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I am sitting here at the computer sneezing. My white car has turned yellow. Yep, it's pollen season here, which will be followed by mold season, which will be followed by ragweed season.
I realized that there is nothing in my herb bed that will give me permanent relief. This, of course, led me to review what I am growing and what I will use it for. I keep a month's worth of prescription drugs on hand, but I also use herbal teas. In talking to my mother (age 90), she mentioned that, when she was young, herbs were widely used. Money was in short supply, and herbs were passed from one person to another.
I asked her what they used for common ailments. Willow bark for fevers, aloe vera for burns, garlic paste for infections, and (this was a surprise) Queen Anne's lace (aka wild carrot) for contraception!
Do you guys have herbal gardens planted for medicine as well as cooking?
Not yet but working on it. Got some planted last Fall.
I'm going to suggest the ability to recognize the medicinal trees & plants in one's area is at least as important, if not more important, to planting it yourself. Know where to go to harvest what you need. Most people don't know what they pass by every day in the way of medicinal trees and plants.
Check out Dave Canterbury's YouTube channel "wildernessoutfitters" for his series on Medicinal trees & herbs of the Eastern Woodlands.
Not only herb garden that I'm starting... Flowers, flowers & flowers!
My flower seeds to start includes, Marigold (infections, skin inflammatory), Feverfew (headaches etc.), Rose (hips for Vit C, food), Morning Glory (Food dye, mom used that to color the blue of her rice dumpling), Lily (food), Dandelions (everyone knows them... no seeds needed), Borage (food), Hibiscus (tea, antioxidents, food) etc.
One approach in urban/suburban areas is edible landscaping. This is the approch I've chosen instead of sinking money into non-productive landscaping. If I have to maintain it anyway I might as well get something else out of it, right?
It's fun to grow your own food and cultivating your own culinary and medicinal herb garden is not such a bad idea. However, in many areas the herbs you might want to grow will not grow as well or be as potent due to soil conditions, weather, length of growing season, etc. Some herbs can be a bit picky about their growing conditions, preferring some areas to others.
Your best bet is to check with your own states' USDA county extension office and find out what plants will do well in your area. Those extension offices have booklets free to give away and you will find hundreds of booklets online specific for your area.
Do NOT risk gardening for a year after shtf, it will get you killed. Once nearly everyone is dead, you can risk below the surface, plastic sheeting covered (fall and spring) sprout gardens, inside a thicket. Keep them small and scattered, come and go without leaving tracks, and do so in the dark as much as possible. work the sprout beds only very early morning or late evening, using darkness to shield you as much as possible.
Working small plots in a forest can produce an amazing amount of medicinal herbs. Marjuana growers have used this method for years!
I keep a dried supply of my medicinal herbs on hand for everyday use. The hardest to use is willow bark. Only the green inner bark has any medicinal properties. Working it loose, drying it, then powdering it is a pain. I buy aspirin.
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