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The Green Report
May 8, 2012
Green Report - Wildflowers of the Fields - by Susun Weed
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Ground ivy AKA Creeping Jenny (Glechoma hederacea) is still blooming, in places carpeting the ground with flowers. We adore the flowering tops in our salads. |
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Narrow leaf plantain (Plantago lanceolata) holds its flowers atop long stiff stems. The whole affair reminds me of a flying saucer. Anytime is a fine time to harvest leaves for salads (chop finely) or infused oil. |
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Tiny speedwell flowers. Common speedwell (Veronica officinalis) was once a favored remedy for those with respiratory problems. It is edible, but too bitter and too tiny to be worth foraging for salad. |
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Corn speedwell (Veronica arvensis) is even smaller than her official sister. |
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Celandine poppy (Cheladonium majus) is showing off her stunning, abundant yellow flowers. Not to be confused with mustard family plants, though they do have four petals. The yellow sap of this poisonous plant can be used against skin cancer. |
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Yellow rocket or Barbara's cress (Barbarea vulgaris), our winter friend, now brings the sunlight to earth as she spreads her yellow cheer. The leaves are now too bitter for my taste, but I do like the flowers and flower buds in my salads. |
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Yellow rocket flowers - Note the four-petaled mustard family flowers. Both the "H" and the "X" pattern of the four petals are visible in this close-up photo. |
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Garlic mustard (Alliaria officinalis) is another mustard-family plant now in bloom. I am still including it in my salads by harvesting the larger lower leaves (without petioles) and the entire tender top (buds and flowers). Sharp and a bit bitter but ever so good! |
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Those little cresses we have been snacking on for months are another mustard family plant that is flowering and setting seeds. The end of the line for them, but new plants will grow from those seeds, and continue the cycle. Notice how long the seed pods are.
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Shepherd's purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris) is also in the mustard family. The seed pods look like little purses. The plant in this photo is just right for making a tincture used to stop uterine hemorrhage, whether from fibroids, menopause, or during the post-partum period. This little plant has saved many lives and has saved many a uterus from the surgeon's knife. The leaves are delicious in salads. |
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Wild strawberries (Fragaria viginiana) are part of the rose family. Don't tread on the flowers! |
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Apples (Malus persica) are also in the rose family and also produce a sweet treat. Note the classic five petals with multiple central stamens. I pick up some of the fallen petals and toss them into my salads for vitamin C, for beauty, for love, for Venus. |
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The shoots of Hypericum perforatum (St. Joan's wort) are over eight inches tall, although blooms, and medicine making, are still months away. |
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Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is such a generous plant. I use the flowers in salads, as fritters, for wine, as a honey, infused in vinegar and in oil, and as a tincture. The leaves and roots are best left alone while the plant is flowering. (See You Tubes and Healing Wise for lots more dandelion info and recipes.)
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From the Wise Woman Herbal Ezine
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Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year
Author: Susun S. Weed. Simple, safe remedies for pregnancy, childbirth, lactation, and newborns. Includes herbs for fertility and birth control. Foreword by Jeannine Parvati Baker. 196 pages, index, illustrations.
Retails for $14.95
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Healing Wise
Author: Susun S. Weed. Superb herbal in the feminine-intuitive mode. Complete instructions for using common plants for food, beauty, medicine, and longevity. Introduction by Jean Houston. 312 pages, index, illustrations. Retails for $21.95
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NEW Menopausal Years the Wise Woman Way
Author: Susun S. Weed. The best book on menopause is now better. Completely revised with 100 new pages. All the remedies women know and trust plus hundreds of new ones. New sections on thyroid health, fibromyalgia, hairy problems, male menopause, and herbs for women taking hormones. Recommended by Susan Love MD and Christiane Northrup MD. Introduction by Juliette de Bairacli Levy. 304 pages, index, illustrations. Retails for $19.95
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For excerpts visit: www.menopause-metamorphosis.com
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Breast Cancer? Breast Health!
Author: Susun S. Weed. Foods, exercises, and attitudes to keep your breasts healthy. Supportive complimentary medicines to ease side-effects of surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, or tamoxifen. Foreword by Christiane Northrup, M.D. 380 pages, index, illustrations. Retails for $21.95
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Down There: Sexual and Reproductive Health the Wise Woman Way
Publication date: June 21, 2011
Author: Susun S. Weed
Simple, successful, strategies cover the entire range of options -- from mainstream to radical -- to help you choose the best, and the safest, ways to optimize sexual and reproductive health.
Foreword: Aviva Romm, MD, midwife, 484 pages, Index, illustrations. Retails for $29.95
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Susun
Weed, green witch and wise woman, is an extraordinary teacher with
a joyous spirit, a powerful presence, and an encyclopedic knowledge
of herbs and health. She is the voice of the Wise Woman Way, where common
weeds, simple ceremony, and compassionate listening support and nourish
health/wholeness/holiness. She has opened hearts to the magic and medicine
of the green nations for three decades. Ms. Weed's four herbal medicine
books focus on women's health topics including: menopause, childbearing,
and breast health. Visit her site www.susunweed.com for information on her workshops, apprenticeships, correspondence courses
and more! Browse the publishing site online at wisewomanbookshop.com to learn more about her alternative health books. Venture into the NEW
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