Garlic: Rooted in Folklore

Garlic: Rooted in Folklore

Medicinal Mushrooms: Reishi or Hemlock Varnish Shelf (Ganoderma Tsugae)

Medicinal Mushrooms: Reishi or Hemlock Varnish Shelf (Ganoderma Tsugae)

Holistic Herbalism and Pennsylvania School of Herbalism Announcement

Holistic Herbalism and Pennsylvania School of Herbalism Announcement

The 10 Natural Laws of Cellular Health – Foreword

The 10 Natural Laws of Cellular Health – Foreword

Genetic Caution — Dr. Gary Samuelson

In the past few years, we have become aware that some people in power (we are not exactly sure who) are developing genetic engineering technologies capable of synthesizing genetic code and testing it out on global societies. During the pandemic crisis, mRNA vaccines were developed (with much fanfare) containing genetic coding that forces our human […]
Genetic Caution — Dr. Gary Samuelson

Gather Ye Redbuds While Ye May – A Colorful Harbinger of Spring…and Edible, Too!

The Herb Society of America Blog

by Karen Cottingham

Eastern_Redbud_by Dan Keck via wikimedia Here in Texas, there’s a saying: “We have two seasons – summer and winter.” That’s not quite true; but if you’re not paying attention, spring can slip right past. And the last thing I want is to miss a single day of our glorious, but ephemeral, spring.

The nights here are still cold – sometimes approaching freezing – but the robins have arrived, so I know springtime is near. It’s time to listen for a hushed prelude to seasonal change, time to look for intimations of life beginning to stir. Every few days, this calls for a visit to the two redbud trees in my Houston neighborhood to check the trunks and bare branches for any evidence of tiny pink flowers. Nothing to see for weeks on end; then suddenly, here they are – scattered crimson buds emerging straight from the furrowed bark, swelling with life, and…

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A 21st Century Wheel of the Year: Reskilling at Imbolc

The Druid's Garden

Imbolc–the first signs of spring (artwork by myself and my father, Mark Driscoll)

In a traditional neopagan Wheel of the Year, Imbolc is the holiday that offers the first signs of spring. Most traditionally, this is when the ewes began to lactate, and the snowdrops appeared on the landscape in the British Isles. In the age of climate instability, traditional seasonal interpretations become challenged for many reasons–not the least of which are climate disruptions. So how might we bring the holiday of Imbolc into the 21st century and think about what this holiday means to us today?

As I’ve discussed in earlier posts in this series, the 21st Century, the Age of the Anthropocene, offers us a set of unprecedented challenges and yet opportunities. As a permaculture designer, I think it’s important to recognize that while the problems we already face are unavoidable, these problems give us a…

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A 21st Century Wheel of the Year: Restoration at the Winter Solstice

The Druid's Garden

The time of the greatest darkness is upon us at the winter solstice. Each morning, the sun seems to struggle to rise and hangs low in the sky. The world is covered in frost, cold, and snow, and the darkness of winter sets in. This is a hard time for many, perhaps more so now than before, given the cultural darkness and challenges that so many of us are facing globally and locally. So facing the darkness, in this very challenging time, takes something extra.

Winter Solstice Snow

In my first post on this series (Receptivity at the Fall Equinox), I made the case that the traditional Wheel of the Year was developed and enacted under very different conditions than our present age. We now live in the Anthropocene, a period of human-driven climate change and cultural unrest which is very different than the Holocene, the period of…

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A Unique View of an Esteemed Native Plant: Hydrastis canadensis (Goldenseal)

The Herb Society of America Blog

By Katherine Schlosser

“I may here observe, that the disease of cancer is not confined to civilized nations. It is known among our Indians. I am informed that the Cheerake cure it with a plant which is thought to be the Hydrastis Canadensis, one of our fine native dies [dyes].”

– Benjamin Smith Barton, 1766-1815

Goldenseal, Hydrastis canadensis, has been known for centuries for its medicinal uses ranging from a gastrointestinal aid, stimulant, tonic, emetic, and febrifuge, to helping with ear and eye complaints, heart problems, liver issues, pulmonary complaints, and more.

Europeans learned of goldenseal’s value as a medicinal plant not long after arriving in North America. The initial knowledge of its use is often credited…

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Creativity, Mental Health, and Well Being: A Case for the Bardic Arts

The Druid's Garden

Creativity is the birthright of all people. When humans are young, play and creativity are central to our own development. Children don’t worry about it being ‘good’; they just make things, play with crayons, laugh, dance, and sing. They play. As children get older, school and society often discourage individual creativity and play, particularly in a culture that values economic growth above all else. The result of this has been a stifling sense of creativity, with many adults believing in the myth of talent (that you have to be good at something immediately to practice it creatively) or insisting they have no creativity.

The bardic arts are those in the druid tradition that focuses on creative works: storytelling, creative writing, fine arts, fine crafts, and any other endeavor where you are building in your creativity. The ancient bards were part of the druid community and were the storytellers and historians…

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