Calendula (Calendula officinalis), Annual


Easy to direct seed in a garden bed in full sun, mid-late May. Needs deer and porcupine protection. Be sure to purchase medici- nal seeds, not ornamental seeds. Thin to 8 inches apart. Once the plants start flowering be sure to keep picking the flowers with your fingers, or herb clippers, every few days, and they will continue to flower until a killing frost. The fresh flowers can be used in a sun tea or made into an alcohol-based tincture. For drying the flowers, collect into a basket once they no longer are wet with dew. Lay the blossoms on a screen and dry for 7-10 days. Enjoy in winter teas and baths. The dried flowers can be infused in organic olive oil in a warm place (80-100F) for 10-14 days and then strained and used as a healing oil or combine with beeswax for a salve.


As a topical oil or salve, calendula is revered for its abilities to heal cuts and wounds and lessen scar tissue. A safe oil and salve for nursing women to use for healing sore and cracked nipples. Used as a tea or tincture, calendula mildly stimulates the immune system, helping to reduce colds, flus, fevers and swollen glands. Added into a winter tea, the bright orange and yellow colors of the flowers will bring back joyful memories of summer.


Chamomile (Matricaria recutita), Annual An easy herb to grow, either by transplanting seedlings 4-6


inches apart, or direct seeding into the garden in a sunny location. Once established, the plants will reseed themselves year after year. The blossoms need to be collected by hand every few days. Chamo- mile’s blooming time lasts only about a month, unlike calendula’s which is all summer. Children enjoy picking chamomile into special baskets. Lay the blossoms onto a non-metal screen to dry and once dry store them in a glass jar in a dark cupboard.


Chamomile helps relax the nervous and digestive system and eases pain, tension and spasm in the gut, urinary and reproductive tracts. A wonderfully soothing tea for over-active children and helps adults and children sleep.


Dandelion (Taraxacum officinalis) Short-Lived Perennial Dandelions are easily found in gardens, stone pathways, edges of farmers’ fields, and meadows. This hardy and beneficial “weed” offers extraordinary nutritional and medicinal benefit to humans and animals. We dig dandelion roots in late April and early May, before they flower, and tincture the fresh roots and leaves. I chop and dry some of the roots and eat lots of the fresh greens and flower buds in salads and vegetable dishes. The nectar of dandelion flowers feeds honeybees and the ruby-throated hummingbirds as they migrate north in spring. The flowers can be made into a fresh tea cooked in a tempura batter and eaten, or infused in organic olive oil for 2 weeks and then used as a massage oil.


Dandelion root improves poor fat metabolism and sluggish di- gestion, increases the flow of digestive juices, enhances assimilation and elimination, cleanses the liver, eases indigestion and gas and can help eliminate constipation. It is a valuable spring tonic to use daily for 4-6 weeks to improve liver function.


Echinacea (Echinacea purpurea), Perennial Echinacea is native to the prairie of North America. This beauti- ful magenta colored flower is found growing in full sun in many perennial gardens in New England. The flower is beloved by native and honeybees, monarch butterflies and on occasion, if you are lucky, you will see a ruby-throated hummingbird sipping the flow-


ers’ nectar. I encourage people to plant at least 5 echinacea plants together as they prefer to grow in groups.


At Avena we gather the flowers and leaves from the second and


third year-old plants and tincture them fresh in our certified kitchen. For your homemade tincture, you can use organic vodka or a good quality brandy to make your tincture. Echinacea roots can be dug in the fall of their third year, after the seeds have formed, and chopped and made into a fresh tincture or dried for tea. Echinacea seeds can be scattered directly into a prepared seedbed, or you can save the seeds and start your seedlings indoors the following April.


Lavender (Lavendula officinalis), Perennial This woody perennial needs full sun, a warm and protected


place to grow, and appreciates growing along a path or garden border with other lavender plants. Lavender prefers sandy and well- drained soil. Many nurseries offer lavender plants and they can also be started from seed, though they are slow to germinate. If buying lavender, look for organic, field-dug plants as they will be hardier and of better quality, or purchase seedlings from a smaller neigh- borhood greenhouse.


The fragrance of lavender blossoms soothes a person who feels


tired and frustrated, uplifts a person’s spirit, shifts inner disharmony, and brings comfort to the heart. Taken internally as a tea or as a vegetable-based glycerite, lavender eases stress, anxiety, insomnia, and low self-esteem. It relaxes and calms the mind, reduces mental and emotional agitation, and lessens feelings of unrest and deple- tion. I like to use lavender and lemon balm glycerites in winter to chase away winter blues. They taste lovely together.


Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis), Perennial This lovely herb is easy to start indoors in early April from seed.


The seeds need light to germinate so be sure to not cover them with soil and keep both the soil and seeds misted until they germinate. Organic seedlings can also be purchased from small neighborhood gardens or greenhouses. Lemon balm prefers to grow in a partially sunny location with soil that is well drained and amended with good quality compost. Gardeners working in zones colder than zone 5 often need to cover their lemon balm (and lavender) plants with straw or balsam boughs once the ground has frozen for extra protection.


Fresh lemon balm tea is one of my favorite teas to drink throughout the warm summer months, both as a sun tea and infused in hot water as an end-of-the-day tea. In the morning I place several fresh leaves in my quart water bottle so the water will taste lemony and refreshing. The leafy tops and flowers can be dried for winter tea or chopped when fresh and macerated in organic vegetable glycerin to make a delicious tasting lemon balm glycerite. Lemon balm offers many medicinal uses including easing stress, anxiety, insomnia, premenstrual and menopausal stress and mild depres- sion. European herbalists have long used lemon balm for enhancing memory and circulation to the brain.


Rose (Rosa rugosa), Perennial This hardy perennial, originally from China, prefers full sun and


well-drained soil. Roses make a wonderful hedgerow along a walk- ing path or in a garden. The easiest way to establish Rosa rugosa plants is to purchase them from a reputable organic rose grower or nursery. Every April I prune Avena’s rose bushes back by half. This encourages the shrubs to produce an abundance of flowers in


www.EssentialLivingMaine.com 19


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32