Healing Herbs

“There are no worthless herbs, only the lack of knowledge.”

-Chinese saying

I’m sick and spent most of the day laying in bed trying to rest. On a sunny day, it pains me to be so incredibly unproductive. But I’ve had a mild fever and shaky body, so I don’t exactly have much choice.

I tend to avoid taking any medications unless things get unbearable. So instead, today I relied on some herbs growing in the garden to take the edge off. Lavender is suppose to be a mild sedative, so I plucked some from our front entry and threw it into a hot bath. Maybe it was the lavender, or maybe just the hot bath, but it felt relaxing and calmed my shaky body.

I’m not a big tea drinker, but I have been sipping chamomile all day. The flowers are suppose to be sleep-inducing. Last weekend I picked some of the chamomile flowers growing in our garden and have those drying upside down in a dark corner. Probably won’t be dried in time for this bat of illness, but they should come in handy for my next cold.

I also harvested bunches of oregano, thyme, rosemary, and sage this past weekend. They have been drying in the same dark corner as the chamomile. They will be stored through the winter for use in all those lovely soups and stews I am looking forward to cooking.

I would love to be one of those people that knows enough about herbs to make a remedy for all kinds of ailments. I’ve been referring to the Curious Gardener’s Almanac for general herbal uses, but I know there are several good books out there that go much more in depth on the subject. This is a good reminder that those winter months will be rolling in soon, so best to be prepared before we get into the thick of cold season.