Determining Interchangeable Species
I frequently get asked about whether different types of species or subspecies or varieties of medicinal plants are interchangeable with the primary species that we typically use in Western herbalism. These interchangeable species are known as herbal adjuncts. When you look up an herb in herb books, it’s common to see the main species of…
The Role of Alcohol in Herbalism
As herbalists, we tend to rely pretty heavily on alcohol as one of our main ways for extracting and preserving the medicinal properties of plants. Herbal tinctures are one of the most commonly used forms of herbal medicine by herbalists. So what’s the deal with alcohol? What’s the best type of alcohol to use? Is…
The Benefits and Dangers of Bitters
Bitter herbs have been gaining a lot of popularity over the years within herbalism, and they’re sometimes seen as a magical cure, especially for the digestive system. Some people say that everyone should be on bitters because they’re so amazing for digestion. Many people these days have a lot of issues with the digestive system,…
Adverse Reactions to Herbs – What they are and how to avoid them
One of the biggest fears that we have as herbalists and as practitioners is that not only will our remedies potentially not work or heal the person that we’re working with, but that they might actually do harm, that we might give someone a plant and it creates an issue for them in their body,…
Allergies and Asthma
In this week’s post, I wanted to share with you some of the overarching categories of herbal actions and energetics and properties that are used to treat upper respiratory allergies and asthma. Upper respiratory allergies can sometimes be especially tricky to work with as an herbalist. Oftentimes it’s because what we see in a lot…
Understanding Herbs Astrologically
Today, I want to talk a little bit more about the holistic model that I’ve been sharing over the last few weeks in regards to medical astrology and its connection to herbal medicine. Last week, I talked about the way that we can use astrology to look at a person and see the connection between…
An Interview with Jason Scott
One of the most powerful things about alchemy is that it allows us to draw on energetics. We can look at the planets and plants and see what their energetic quality is in terms of their temperature, their moisture, what organ systems they govern, the diseases they generate, their constitutional pattern, and how they shape…
An interview with Robert Bartlett
When we talk about herbalism and alchemy, it can often seem like we talk only about the past. We know herbalism and alchemy have been used throughout history by every civilization around the globe. We go back to the ancient teachings and ancient resources and learn from the teachers of the past. We spend time…
Intention, Alchemy, and Medicine Making
When we’re thinking about herbal medicine making, some of the topics that generally come up amongst herbalists are linear in their approach to how we prepare herbal medicine. What part of the plant do we use? Should it be fresh or should it be dried? What percentage alcohol should we use? Is it better as…
Developing Your Herbal Competence and Confidence
Today I want to talk about some critical turning points that all of us face when we’re walking the plant path: developing competence and confidence as an herbalist. If there’s one thing that I’ve realized over the last 10+ years of being an herbalist myself, as well as interacting with a lot of beginner, intermediate,…
