Blessing Bag: Herbal Good Luck Charm

Many plants have abundant inherent magic that creates abundance, good fortune, and great good luck. Harvest these herbs and you will hardness the blessings growing in your own back yard.

Gather these supplies:

• Small muslin pouch that ties
• Teaspoon of basil
• Teaspoon of pine needles
• Teaspoon of nutmeg
• Teaspoon of rosemary
• Fennel seed pod
• 1 vanilla bean pod
• 3 cinnamon sticks broken into pieces

Take the pouch and stuff it with the herbs. Add the fennel seed and vanilla bean and, lastly, the cinnamon sticks. Tie up the bag, hold it in both hands, and speak the following spell:

    I hold in my hands these herbs of providence.

    I hold in my heart, these herbs of destiny.

    Blessings to all for the good of all.

    And so it is. So mote it be.

Tie the bag to the back door of your home or wherever is closest to your plantings. Every time the door opens or closes, the little bag will deliver more good luck.

Herbal Wreaths Make a Home

Oftentimes, your kitchen is the heart of the home. Something about cooking and sharing food brings people together. An herbal wreath hanging on the kitchen door can be a source of love and luck. You’ll need the following for your creation:

• Freshly cut herbs of your choice
• A wire wreath frame, available from most craft stores
• Either string or florist's wire, ribbon, and a hot glue gun

This is truly one of the simplest craft projects you can ever make–simply use the wreath frame as a base, and use string or the florist's wire to anchor the fresh herbs into place. Finish it off with a colorful ribbon or other magical decorative touches you may want to add.

Curative Wreath: These are the ideal herbs for a wreath that brings curative properties including lavender, barley, comfrey, rosemary peppermint, borage, olive, eucalyptus, and apple blossom. Brown and green ribbons add a touch of healing color.

Security Wreath: Hang this guardian wreath on your front door using heather, holly, dill, foxglove, garlic, sandalwood, snapdragon, mustard, foxglove, mistletoe, and mugwort. White and blue ribbons add security and serenity.

Prosperity Wreath: Greet prosperity at the door with herbs associated with money magic which include clover, chamomile, sunflower apple, cinnamon, myrtle, basil, and bay leaf. Weave in gold and green ribbon to add to your luck. 

Other Herbs for Medicinal Teas

You can use the basic recipe of steeping a palmful of herbs for 5 minutes in a cup (240ml) of boiling water and use these plants either fresh or dried:

    * Lemon balm is a true aid for insomnia, anxiety, and restlessness.

    * Licorice root is marvelous for stomach and mouth ulcers.

    * Marshmallow, both root and leaf, strengthens the gastrointestinal tract and your mucus membranes.

    * Milk thistle is excellent for your liver and kidneys.

    * Mullein leaves help sore throats, coughs, and chest congestion.

    * Nettle, either fresh or dried, prevents allergies.

    * Slippery elm bark will get rid of heartburn, a bad cough, and a sore throat.

    * St John’s Wort extract is good for depression, PMS, and hot flashes.

    * Thyme is trusted to help with colds and congestion and is an antispasmodic.

Kitchen Witchery Cures: Remedy Recipes

Many remedies can be made from what you have in the kitchen, from spices as well as herbs and plants. Here are a few simple tried-and-tested recipes handed down through generations of wise women:

    * Nutmeg Milk: Grated nutmeg soothes heartburn, nausea, and upset tummies. Use a grater to grate a         small amount (about 1⁄8 teaspoon) to 1 mug of warmed milk (cow, soy, rice, or oat milk). It is                     comforting and curing.

    * Cayenne Infusion: Use this pepper as a remedy for colds, coughs, sore throats, heartburn,                         hemorrhoids, and varicose veins, or as a digestive stimulant and to improve circulation. Make an                 infusion by adding 1⁄2 teaspoon cayenne powder to 1 cup (240ml) boiled water. Add 2 cups (480ml) of      hot water to make a more pleasant and palatable infusion. Add lemon and honey to taste.

    * Catnip by the Cup: This herb is not just for kitties! We humans can also benefit from it as a remedy         for upset tummies as well as a way to diminish worry, anxiety, and nervous tension. Take a palmful of         dried catnip leaves and steep in a cup (240ml) of boiling water for 5 minutes. Strain as you would any     loose tea. Honey helps even more and a cup or two of catnip tea per day will have you in fine fettle,             relaxed and ready.

    * Cranberry Cure: How many times did your mom tell you to drink your cranberry juice? Turns out she     was right to insist. Unsweetened cranberry juice is very good for bladder health and also benefits men         as it’s great for prostate health, too. Two half cups (two lots of 120ml) a day, mom’s orders!

    

    * Echinacea Root: Every herb store or organic grocer will have dried echinacea root for fighting colds         and negating respiratory infections. It is an amazing immune booster! Just mince a teaspoonful and             steep in a cup (240ml) of boiling water. Sweeten to taste and drink at least a couple of cups a day.

The Meaning of Flowers Part III

K, L

Kennedya: Mental beauty

King-Cups: Desire of riches

Laburnum: Forsaken, pensive beauty

Lady’s Slipper: Capricious beauty

Lagerstromia, Indian: Eloquence

Lantana: Rigor

Larch: Audacity, boldness

Larkspur: Lightness, levity

Larkspur, Pink: Fickleness

Larkspur, Purple: Haughtiness

Laurel: Glory

Laurel, Common, in flower: Perfidy

Laurel, Ground: Perseverance

Laurel, Mountain: Ambition

Laurestina: A token

Lavender: Distrust

Leaves, Dead: Melancholy

Lemon: Zest

Lemon Blossoms: Fidelity in love

Lent Lilly: Sweet disposition

Lettuce: Cold-heartedness

Lichen: Dejection, solitude

Lilac, Field: Humility

Lilac, Purple: First emotions of love

Lilac, White: Youthful innocence

Lily, Day: Coquetry

Lily, Yellow: Falsehood, gaiety

Lily of the Valley: Return of happiness

Linden or Lime Tree: Conjugal love

Lint: I feel my obligation

Liquorice, Wild: I declare against you

Live Oak: Liberty

Liverwort: Confidence

Lobelia: Malevolence

Locust Tree: Elegance

Locust Tree, Green: Affection beyond the grave

London Pride: Frivolity

Lote Tree: Concord

Lotus: Eloquence

Lotus Flower: Estranged love

Lotus Leaf: Recantation

Love-in-a-Mist: Perplexity

Love-Lies-Bleeding: Hopeless, not heartless

Lucerne: Life

Lupin: Voraciousness

M, N, O

Madder: Calumny

Magnolia: Love of nature

Magnolia, Laurel-leaved: Dignity

Magnolia, Swamp: Perseverance

Mallow: Mildness

Mallow, Marsh: Beneficence

Mallow, Syrian: Consumed by love

Mallow, Venetian: Delicate beauty

Manchineel Tree: Falsehood

Mandrake: Horror

Maple: Reserve

Marigold: Grief, despair

Marigold, African: Vulgar minds

Marigold, French: Jealousy

Marigold, Prophetic: Prediction

Marjoram: Blushes

Marvel of Peru: Timidity

Meadow Lychnis: Wit

Meadow Saffron: My best days are past

Meadowsweet: Uselessness

Mercury: Goodness

Mesembryanthemum: Idleness

Mezereon: Desire to please

Michaelmas Daisy: Afterthought

Mignonette: Your qualities surpass your charms

Milfoil: War

Milkvetch: Your presence softens my pains

Milkwort: Hermitage

Mimosa, Sensitive Plant: Sensitiveness

Mint: Virtue

Mistletoe: I surmount difficulties

Narcissus: Egotism

Narcissus, Double: Female ambition

Nasturtium: Patriotism

Nemophila: I forgive you

Nettle, Common Stinging: You are cruel

Nettle, Burning: Slander

Night-blooming Cereus: Transient beauty

Night Convolvulus: Night

Nightshade: Falsehood

Oak Leaves: Bravery

Oak Tree: Hospitality

Oats: The witching soul of music

Oleander: Beware

Olive: Peace

Orange Blossoms: Bridal festivities, your purity equals your loveliness

Orange Flowers: Chastity

Orange Tree: Generosity

Orchid: A belle

Osier: Frankness

Osmunda: Dreams

Ox Eye: Patience

Lemon Works for Everything

Instead of discarding lemon halves after you’ve used their juice for cooking or lemonade, save them to use as scrubbers for cleaning wood cutting boards without damaging them. You can also use fresh lemon juice mixed with baking soda to brighten white tiles, sinks, or tubs, or make natural wood polish for floors by mixing a little fresh lemon juice with olive oil. This citrus fruit is a natural lightening agent that you can use in place of bleach, which should be used sparingly, if at all. Throw discolored white socks, towels, or shirts in a stockpot with water and a few used lemons; simmer for a little while to lighten. If you hang them outside to dry, the combination of sunlight and your low-cost lemon whitener will refresh your laundry until it is practically gleaming!

Make cleaning a cheese grater a snap: Take a lemon cut in half and rub it on all the surfaces of a cheese grater. The lemon’s acid breaks down the fatty cheese residue on the grater. If cheese is really stuck, here’s an extra technique to try: set up a small plate with a layer of table salt on it, then dip the lemon in the salt. Like commercial scrubbing powder (but without all the chemicals), the salt will increase the friction on your grater; together with the lemon, it will effectively remove most stuck-on food.

Takes tarnish off your metal jewelry: Use two tablespoons of lemon juice concentrate to three cups water, then rub jewelry well with a soft cloth. The acidity of the concentrated lemon juice will work to remove tarnish.

Add lemon to food to reduce bacteria: Since bacteria require an alkaline environment to stay alive, add lemon juice or fruit to produce, meat, or even water to slow down microbial growth.

Sanitize your cutting board: Want to deep clean your cutting board without running it through a dishwasher? Putting a wooden cutting board in the dishwasher is just not a good idea, but especially after preparing meat, a natural antibacterial treatment is in order. Rub a cut lemon on your cutting board and let it sit with the lemon juice on it overnight, then rinse it well in the morning. Bacteria will be banished, and your cutting board will have a lemon-fresh aroma.

Restore wooden furniture’s natural shine: Combine equal parts of olive oil and lemon juice with a little mayonnaise and stir well. This mixture will both remove previous polish buildup on wood furniture due to the acidity of the citrus and will also condition the wood.

Keep rice from sticking together: Set up your rice pot; while the water is heating, put a teaspoon of lemon juice into the pot and your cooked rice will come out in nice separate grains. Other types of citrus fruit can also be used depending on what type of dish will be served with your grain. Believe it or not, citrus juice also enhances the whiteness of the rice itself.

Degrease pots & pans and stovetop or grill: Cut a lemon in half and dip it in salt as described above for cleaning a cheese grater. When you scrub a copper-bottomed pot with it, tarnish will be removed so quickly you’ll swear it’s magic. It works wonderfully well to clean the stovetop and barbecue grill, too, as well as stainless steel pots and pans.

Natural weed killer: Don’t give in to the marketing of chemical herbicides; besides exposing you and your family to dangerous toxins, they are bad for the planet as well. Combine one part white vinegar with four parts lemon juice in a spray bottle, then give it a good shake and spray your plantings, whether in indoor pots or your garden.

Baking Soda Fresh

Baking soda is wonderful deodorizer around the house and can be used to freshen and launder clothing as well as to freshen furniture or carpets. It can also be used as an eco-friendly oven cleaner. Since the oven is where you cook your food, it’s better to skip oven cleaner chemicals, which leave a residue that could be quite unhealthy. Make a paste by adding water, or equal parts water and vinegar, to one cup of baking soda. Coat the inside of the oven and leave overnight. In the morning, turn the oven on low heat for an hour, then let cool. Use a spray bottle of water and vinegar to soften the hardened paste, then use elbow grease to scrub it off. When you are baking that batch of cookies for your loved ones, you can rest assured no fumes are getting into the yummy treats!

Tea Tree Clean

Instead of toxic, chemical-laden wipes you get at the store, make your own to have handy for spills as well as for scheduled cleanings. Mix one cup of white vinegar, half a cup of lemon juice, and eight drops of tea tree oil. Soak clean washcloths or paper towels in the mixture and store them in a sealable bag; they can last a month for on-the-go spills.

Carrier Oils

A carrier oil is a vegetable oil that is used to dilute essential oils without diminishing the effect of the essence. It ensures that essential oils used topically are comfortable on the skin. Each essence carries specific vibrations that hold much curative power. These base oils support other ingredients including essential oils and can also be agents for healing in themselves.

Apricot kernel oil, with its warmth and resilience, is especially good for women. Apricot protects love and nurtures women at every age and stage of life.

Avocado is thick, dense, and earthy, a powerful element in any love potion. It also is excellent for drawing forth money and is helpful in business and financial matters.

Borage oil brings a connection with the higher mind, as well as courage, a sense of honor, and the ability to cope with whatever life sends your way. It is said to encourage truth and resolution in legal and relationship problems. If you feel you are being deceived, turn to borage.

Evening primrose oil abets clairvoyance and paranormal gifts. It will help you to see clearly.

Grapeseed oil is regarded by some as the “food of the gods” because of the way it augments spiritual growth. This should be one of the oils that you turn to for anointing yourself or any statuary of gods and goddess before rituals.

Jojoba oil absorbs extremely well into the skin, bearing anything with which it is mixed along with it. It is also a remarkable anointing oil. It should be used in recipes that help to deal with depression and support perseverance in hardship.

Olive oil was named “liquid gold” by the ancient Greek poet Homer, and rightly so: it is about vitality, money, success, and joyfulness.

Sunflower oil, permeated with the energy of our sun, is powerful and life-giving. Use it when you desire rapid growth and amplification of positive energy.

Sweet almond is a gentle, all-purpose oil ready to increase the energy of other ingredients.

Craft Your Own Cough Drops: Candied Herbs

• 1 cup vodka
• 1 cup simple syrup
• 1 cup honey
• 2 cups dried herb (of your choice)
• 1 large sheet waxed paper

One of the byproducts of making herbal honeys, liqueurs, and oxymel is the candied herbs, which can also be made especially for snacks and for use in sweetcakes and cookies. To make a batch, stir the liquids together in a big pot and heat slowly, stirring every few minutes. Upon reaching boiling point, add the herbs until well mixed. Turn the heat down and slowly simmer until the liquid is very thick and sticky. Spoon the herbs out and place on wax paper to crystallize. Good herbs for this are hyssop, ginger root, lavender, lemon balm, fennel seed, mint, angelica stems, and thyme as well as small slivers of orange, lime, and lemon. The gift of homemade candy is a marvelous way to signal a crush.

Longevity Elixir: Homemade Pear Potion

Pears have long been prized in Asia as a lucky fruit that also nourishes a long and prosperous life. The great magical teacher Scott Cunningham advocated for their use in love spells. This pear liqueur is a special brew indeed. You will need this to make it:

• 3 large ripe pears
• 2 pods of cardamom
• Lemon peel of half a lemon
• Vodka, 1 quart
• 1 clean and sterilized 1-quart Mason jar with lid (preferably dark-colored glass)

Start by crushing the cardamom pods, then set aside. Peel the pears and cut into thin slices. Gently place the pear slices into the jar. Put the crushed cardamom and lemon peel on top of the pears. Cover all with the vodka. Close the jar and tighten the lid, then gently shake twice. Store the jar full of pears in a dark, cool cupboard for ten days. After the ten days, remove the jar from the cupboard. Pour the contents of the jar into a mixing bowl and mash thoroughly using the back of a fork. Strain the mixture into another bowl, using a colander that has been lined with a coffee filter or cheesecloth. Repeat this process twice, then pour the pear liqueur into the Mason jar. (The strained-out pear slices can be consumed or used in cookery, but remember that they may be quite potent!) If you are feeling fancy, you can store your pear liqueur in a pretty bottle. Live long and prosper!

Fruitful Magic

While we often think of herbs and flowers as having special properties, it is much less commonly known that fruits also contain much magic you must try for yourself:

Apple

This beloved “one a day” fruit is associated with the goddess Pomona and contains the powers of healing, love and abundance. Samhain, the highest holiday of the Wheel of the Year, is also called the “Feast of Apples,” and they are used on the Halloween altar during this festival. Cutting an apple in half and sharing the other half with your beloved is a traditional way to make a wish that the two of you will stay happy together for as long as apple trees grow.

Apricot

This juicy treasure is associated with Venus and the power of love, and it is believed that drinking the nectar will make you more appealing romantically. The juice of the apricot is used in rituals and love potions. Truly a food of the goddess!

Avocado

The lusciousness of the avocado fruit is not just delicious, it also brings forth beauty and lustfulness.

Banana

A bunch of bananas packs a magical punch with powers of abundance and fertility for both men and women. Anyone who gets married beneath a banana tree bower will have a lucky marriage. One caveat: never cut a banana open, only break it apart. Otherwise, you’ll bring bad luck to your household.

Blackberry

Blackberries are the medicine that pops up anywhere, offering a delightful snack and serious healing, love, and abundance. Both the vine and the berries can be used for money-bringing spells. Thorny blackberry vines are wonderful as protective wreaths for your home, and the plant’s vine and berry can be used for prosperity and money spells. 

Blueberry

These berries are almost like an evil eye charm made of fruit, since they offer great protection. You can tuck a few of them under the mat at the threshold of your front door to ward off bad energy and evil if you feel someone is attempting to do you harm with hexes or sending bad energy your way,

Cherry

Beloved for their bright red color and taste, cherries are associated with romance as well as powers of divination. Useful in love spells, the Japanese believe tying a strand of hair from your head onto the blossom of a cherry tree will bring a lover to you.

Figs

Figs hold a place in our culture from the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Unsurprisingly, they are associated with sexuality and fecundity. If eaten ripe off the tree, this fruit will aid in conception and helps men with issues of impotence. A fig tree, if grown outside the bedroom, will bring deeply restful sleep and prophetic dreams. Outside your kitchen, a fig tree will ensure there will always be plenty of food for your family. Anywhere a fig tree grows it will bring luck and safety. A folk charm claims that gifting someone a fig grown by your own hand binds them to you. Wield your figs wisely.

Grapes

Planting grapevines grants abilities for money magic as well as with gardening and farming: the ancient Romans painted pictures of grapes on the garden walls to ensure good harvest and fertility for women. For mental focus, eat some grapes; magical spell workings for money are abetted greatly by placing a bowl of grapes on the altar.

Lemon

This beloved member of the citrus family confers the rare power of longevity as well as those of faithful friendship, purification, love, and luck. The juice from a lemon mixed with water can be used to consecrate magical tools and items during the full moon. Dried lemon flowers and peel can also be used in love potions and sachets. Bake a lemon pie for the object of your desire, and he or she will remain faithful to you for all time. Imbibing lemon leaf tea stirs lust.

Orange

In keeping with the joyful color of this fruit, oranges are a fruit of happiness in love and marriage. Dried blossoms added to a hot bath make you more beautiful. A spritz of orange juice will add to the potency of any love potion, especially if freshly squeezed. Orange sachets, pomanders, and other gifts with this fruit offer the recipient utter felicity; thus, it is an ideal gift for newlyweds.

Peach

It might seem obvious, but eating peaches encourages love. They also enhance wisdom. An amulet made with the pit can ward off evil. A fallen branch from a peach tree can make an excellent magic wand, while a piece of the tree’s wood carried in your pocket is an excellent talisman for a long life.

Pear

It is believed this uniquely shaped fruit brings prosperity and a long life. Somewhat similarly to peaches, the pear correlates with powers of lust and love. By sharing them with a partner, pears can be used to induce sexual arousal; pears cooked in wine or with a little rum or brandy make for an irresistible dessert with a little whipped cream. Pear wood is also very good for magical wands.

Pineapple

While renowned as the symbol of hospitality, pineapple represents neighborliness, abundance, and chastity. Dried pineapple in a sachet added to bath water will bring great luck. The juice hinders lust when drunken, and its dried peel is great in money spells and mixtures.

Raspberry

This sweet berry has tremendous powers for true love and safety in your home. Hang the vines at all of a house’s doors when a person in the house has died so that the spirit won’t enter the home again. The leaves are carried by pregnant woman to help with the pains of childbirth and pregnancy itself. Raspberries often served to induce love. Strawberry leaves also help with childbirth and the leaves are also carried for luck.

Tomato

Reminder that like the “alligator pear” or avocado, the tomato is a fruit! An easy money spell is to place a fresh-off-the-vine tomato on the mantle every few days to bring prosperity. Eating tomatoes “inspires love. They are excellent to plant in your garden as an aid to ward off pests of all kinds!

Summer Sweet Blackberry Jam

Below is a tried-and-true recipe for a simple berry jam. Our family favorite is blackberries as the color of the jam is nearly as delicious as its taste when spread on warm toast. You’ll need the following:

• 2 cups blackberries (or try raspberries or strawberries)
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 slice of lemon rind
• Apple slice
• Canning jars and tongs

Crush the berries with a potato masher, softly, not too hard. Place all the ingredients in a stockpot and boil over high heat for five minutes, stirring the mixture to prevent it from sticking or burning. Reduce the heat to medium-high and continue to boil and stir. Remove any foam with a large spoon. After a half hour, the jam will begin to thicken up. If your jam is setting slowly, you can add more lemon juice or a slice of apple. Pectin, which is regularly used thicken jams and jellies, is made from apples. Thus, a slice of apple will serve the same purpose.

When the jam is ready, pour it into sterilized jars. The jars should be warm when the jam is added, so keep the sterilized articles in the oven, dishwasher, or canning water bath until you need them; ditto the lids and rings. Make sure to leave a generous half-inch gap between the jam and the top of the jar—this is known as headspace in the world of jam. Place the lids on the jars and screw them on firmly.

Place the sealed jars into the water bath and cover with at least an inch of water. Boil for ten minutes. Using jar tongs, carefully lift the jars out of the water bath and let them cool at room temperature. You will hear the lids seal when they make a popping noise as the domed lid is sucked down. Processed jam will last at east a year and makes a lovely gift. For small batches, you can make your jam and store it in the fridge as soon as it has cooled off. Berries contain protection magic as well as that of abundance. Folklore says vampires are afraid of blackberry vines.

Sun-Infused Flower Essences

For centuries, flower essences have been used to heal many infirmities (see list below). While the health food shop versions are handy, they are also very spendy. You can make your own flower essences at home. Start by making a mother essence—the most concentrated form of the essence—which can then be used to make stock bottles. The stock bottles are used to make dosing bottles for the most diluted form of the essence, which is what you actually take.

What you will need to make a sun-infused mother essence:

• 3 quarts of fresh pure spring water or distilled water, 3 quarts
• Clear glass 2½-quart mixing bowl
• An 8-ounce sealable bottle made of dark green, blue, or green glass
• Organic brandy or vodka
• Freshly picked flowers specific to the malady being treated
• Clean, dry cheesecloth for straining.

Ideally, you begin early in the morning and pick your chosen flowers by nine o’clock at the latest. This all ensures three hours of sunlight before the noon hour, after which the sunlight is less effective, or even draining.

Fill the bowl with the fresh water; to avoid touching them, place the flowers very carefully on the surface of the water using tweezers or chopsticks to gently add blooms until the water’s surface is covered. Let the bowl sit in the sun for three to four hours or until the flowers begin to fade.

Now, delicately remove the flowers, being careful not to touch the water with your fingers. Fill your colored glass bottle with the strained flower essence water and top the other half off with the organic brandy or vodka (40 percent proof is advised to prolong the shelf life to three months if stored in a cool, dark cupboard). This is your mother tincture; label it with the date and the name of the flower, such as, Rose Water, July 14, 2021.” Use any remaining essence water to water the flowers you’ve been working with and murmur a prayer of gratitude for their beauty and healing power.

To make a stock bottle from your mother tincture, fill a one ounce (thirty ml) dropper bottle ¾ full of brandy, top it up with ¼ spring water, then add three drops of the mother tincture. This will last at least three months, enabling you to make lots of dosing bottles, which are the ones from which you actually take the flower essence.

To make the dosage bottle for any flower essence just add two or three drops of the stock bottle to another thirty ml dropper bottle of ¼ brandy and ¾ distilled water. Anytime, you need some of this gentle medicine, place four drops of this under your tongue or sip in a glass of water four times a day or as often as you feel the need. You can’t overdose on flower remedies, though more frequent, rather than larger, doses are much more effective.

Flower essences mixed with one ounce (thirty ml) of pure spring water or distilled water can also be used to help the following conditions:

• Addiction: skullcap, agrimony
• Anger: nettle, blue flag, chamomile
• Anxiety: garlic, rosemary, aspen, periwinkle, lemon balm, white chestnut, gentian
• Bereavement: honeysuckle
• Depression: borage, sunflower, larch, chamomile, geranium, yerba santa, black cohosh, lavender, mustard
• Exhaustion: aloe, yarrow, olive, sweet chestnut
• Fear: poppy, mallow, ginger, peony, water lily, basil, datura
• Heartbreak: heartsease, hawthorn, borage
• Lethargy: aloe, thyme, peppermint
• Stress: dill, echinacea, thyme, mistletoe, lemon balm
• Spiritual blocks: oak, ginseng, lady’s slipper

Cures from Your Kitchen

Many remedies can be made from what you have in the kitchen, from spices as well as other plants. Here are a few simple tried and tested recipes:

Nutmeg Milk

Grated nutmeg soothes diarrhea and upset tummies. Use a nutmeg grater to grate a small amount (about ⅛ teaspoon) into warmed milk (cow, soy, rice, or oat milk).

Cayenne Infusion

Use this pepper as a remedy for colds, coughs, sore throats, heartburn, hemorrhoids, and varicose veins, or as a digestive stimulant and to improve circulation. Make an infusion by adding ½ teaspoon cayenne powder to one cup boiled water. Dilute with two cups of hot water to make a more pleasant and palatable infusion. Add lemon and honey to taste. (Be careful; it will be spicy! If you don’t enjoy hot spicy flavors, consider supplementing powdered cayenne in capsules.)

Easy Turmeric Detox

This spice is a natural antioxidant, antiseptic, and antibacterial. Turmeric is also detoxifying for the liver and curative for acne and common colds. It is a popular herb for decreasing inflammation at a system level in your body; this can soothe soreness in joints in a way that is deeper than mere symptomatic relief. Make a turmeric tea by adding a teaspoon of the powder to four cups of boiling water. Simmer over low heat until it dissolves, then add milk and honey to taste.

Cabbage Juice Curative

This commonplace vegetable is a fantastic antibacterial and anti-inflammatory. Cabbage can be used for stomach ulcers, arthritis, and swollen joints, or as a liver tonic. To create a cabbage tonic, dilute one part cabbage juice with two parts water. For swollen joints and arthritic pain, lightly crush a few green outer cabbage leaves with a rolling pin, then lay them over the afflicted area with the inner side of the leaf on your skin, secured with a bandage. Some prefer to boil the leaves, let them cool, and then apply. Going to bed with a cabbage bandage on is also good, giving the leaf time to work its magic.

Lemon Water

Use this citrus fruit for colds and infections. Add the fresh-squeezed juice to hot water with honey to taste. For a fast sore-throat curative, use unsweetened lemon juice with warm water as an antiseptic gargle.

Pantry Power—Plant Infusions That Heal and Help

Many enthusiasts enjoy several cups a day of their favorite herbal infusion, which is a large portion of herb brewed for at least four hours and perhaps as long as ten. I recommend placing one cup of the dried herb into a quart canning jar and filling it with freshly boiled water. After the steeping, strain with a nonmetallic type of strainer such as cheesecloth or bamboo. Herbal infusions can be made with the leaves and fruits, which provide the healing aspects of this type of comforting brew. Many favorite herbs from your kitchen garden contain minerals, antioxidants, and phytochemicals, including the list herein.

What do you need to attend in your life now? This list of herbs and associations can be your guide; one of the smartest ways to approach this methodology is to brew right before bedtime so you will awaken to a freshly infused herb. Some of the most popular herbs and fruits used to create infusions are as follows:

• Anise Seeds & Leaves: soothe cramps and aches
• Caraway Seeds: aid in romantic issues, help with colic
• Catnip Leaves: make women even more attractive
• Chamomile Flowers: help with sleep, good for abundance
• Dandelion Leaves: make wishes come true
• Echinacea: makes the body strong
• Ginseng Root: increases men’s vigor
• Nettle Leaves: lung function, hex breaking
• Peppermint Leaves: clearing tummy discomfort, cleansing
• Pine Needles: increase skin health as well as financial health
• Rose Hip Fruit: packed with vitamin C and can halt colds and flu
• Sage Leaves: purify energy, antibiotic
• Skullcap Leaves: prevent insomnia and soothe nerves
• St. John’s Wort Flowers: antidepressant
• Thyme Leaves: antiseptic, protectant
• Yarrow Flowers: reduce fever, bring courage and good luck

Your Apple a Day: Simple Apple Cider Vinegar

This easy-peasy recipe will result in one of the most useful items in your pantry, one which can be used not only in your cookery and as a daily health drink, but as a household cleanser, skin and facial toner, hair rinse, and dozens of other excellent uses. Hippocrates, the founding father of medicine in ancient Greece, taught that he depended on two medicinal tonics, honey and vinegar. Apple cider vinegar lowers cholesterol and blood pressure and helps strengthen bones. Best of all, this preparation costs mere pennies to make as you are using only the cores and peels from the apples. Bake a couple of pies while you brew up a tonic to boost health. When you add herbs to vinegar, you are enhancing their healing power synergistically for the best of both worlds. All you need is:

• cores and peels of 8 organic apples
• 2 tablespoons of honey
• 1 quart of water

Cut up the apple cores and peels into smaller pieces and spoon them into a wide-mouthed canning jar. Pour in enough water to cover the fruit, then spoon in the honey and stir well. Cover the jar with either a clean paper towel or waxed paper and place a rubber band tightly around the neck of the jar. Place on a dark shelf in your cupboard or work area and leave it for two weeks. After a fortnight, strain the liquid and remove and discard the compostable solids that remain. then return the liquid to the jar and secure the cover with the rubber band again. Put it back on the shelf. making sure to stir it daily. After one month, taste a spoonful; if the acidity and flavor is to your taste, transfer it to a dark bottle with a sealable top. Vinegar from the fermented apples will corrode metal lids, so a pretty bottle with a cork is the best option.

Grapefruit Seed Extract

Grapefruit seed extract is a powerful substance. It is a powerful general immune tonic that can help a wide spectrum of conditions ranging from healing cuts to respiratory viral illnesses. It is very strong and should never be taken undiluted nor used neat in a topical application. I use it when afflicted with a stomach bug with symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea. Take five to ten drops in eight ounces of juice or tea, which will help disguise its strong bitter taste; grapefruit or other citrus juices disguise its bitterness particularly effectively. For a child, give three to five drops in five ounces of juice or tea. These doses should be taken morning and evening and will clear up a stomach bug pretty quickly. After taking grapefruit seed extract, also take some acidophilus, either in natural yogurt or in the form of a tablet. This will restore your “friendly” intestinal flora to a healthy, balanced state. Grapefruit seed extract is also recommended as a gingivitis treatment: add three drops to five ounces of water and use as a mouthwash—rinse and spit, but try not to swallow!

For an effective dandruff cure, add five drops of grapefruit seed extract to your usual dollop of hair shampoo and massage it into the scalp.

For a wart or cyst, apply a drop of grapefruit seed extract daily directly to the affected spot and cover with a bandage.

Garlic Is Good for Everything

Garlic is well-known for its ability to protect against infection and should be used regularly (to taste!) in your cooking. It is also known to reduce cholesterol levels and can be helpful in lowering blood pressure. Rich in vitamins A, B, and C, garlic is an excellent source of minerals: selenium, iodine, potassium, iron, calcium, zinc, and magnesium. The active component in garlic is allicin, a sulfur compound produced when garlic is chopped, chewed, or bruised. It is powerful as an antibiotic and helps the body inhibit the ability of germs to grow and reproduce. When preparing garlic, cut or crush the cloves, then let the garlic rest for ten minutes before cooking or eating to allow the allicin to develop. Garlic is cited as therapeutic for the treatment of many health conditions, such as both high and low blood pressure, heart problems, and asthma, as well as being acknowledged as an anti-cancer agent and a preventative for colds and other infections.

Although garlic pills are available, raw garlic is just as effective and considerably cheaper. For a simple garlic tonic to guard against colds or just to boost your general health, crush a couple of cloves and add a tablespoon of olive oil. Taking a spoonful of garlic in olive oil works well if you don’t like the taste or are fearful of unappealingly garlicky breath.

At the onset of an earache, take a peeled clove, wrap it in a little fabric such as cheesecloth, and stick it in your sore ear, taking care not to insert it too deeply. Leave it there overnight, and you will feel some relief by the morning.

Black and Green Tea

Use black tea for an upset tummy and diarrhea. Green tea strengthens the immune system, and you can reuse lightly moistened tea bags to stanch minor cuts or calm insect bites.