Rose Medicine
I’m watching my garden and enjoying the gradual lengthening of the days. I know it is March but I long for the roses to bloom. If I am honest, I admit that I don’t know the species planted in my garden. Like many of the plants out there I inherited them when we bought the house. They are a lovely soft pink and flower in abundance when their time comes. Rose medicine is ineffable.
Rose medicine.
When folks make a list of medicinal herbs, I think few would think to include roses. Instead we think roses = romance. Maybe we think of their culinary uses. Rosehip jelly anyone? As a healing herb roses are special.
Spirit Healing.
I cannot think of another herb that has such a powerful action on our spirit. Many herbs are nervines and anxiolytics. These herbs work on our stress and anxiety. I think of these as conditions of the mind, the brain. Rose medicine has a completely different effect. Imagine if you will a thorn – used as a needle. The power of the rose to sew a broken heart back together again.
When working with herbs I am at times too much Sgt. Friday – “Just the facts Ma’am.” Too much Apollo – not enough Dionysus. Roses speak to me on another level. While rosehips are valuable medicine (Vitamin C), but I am forever falling into a bed of rose petals. Insert cheesy Bon Jovi reference here.
Rose medicine brings us to a place of peace, love, and trust. When we have been living our lives in a state of shields up – leading with our thorns as it were – roses centre us and give us the courage to lower our shields. Sometimes, when we soften, we are overcome by that which made us raise our shields in the first place. Rose medicine allows us to feel and process those emotions without being overwhelmed by them. They ground us and help us to find clarity. What should our next step should be? I think of roses as the remedy for joylessness.
Rose medicine and grief.
Roses are perhaps the ultimate in feminine flowers. With a profound action on the female reproductive system. Roses are excellent for uterine pain and menstrual cramps. I have found them without equal for helping people after miscarriage. Acting both on the physical and on the grief that a person experiences after such a loss. They help to soothe the storms that rage after a miscarriage.
Grief heals on its own schedule. Sometimes we need our thorns. Rose can leave folks tender and exposed if they are not ready to face their hurt and pain. I recommend people try the tincture for a few days to see how they feel.
Roses are antiviral. They combine with other antiviral herbs such as hyssop, lemon balm, St John’s wort, and heal all. They support the immune system. This is a one two punch against viral infections. Fighting against the virus directly while aiding the action of the immune system itself. Roses work well systemically and topically as an antimicrobial. Rosewater makes an excellent wash for small cuts and scrapes and is healing and cooling to a sunburn.
Can you smell them?
Rose Tincture.
I cannot explain why bourbon and roses have a synergy but they do. As a general practice I make all my tincture from ethyl alcohol. Roses are the exception. Bourbon and roses make an excellent tincture. Roses are the one herb that I make using the simpler’s method. I grab a jar and stuff it full with rose petals. Add the bourbon. Roses rarely bloom at the same time. They tend to bloom in waves. Each morning I harvest petals and stuff them into the jar. Once the petals have lost all their colour and become translucent I will remove them to make space for new petals.
When harvesting roses I find it works best to grasp the blossom, twist and observe to see if any rose beetles or other insects wriggle out. They make their homes in the blossoms. You also want to watch out for frass (insect excretions.)
Commercial roses are one of the most sprayed plants under cultivation. Always always always use roses that are organic or that you harvest yourself in the wild. I used to camp at a Unitarian campground where the roses grew wild for years and it was my favourite spot to harvest roses.