Posted: July 19, 2021
Plant Problems. I need the plant material I work with to be the highest quality possible. To that end I need to know what a plant is meant to look like. I also need to know when something is off. Are there plant problems? There are herbalists who do not make their own medicine. They
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Category: Uncategorized
Tags: foraging, herbalism, herbs, learning herbs, medicinal, Ottawa herbalist, plant problems
Posted: July 12, 2021
Climate Change. I had to count back in my head to know what day I took this photo. It was July 2 this year. That’s goldenrod. A plant that usually flowers in mid to late August. Today is the 11th and I feel certain that this goldenrod is in
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Tags: climate change, community care, goldenrod, inspiration, Ottawa herbalist
Posted: July 5, 2021
Unsung heroes. Today I was fortunate enough to tune into conversation on Tapestry with Robin Wall Kimmerer. I read her book Braiding Sweetgrass back in January of 2020 – just before the pandemic. Part of today’s conversation concerned the fact that apparently your average person can only recognize 10 different plants. One of them being
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Tags: herbalism, herbs, learning herbs, Ottawa herbalist, sweet clover, unsung hero, vascular tonic
Posted: June 27, 2021
What Part to Harvest and When. I know we sometimes get a bee in our bonnet about a new herb. We hear how great herb XYZ is and we are eager to experiment. We want to harvest now – right now! But we need to know what part to harvest and when. Imagine I invite
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Category: Uncategorized
Tags: aerial parts, barks, herbalism, learning herbs, Ottawa herbalist, roots
Posted: June 21, 2021
Midsummer. Midsummer to me means the sun’s warmth and blessings of the land. I was harvesting red clover and I found a patch of wild strawberries (Fragaria vesca). They were on a south facing stretch and I decided I deserved a break. These small jewels are perfect bursts of flavour. Warmed by the sun you
