by Karin Uphoff | May 31, 2014 | Herbs
There is a weed that grows on the edges of most parking lots and fields and most of us are so used to tromping on it, that we pay it little heed: plantain, either narrow-leaved (Plantago lanceolata) or broad-leaved (P. major). This common plant, an immigrant from...
by Karin Uphoff | May 31, 2014 | Herbs
By the end of the growing season, plants have shuffled most of their remaining resources into their roots to store for the winter months. This is the time of year to harvest root-herbs and my all-time favorite is burdock root. The plant’s leaves are similar to...
by Karin Uphoff | May 31, 2014 | Herbs
Blooming around the summer solstice is the cheery yellow flower of Saint John’s Wort, Hypericum perforatum, a native herb to Europe but naturalized throughout North America where soils are poor. It grows so prolifically in some areas as to be considered a...
by Karin Uphoff | May 31, 2014 | Herbs
One of the loveliest herbal treats of the spring and early summer is fresh nettle leaf (Urtica dioica or U.urens), found in abundant quantities in cool, moist places along rivers and streams. Nettle is such a rich food source that if it didn’t have a strong...
by Karin Uphoff | May 31, 2014 | Herbs
Often, when we need a herb, yet are not yet aware of which one we need – it comes to us. That was how I met my friend Cleavers (Galium aparine) or goose grass. I was living in Britain to attend herbal school and one of my housemates was a big beautiful blond...
by Karin Uphoff | May 31, 2014 | Herbs
In winter, when many trees stand bare against a grey sky and most herbs in the garden have gone back into the ground – we turn to the evergreens for both spiritual and nutritional sustenance. Herb rosemary, Rosmarianus officinalis, is one of my favorites in any...
