Twenty-Two Healing Herbs: Mother Nature’s Medicine Cabinet Part III

Marshmallow (Althaea officinalis)

While it may seem like this is another “candy as medicine,” marshmallow is a time-tested plant long employed in field medicine rather than a sugary pillow. It is highly valued as it contains a lot of mucilage, the same substance which coats our mouth and throat as well as the stomach and gut. Minced fresh, dried root, or the leaves are equally healing in quarter cup quantities; an infusion of the leaves may be drunk after it has steeped for four hours covered. Strain out the stems and drink hot, cool, sweetened, or however you like this gentle herb. If you choose marshmallow root, simmer low covered for twenty minutes, then let cool; the brew may be taken at any temperature you prefer.

Milk Thistle (Silybum manianum)

Healers love milk thistle for its ability to protect the liver from toxins, harsh medicines, alcohol, and unseen environmental pollutants. It can be obtained as either an extract or in standardized capsules at any health food store or upscale grocery or pharmacy. There is some evidence it can also help heal the kidneys. If you want to get the most bang for your buck, find a source of organic milk thistle seed, then thoroughly clean out a coffee grinder as the seeds must be broken open in order to be bioavailable via digestion. The milk thistle seeds need not be ground to powder; instead, grind them small enough that when sprinkled on a soup, stew, or salad it isn’t too chewy—their taste is pleasant. A tablespoon or two a day can be a real lifesaver!

Mullein (Verbascum Thapsus)

Here is an herbalist’s favorite for healing any respiratory ailment involving congestion, coughs, sore throats, and supporting lung function and clear breathing. Take one heaping tablespoon of the leaves and steep in one cup of boiling water covered for no more than ten minutes. Once you take mullein as a tea, you’ll feel better soon. Mullein flowers infused in oil are also used to aid earaches.

Nettle (Urtica dioica)

Nettle has been used as a healer for untold centuries; it relieves allergies, it is an immune booster, and it can even help with a distended prostate. It is also a superfood and beloved for its nutrients. If you are working with fresh nettles, wear gloves to avoid the stinging. Cooking or drying removes any irritant. Any herb or health food store will have dried nettle both in bulk and capsule form. Make nettle tea by steeping two teaspoons of leaves for ten minutes covered or take the capsules in recommended doses of 300 to 500 mg twice a day.

Sage (Salvia officinalis)

We know sage is great for as a smudge or incense for clearing spaces as well as a savory for soups, roasts, dressing, stews, and much more, but it is also a highly regarded treatment at European spas for sweating, menopause, hot flashes, night sweats and accompanying discomfort. It is also an excellent remedy for colds, coughs, and sore throats. Simply make sage tea with one teaspoon of the dried leaves which you can drink or gargle to amend a sore throat.

Note: Pregnant women should not use this.

Slippery Elm Bark (Ulmus rubra)

Slippery Elm Bark has even been approved by the FDA as a remedy for the irritation of sore throats and other sighs of an impending cold, including coughs. This herbal can also help with stomach upset and help with heartburn. A powdered version of the bark can easily be obtained at any health food store or upscale greengrocer, which can be made into a tea; use one to two teaspoons of the powdered bark, and you can drink it twice a day.

St. John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum)

This is one of the most relied-upon of all herbal treatments for mild to moderate depression, PMS, perimenopause symptoms, and general immune and mood boosting, It is so popular now that you can find the extract in capsules at most pharmacies, grocers, herbal supply stores, and the like. Take three to six hundred milligrams per day to brighten your days. You can also find St. John’s Wort as a tincture if you prefer a liquid extract.

Thyme (Thymus vulgaris)

Thyme has so much to offer, including relief for colds, coughs, and congestion; above all, it is an antimicrobial and antispasmodic. One cup of tea made from a teaspoon of dried thyme leaves steeped in boiling water will bring much healing energy to you and your family.

Altar Herbs

Refer to this list whenever you are setting up your altar and setting your intention for ritual work. It is a concise guide to the enchanted realm of herbs, essences, plants and plant properties.

• Benzoin can be used for purification, prosperity, work success, mental acuity, and memory.
• Camphor can be used for healing, divining the future, curbing excess, especially romantic obsessions, and a surfeit of sexuality.
• Cinnamon refreshes and directs spirituality. It is also a protection herb and handy for healing, money, love, lust, personal power, and success with work and creative projects.
• Clove is good for bringing money to you, for protection, for your love life, and for helping evade and deter negative energies.
• Copal should be used for love and purification.
• Frankincense is another spiritual essence that purifies and protects.
• Lavender is a plant for happiness, peace, true love, long life, chastity, and is an excellent purifier that aids with sleep.
• Myrrh has been considered since ancient times to be deeply sacred. It aids personal spirituality, heals and protects, and can help ward off negative spirits and energies.
• Nutmeg is a lucky herb that promotes good health and prosperity and encourages fidelity.
• Patchouli stimulates and grounds while engendering both sensuality and fertility. It also supports personal wealth and security.
• Peppermint is an herb of purification, healing, and love. It supports relaxation and sleep as it helps to increase psychic powers.
• Rosemary is good for purification, protection, healing, relaxation, and intelligence. It attracts love and sensuality, helps with memory, and can keep you youthful.
• Sage brings wisdom, purification, protection, health, and a long life. It can help make your wishes come true.
• Sandalwood is a mystical, healing, protecting essence that helps attract the objects of your hopes and desires and dispenses negative energies and spirits.
• Star Anise is a lucky herb that aids divination and psychism.
• Tonka Bean brings courage and draws love and money.
• Vanilla brings love and enriches your mental capacity.
• Wood Aloe is good for dressing or anointing talismans and amulets you want to use for protection.

The Meaning of Flowers Part V

V, W

Valerian: An accommodating disposition

Valerian, Greek: Rupture

Venus’ Car: Fly with me

Venus’ Looking Glass: Flattery

Venus Trap: Deceit

Verbena, Scarlet: Sensibility

Verbena, White: Pure and guileless

Vernal Grass: Poor, but happy

Veronica: Fidelity

Vervain: Enchantment

Vine: Intoxication

Violet, Blue: Faithfulness

Violet, Dame: Watchfulness

Violet, Sweet: Modesty

Violet, Yellow: Rural happiness

Virginia Creeper: Ever changing

Virgin’s Bower: Filial love

Volkmannia: May you be happy

Walnut: Intellect, stratagem

Wallflower: Fidelity in adversity

Water Lily: Purity of heart

Wax Plant: Susceptibility

Weigela: Accept a faithful heart

Wheat Stalk: Riches

Whin: Anger

White Lily: Purity and modesty

White Mullein: Good nature

White Oak: Independent

Whortleberry: Treason

Willow, Creeping: Love forsaken

Willow, Water: Freedom

Willow, Weeping: Mourning

Willow, Herb: Pretension

Willow, French: Bravery, humanity

Wisteria: I cling to thee

Witch Hazel: A spell

Woodbine: Fraternal love

X, Y, Z

Xanthium: Rudeness, pertinacity

Xeranthemum: Cheerfulness under adversity

Yew: Sorrow

Zephyr Flower: Expectation

Zinnia: Thoughts of absent friends

The Meaning of Flowers Part I

Several flower dictionaries were written and published in the Victorian era in an effort to preserve the lore handed down through the ages on the meaning of flowers and the properties associated with them. This is known as “floriography,” and many a hedgewitch contributed to this body of wisdom for flower magic and herbal healing. Should you wish to favor a friend, family member, or even a new flame with a bouquet, this floral index will guide your choices.

 

A

Abatina: Fickleness

Acacia: Chaste love

Acacia, Pink: Elegance

Acacia, Yellow: Secret love

Acanthus: The fine arts, artifice

Achillea Millefolia: War

Aconite, Crowfoot: Lustre

Aconite, Wolfsbane: Misanthropy

Adonis: Sorrowful remembrance

African Marigold: Vulgar minds

Agnus Castus: Coldness

Agrimony: Thankfulness, gratitude

Almond: Stupidity, indiscretion

Almond, Flowering: Hope

Almond, Laurel: Perfidy

Allspice: Compassion

Aloe: Grief, affection

Althea Frutex: Persuasion

Alyssum, Sweet: Worth beyond beauty

Amaranth: Immortality, unfading love

Amaranth, Cockscomb: Foppery, affectation

Amaranth, Globe: Unchangeable

Amaryllis: Pride

Ambrosia: Love returned

American Elm: Patriotism

American Linden: Matrimony

B

Bachelor’s Buttons: Single blessedness

Balm: Sympathy

Balm, Gentle: Pleasantry

Balm of Gilead: Cure, relief

Balsam: Impatience

Balsam, Red: Touch me not, impatient resolve

Barberry: Sourness, sharpness, ill temper

Basil: Hatred

Bay Leaf: I change but in death

Bay Tree: Glory

Bay Wreath: Reward of merit

Bearded Crepis: Protection

Beech Tree: Prosperity

Bee Orchis: Industry

Bee Ophrys: Error

Begonia: Dark thoughts

Belladonna: Silence

Bell Flower, White: I declare against you

Betony: Surprise

Bilberry: Treachery

Bindweed, Great: Insinuation

Bindweed, Small: Humility

Birch: Meekness

Birdsfoot Trefoil: Revenge

Bitterweed, Nightshade: Truth

Black Poplar: Courage

C

Cabbage: Profit

Cacalia: Adulation

Calceolaria: Keep this for my sake

Calla Aethiopica: Magnificent beauty

Calycanthus: Benevolence

Camellia Japonica, White: Unpretending excellence

Chamomile: Energy in adversity

Campanula: Gratitude

Canariensis: Self-esteem

Canary Grass: Perseverance

Candytuft: Indifference

Canterbury Bell: Acknowledgement

Cardamine: Paternal error

Cardinal Flower: Distinction

Carnation, Red: Alas for my poor heart

Carnation, Striped: Refusal

Carnation, Yellow: Disdain

Catsus: Warmth

Catchfly: Snare

Catchfly, Red: Youthful love

Catchfly, White: Betrayal

Cedar: Strength

Cedar of Lebanon: Incorruptible

Cedar Leaf: I live for thee

Celandine: Joys to come

Centuary: Felicity

Cerebus, Creeping: Modest genius

Champignon: Suspicion

Crown, Imperial: Majesty, powerful

D, E

Daffodil: Regard

Daffodil, Great Yellow: Chivalry

Dahlia, Single: Good taste

Dahlia: Instability

Daisy, Double: Participation

Daisy, Garden: I share your sentiment

Daisy, One-Eyed: A token

Daisy, Particolored: Beauty

Daisy, Red: Unconscious

Daisy, White: Innocent

Daisy, Wild: I will think of it

Dandelion: Oracle

Daphne Odora: Painting the lily

Darnel: Vice

Dead Leaves: Sadness

Dew Plant: A serenade

Diosma: Uselessness

Dittany of Crete: Birth

Dittany, White: Passion

Dock: Patience

Dodder of Thyme: Baseness

Dogsbane: Deceit, falsehood

Dogwood: Durability

Dragon Plant: Snare

Dragonwort: Horror

Dried Flax: Utility

Ebony Tree: Blackness

Eglantine or Sweet Briar: Poetry, I wound to heal

Elder: Zealousness

Elm: Dignity

Enchanter’s Nightshade: Fascination, witchcraft

Endive: Frugality

Eschscholtzia: Sweetness

Eupatorium: Delay

“Evergreen: Poverty

Evergreen, Thorn: Solace in adversity

Everlasting Pea: Lasting pleasure, an appointed meeting

Your Chakras

First Chakra—Patchouli Grounds Your Root Chakra

Patchouli balances the root chakra at the base of your spine. Represented by the color red and associated with the then physical element of earth, the root chakra is about grounding to the physical world and basic survival and self-preservation. Using patchouli will enable you to be grounded and have more stability, stillness, prosperity, and robust health, as well as a sense of safety and security. This essential oil also helps you overcome fatigue and feeling down.

Second Chakra—Neroli Balances Your Sacral Chakra

Neroli essential oil stabilizes the sacral chakra, which is located in the lower abdomen between the pelvis and the navel center, a few inches below the belly button. Associated with the element of water and the color orange, it represents vitality and passion and is associated with the sacral vertebra as well as the reproductive organs and the body’s circulatory system. A balanced sacral chakra carries the following characteristics: ability to enjoy pleasure, emotional intelligence, sexual satisfaction, passion, and the ability to embrace change. This essential oil brings the energy of pure love and lightness of being, driving away sorrows and bringing a peaceful, stable sense of calm. Neroli also opens you to love within yourself and the freedom of allowing love to flow freely.

Third Chakra—Pine Invigorates Your Solar Plexus Chakra

Pine essential oil is connected to the solar plexus chakra, which is located above the navel and correlates with the color yellow and the element of fire. The solar plexus chakra represents willpower, motivation, and vigor and is associated with the pancreas, liver, spleen, stomach, lower back muscles, and the metabolism and digestion. A balanced solar plexus chakra gives rise to confidence, warmth, self-discipline, steadiness, and a positive sense of self. Pine essential oil is an oil for the restoration of the heart when your emotions have become hard or jaded. This oil releases you from old wounds, letting you move forward without the baggage of the past and bringing the ability to experience your emotions in real time versus playing out echoes from the past. This oil allows you to move forward. You will feel replenished and new, which will allow you to bring growth and inner peace to your future relationships.

Fourth Chakra—Rose Oil Opens Your Heart Chakra

Rose essential oil will open and balance your heart chakra and bring self-acceptance and love into your life. This chakra center is associated with the color green and the element of air, and it is related to the lymph glands, heart, rib cage, lungs, skin, arms, hands, circulation, and the immune system. A balanced heart chakra will lead to the following characteristics in an individual: healthy self-esteem, contentment, compassion, acceptance, and peace of mind. Use rose essential oil’s scent for releasing blocked feelings stored in the chest, internalized grief, melancholy, and repressed emotions.

Fifth Chakra—Lavender Aids Your Throat Chakra

Lavender essential oil is connected to the throat chakra, which correlates to the colors blue or turquoise and the element of spirit or ether. The throat chakra is about speaking, self-expression, and communication and is associated with the thyroid, esophagus, neck, shoulders, arms, hands, and the sense of hearing. A balanced throat chakra will support the following characteristics: clear communication with others and self, good listening skills, good sense of time, and a full voice. Lavender essential oil brings spiritual growth by helping you integrate your experiences, bringing an expanded awareness and perspective. This oil will help you communicate more effectively.

Sixth Chakra—Sandalwood Awakens Your Third Eye Chakra

The third eye chakra is located in the middle of the forehead and is represented by the color indigo and the element of light. The third eye chakra represents self-reflection and knowledge. It is also associated with the pituitary gland, left brain hemisphere, left eye, nose, ears, sinuses, conscious mind, the endocrine system, neurological system, and small muscle control. A balanced third eye chakra will yield strong intuition, good memory, ease remembering dreams, the ability to visualize, and a guiding vision for life. Sandalwood essential oil abets meditation and is used by healers and spiritual leaders worldwide as it brings an inner awareness and sense of ease in engaging with higher consciousness. Sandalwood helps break down illusions, helping you align with your most authentic self.

Seventh Chakra—Lime Energizes Your Crown Chakra

Lime essential oil is for the crown chakra at the very top of your head. Represented by violet and the element of thought, this chakra is the center of self-knowledge, self-will, and divine connection. It is associated with the pineal gland, pituitary gland, cerebral cortex, cerebrum, the right eye, the right brain hemisphere, the central nervous system, the subconscious mind, and large muscle control. A balanced crown chakra will produce wisdom, intelligence, the ability to analyze, spiritual connection, and open mindedness. Lime is a great essential oil to use for cutting and detaching energy cords that no longer serve you. This oil is useful for enhancing your perception of the truth inside any situation. It allows you to release any illusion that you may have confused with reality.

Here are a few more suggestions:

• Root Chakra: Cypress
• Sacral Chakra: Ylang-ylang
• Solar Plexus Chakra: Ginger
• Heart Chakra: Jasmine
• Throat Chakra: Roman Chamomile
• Third Eye Chakra: Rosemary
• Crown Chakra: Frankincense

Blessings on a Budget

Instead of composting all the herbs, twigs, and stems from your brews, you can store them in a burlap or muslin sack and allow them to dry. Keep stuffing in twigs of lavender, rosemary, mint, and all the leftover aromatic plant material until you have a big bag. On some special evening, burn it in your fireplace or an outdoor bonfire, and it will be like a gigantic incense burner with the lovely scents wafting from the flames. And the best part? It’s 100 percent free!

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.