Gut Health and Clinical Herbalism
When I was studying herbal medicine in university at Bastyr, my teachers taught me that in traditional western herbalism, the human organism is likened to a tree whose roots are the digestive system. In this way, the health of the entire organism is utterly dependent on the health of the digestive apparatus- from the mouth all…
The Importance of Prayer in Alchemical Preparations
In the world of alchemy, there tends to be a lot of focus on the specific processes of preparation: distillation, fermentation, calcination, dissolution, etc. and making sure they are done correctly, as well as timing the preparations in accordance with the astrological and planetary influences. But what can be easily overlooked is the importance…
Community Monographs (you definitely want to check this one out!!)
So during our newest 3-part video series, I issued a challenge to the Evolutionary Herbalism community to pick a plant… any plant…. and do a monograph writeup based on the 5 key elements of how to use an herb holistically. This framework includes researching and directly experiencing: 1) the taste of the herb, 2) the actions,…
Alchemical Herb Profile: Red Root (Ceanothus cuneatus)
Red Root, or commonly called “Buckbrush” around here – is a wild shrubby plant that flourishes all around the hills where we live. Though this variety of Ceanothus is poky, dense, and hardy – not the most welcoming looking plant around – it exudes the most sweet, heavenly fragrance throughout the forest while its fluffy…
Alchemical Herb Profile: Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
“A weed is a plant whose virtue is not yet known.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson Though Dandelion is a common “weed” found in most people’s yards, it is full of medicinal properties that are valuable to know. I often think that those herbs which show up all over the place, growing up through the cracks in…
Gratitude for Plants
There’s so much to be grateful for in our lives- most of which are the things that are simple and easy to overlook: food, clean water, a roof over our heads, a job, family, community. But I’m also always thinking about plants – I mean, plants give us our lives every day through our food, every moment…
Alchemical Herb Profile: Elderberry (Sambucus cerulea)
While we were out harvesting Elderberries on our land this summer, we wanted to share some info about the medicinal virtues of this invaluable herb with you! Now that the winter is rolling in, this is the perfect time to be pulling out the Elderberry for immune support, so check out this short video to…
Herbal Alchemy: The Water Element
Learn how to use the Elements as a lens for classifying and using herbal remedies. The Alchemical herbal perspective involves looking at the planetary rulerships of different herbs, their organ and tissue affinities, as well as providing a sophisticated and refined way of preparing herbal medicines according to astrological influences. In this video, I reveal how…
Holistic Herbalism and the Adaptogen Myth
What’s the most common mistake most people make when they start using herbs? After years of teaching and traveling across the country, I’ve seen people over and over make the assumption that if they’re using herbs, they’re holistic. It’s actually not true! Many herbalists and naturopaths actually practice what I like to call “green…
Alchemical Herb Profile: Wood Betony (Stachys betonica)
So I know it’s been awhile since my last blog post- sorry about that! Life got really busy there for awhile teaching a lot of workshops, traveling to different conferences and events, and preparing for the opening of next year’s school year! I’ll be in touch with you soon with more info about that real soon.…
