Category: Herbs

Medicinal Value of Tea Tree {Melaleuca alternifolia}

By Crooked Bear Creek Organics

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarCrooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

Also, Known As:

  • Cajeput Tree
  • Melaleuca
  • Manuka
  • Tea Tree

The tea tree is not the common tea plant that produces both black and green tea. In fact, leaves of this tea tree are known as Melaleuca alternifolia and belong to the family Myrtaceae that has long been used by the aboriginals as an antiseptic. This tea tree was first discovered in 1770 when Captain James Cook dropped anchor off the coast of New South Wales and his sailors went aground and prepared a perfumed tea from the leaves of a tree growing in the marshy valley there. Because of the aromatic tea prepared by the sailors, it is called the tea tree and should not be mistaken to be the common tea plant.

In fact, the aboriginals residing in New South Wales used the volatile oil obtained from the leaves of the tea tree to heal scratches, burns, cuts, insect bites, athlete’s…

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Powerful Herbal Pain Relief

By Crooked Bear Creek Organics

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarCrooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

A few days ago, I had the pleasure of visiting the home of a gracious woman who deals in antiques. As I admired the many fine pieces displayed there, I came to realize that I, too, am something of a period piece a baby boomer who’s fundamentally sound but sporting the odd creaky hinge or two.
Fortunately, the herbal apothecary holds promise. Its medicines are good alternatives to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for chronic, mild to moderate aches and can reduce the need for prescription drugs.
More than 100 plants are known to have pain-relieving properties, but some are really outstanding. Reporting on herbal painkillers for arthritis, a review of clinical trials in the Clinical Journal of Pain says devil’s claw {Harpagophytum procumbens}, capsaicin from hot chiles {Capsicum spp.}, gamma-linolenic acid {GLA} from seed oils, and certain blended herbal extracts are especially good. Other studies indicate broader pain-relieving…

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Herb Guide: Bay Laurel

By Crooked Bear Creek Organics

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarCrooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

Laurus nobilis

Also, Known As:

  • Bay Laurel
  • Sweet Bay

The herb known as the bay laurel or the sweet bay is native to Asia Minor and the Mediterranean region in general – it is a small evergreen shrub or tree. The early Greeks and Romans admired the bay laurel for its beauty and used the aromatic leaves in many different ways. Bay laurel possesses leathery leaves that are lanceolate and pointed in shape. The leaves also have the maximum oil content during early and mid-summer and this oil content tends to decrease in other seasons. The name “bay” is used to refer to several botanicals – for example, the West Indian bay – botanical name Pimenta racemosa, and the California bay – botanical name Umbellularia californica. Therefore, any of these plants can be called by the name “bay” in the existing herb literature; what is more, some other plants are…

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Witchcrafting with Burdock Root & Leaf

By Slavic Witch

Please Do Research Before You Consume Or Smoke … Anything

By Orzula

Been noticing a lot of worrying posts lately,

Particularly among the newer witchblrs, so I feel as though I should say something:

⚠️ PLEASE DO NOT INGEST/CONSUME/SMOKE ANYTHING UNLESS YOU HAVE DONE EXTENSIVE RESEARCH ⚠️

And research that is preferably done off of Tumblr (aka Google it), so you’ll find a wider range of opinions, articles, and thoughts on the matter.

For example:

  • Certain stones and crystals are toxic when mixed with water/liquids! Big ones include malachite, turquoise, and selenite – but that’s just to name a few!

 

  • Various herbs can interact negatively with medications/the body: St. John’s Wort with birth control or anti depressants (even though it is used to treat depression in small doses), sleepy time herbs are not to be used in conjunction with melatonin or other sleep aids/pills; some herbs can cause liver damage – pennyroyal, valerian, comfrey, etc – if consumed.

 

  • DO NOT JUST SMOKE THINGS because a tumblr said to try it!!! I just saw a post about smoking valerian root – THIS WILL CAUSE A CHEMICAL BURN IN YOUR THROAT AND LUNGS. ⚠️

So for the love of gods, and all things decent – including your health – PLEASE do legitimate research before ingesting any herbs or concoctions. 🌿

Source:orzula

Summer Flora & Fungi Hike

By Adam Haritan

Greetings!

I am excited to announce that I will be hosting the 2018 Summer Flora & Fungi Hike on Saturday, July 7th at McConnells Mill State Park in Western Pennsylvania… and, I’d love for you to join us!

Summer is the perfect season to explore Pennsylvania’s land in search of interesting and useful plants, trees, and mushrooms. McConnells Mill State Park — with its deeply-cut gorges, hemlock-lined ravines, whitewater currents, and historical landmarks — is a prime area for summer exploration.

While exploring the Slippery Rock Creek Gorge within the park, we’ll delve into a myriad of fascinating topics related to this season’s flora and fungi, including:

  • Edible and medicinal plants
  • Edible and medicinal mushrooms
  • Summer wildflower identification
  • Tree identification, along with edible and medicinal uses
  • Medicine-making using wild plants and mushrooms
  • Natural history and ecology of the area

… and more!

Interested? Here are more details:

What: Summer Flora & Fungi Hike at McConnells Mill State Park
When: Saturday, July 7th, 2018
Where: McConnells Mill State Park, Western Pennsylvania
Time: 9:30 AM – 12:30 PM OR 1:30 PM – 4:30 PM

The program is geared toward adults and will entail moderate hiking (about 1.5 miles).

Please note that in order to maximize your learning experience, space is limited and registration with payment in advance is required to secure your spot.

To purchase your ticket, and to learn more about the outing, please visit the following link and choose the appropriate session:

Summer Flora & Fungi Hike with Adam Haritan

I’d love to see you there!
-Adam Haritan

Creative Organic Green ~ Detox For Your Home

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarCrooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

Summer is the time of year that we start eating lighter and detoxing. It’s time for summer cleaning of body, mind, and home! While there is a lot of focus on what we eat, often not enough attention is paid to how we clean our homes… Making sure that all of your household cleaning products are naturally-derived is extremely important – especially if you have children. The products we use every day may give off toxins that we then breathe in or absorb through our skin. They may also pollute the air in our environment. Studies have shown that environmental toxicity is a contributor to many conditions such as autoimmune disease, heart disease and even cancer(1). The chemicals found in many common household cleaners are carcinogens which mean that they can cause cancer. Bleach and ammonia are highly toxic and, when mixed together, they are a lethal combination(2).  Other chemicals…

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Power of The Seed

By Ancestral Apothecary

Self-care Sisterhood: Folk Medicine Making for Women of Color

By Ancestral Apothecary

Health Benefits of Reishi {Ganoderma lucidum}

By Crooked Bear Creek Organics

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarCrooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

Also, Known As:

  • Ling Chi
  • Ling Zhi
  • Reishi

Known in Japan as the ‘phantom mushroom’ because it can be so very difficult to find, the reishi generally grows on old Japanese plum trees. Reishi is so rare that only about 10 mushrooms would be found growing on about 100,000 plum trees. Finally, it was the Japanese Shigeaki Mori who perfected the art of growing the reishi indoors. This art involved culturing wild reishi spores on plum-tree sawdust over an elaborate and arduous two-year time period. The fruiting body of the reishi can be used medicinally.

Also popularly known as the hing zhi “herb of spiritual potency”, the reishi is, in essence, a mushroom that can grow on old rotten logs, fallen tree stumps and other similar areas throughout the coastal regions of China. However, reishi is cultivated in areas as diverse as North America, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and China for…

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