggested it for acute nephritis, kithaemia, and backache caused by urinary disturbances and irritation.

The Scientific Info:

Most of the medicinal properties of hydrangea are from hydrangenol, a cyanogenic glycoside. It exhibits anti-allergic properties by decreasing permeability of tissues and that result in inflammation, and releasing histamine.

Now here’s a mouthful…Dihydoisocoumarin properties found in hydrangea were found to have strong antimicrobial activity against bacteria in the mouth, and another property, rutin, seemed to inhibit tumor formation and help inhibit the spread of some mouth cancers.

Please contact me if you would like references for the things stated in this post, I have them, they are just too much to type in a blog post.

Snow is swirling around outside, covering the ground and gardens with a new and beautiful clean, white coating, covering the grays and browns that take over after the gardens have vanished and the trees have shed their leaves. It is this time of year when gardening catalogs begin to show up in mailboxes, and when plans are made for the spring garden season.

For some, Spring may be a time building that dream home on a plot of land that you have purchased. With the economy as it is, Home Plans don’t have to be something that is out of the question, especially when you can sit in the comfort of your home, without a hired contractor, and review plans online at houseplansandmore.com. I was simply amazed at the selection available, every design you can imagine, and more…everything from log homes (I’m a little partial to those as we live in one), bungalows, ranch houses, victorian homes, cottages, Contemporary house plans and even plans as nice as French Country House Plans.

While you are planning the location of your dream home, consider the layout of the land and where you will place your gardens. I will be doing some posts to inspire you as you dream of warmer days ahead.

Oh, and you readers in warmer climates…as tempting as warm weather sounds at times, I’d really miss our beautiful snow! I’m off for a walk in the snow before it gets too cold, we’re headed for the teens and below this New Year’s Eve….Happy New Year to all!

I hope you have had a wonderful Christmas, I wanted to post this on Christmas Eve, but our computer was down, but it is better late than never I hope you have enjoyed a blessed Christmas.

I thought we’d take a look at the gifts the wise men brought to Jesus according to the biblical accounts of Christ’s birth.  Two of which were herbal, and one that isn’t an herb, but does have medicinal properties.

Frankincense is a resin that is very aromatic, taken from a tree with the botanical name Boswellia carterii. Frankincense has been used since ancient times and is associated with spiritual things and meditation, which may be why the wise men thought it an appropriate gift to give to Jesus and his family. Clicking here will bring you to one source of Frankincense, the essential oil

Myrrh, and is a medicinal herb we have discussed already on this blog, you can find a link to the post in the listing to the upper right of this blog, I list all single herbs alphabetically as they are posted so that they are easy for you to find.

Gold, the final precious gift of the wise men, also has medicinal properties. Here is an article I just found on Gold provided by The Whole Food Farmacy, a wonderful source of medicinal grade Gold in their “Joule” and “Heart of Gold”:

The earliest records of the use of gold for medicinal and healing purposes come from Alexandria, Egypt. Over 5,000 years ago, the Egyptians ingested gold for mental, bodily and spiritual purification. The ancients believed that gold in the body worked by stimulating the life force and raising the level of vibration on all levels.

The Alchemists of Alexandria developed an “elixir” made of liquid gold. They believed that gold was a mystical metal that represented the perfection of matter, and that its presence in the body would enliven, rejuvenate, and cure a multitude of diseases as well as restore youth and perfect health.

As many as 4,500 years ago, the Egyptians used gold in dentistry. Remarkable examples of its early use have been found by modern archaeologists. Still in favor today as an ideal material for dental work, approximately 13 tons of gold are used each year for crowns, bridges, inlays and dentures. Gold is ideal for these purposes because it is non-toxic, can be shaped easily, and never wears, corrodes or tarnishes.

Historically, medicinal gold has had a reputation as a “nervine,” a therapy for nervous disorders. A review of the historical literature shows gold in use during the 19^th century for conditions including depression, epilepsy, migraine, and glandular problems including amenorrhea and impotence.

The most notable use of gold was in a treatment for alcoholism developed by Leslie E. Keeley, M.D. Gold has been used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases for more than 75 years, but until now, the way that gold worked has remained a mystery.

Harvard Medical researchers report in the February 27^th, 2006 issue of Nature Chemical Biology that gold, platinum, and other classes of medicinal metals work by stripping bacteria and virus particles from the grasp of a key immune system protein. “We were searching for a new drug to treat autoimmune diseases,” says Brian DeDecker, PhD, “but instead we discovered a biochemical mechanism that may help explain how an old drug works.”

Once again, modern science has confirmed what the ancients seem to have known all along – that gold is indeed a very precious metal. At The Wholefood Farmacy, we are proud to offer two exclusive products which offer an easy and delicious way to bring this ancient wisdom into your life today, “Joule” & “Heart of Gold”.

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and offer my best wishes for the coming New Year.