FIMBY

My sis-in-law wrote a good article on garlic over at her blog Inside Out. No need for me to reinvent the wheel, check out what she has to say and while you're at it stock up on garlic next time you're at the produce market.

Check out Chezart for this week's Make it From Scratch Blog Carnival. A link to my laundry soap recipe is posted there along with lots of cool "make it yourself" projects. I just love learning from other home-industrious people! There's even a recipe for making shampoo from soapwort plant - cool.

Last week's carnival featured a crocheted scrubbie that I'm hoping to make one of these years. I keep saving my plastic mesh onion bags in hopes of re-using them into something useful.

Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
Just finished this historical novel about an English village during the plague epidemic of 1666. As a homebirth mama and backyard herbalist I was particularly drawn to the narratives of midwifery and herbal lore. And so grateful that in my place and time in this world, 21st century North America, although I may be considered "alternative" at least I'm not considered a witch.

As much as I enjoyed the book I found the descriptions of disease, death, sufferings and hardship of late 15th century too gruesome. But tragically those were the realities for people in that age and unfortunately, it is the gruesomeness that sometimes gives you a more accurate story of a place and people. I'd like to know if it's possible to gain a real understanding of history without all the nasty details.

As far as the writing, I thought it was well written and convincing up until the epilogue when the setting changed so much in 8 pages it didn't seem authentic.

I'd like to know if anyone can recommend some good historical fiction or non-fiction (novel type) about women, herbs and/or midwifery, always of interest to me.
View all my reviews.

Last week during the kids one and only playdate of the month (too busy gardening this time of year, no time for play) Celine sprained/strained her knee on the trampoline. Bummer.

The nearest we can tell from the kids' fuzzy retelling is that she hyperextended her knee, basically locked it, while standing on the trampoline. Apparently they weren't even jumping at the time.

We took her to our family doctor and he wasn't overly concerned but since she can't walk on it he scheduled us to see an ortho-something specialist this week. We are blessed that this was our first "emergency" trip to the doctor in our almost 9 years of having children.

In the meantime I've been applying comfrey poultices everyday, trying to work some herbal magic on her ligaments. Can't be certain to the extent it's working however she's had very little pain and almost no swelling. But she still can't put much weight on it and since we hike so vigorously I want to make sure everything's ok, so we're off to specialist regardless.

Since it's so early in the growing season I cleaned out my comfrey patch in one day treating her knee. Thankfully a friend, who I got the transplants from last year, has a lot so I cleaned out her patch next. I washed and dehydrated the leaves to have an easy supply. Fresh is best but not always easy to access.

Comfrey is SO easy to grow. I recommend it as one of the first things to grow in your yard, especially if you have little kids who can be prone to injuries. Comfrey, together with plantain which is no doubt growing like a weed in your lawn, are a good start to an herbal first aid garden.

Preparing Comfrey Poultice

I would use this recipe for muscle or joint injury or soreness.

Ingredients

• 4 or 5 fresh leaves or more good quality dried comfrey leaves
• small handful dried arnica flowers, optional

Directions

Finely chop fresh leaves with large knife. Chop well to release the juices and healing properties from the leaves. - OR - Crumble dried leaves with hands into medium sized bowl.

Add dried arnica flowers, if using. Pour boiling water over herbs, just enough to moisten. Mash with fork. Let cool a bit, strain herbs and wrap in cheesecloth, but not too many layers since you want the plant matter to be close to the skin. Place poultice onto skin and warp with elastic bandage if necessary to secure in place.

Change poultice every few hours or so.

My Making Herbs Simple video arrived in the mail this week. I was fairly giddy as I finally had time in my week to watch it this afternoon. The kids learned with me how to find, identify and dry basic herbs and how to prepare tinctures and poultices. I added a couple herbs to my "must plant this summer" list and can't wait to get my hands on fresh plantain & echinacea this summer to make tinctures for next winter's ailments.

For those nearby I'd love to lend you my video if you're interested.

Calendula - Autumn morningMy calendula patch has given me much joy this growing season. I highly recommend growing this self seeding annual. It does double duty as both a topical skin healing herb and a cheery garden flower. I use calendula petals in my homemade soaps and salves and I have enjoyed its sunshine blossoms in my garden since mid July. Calendula seeds are easily harvested for planting new areas or giving away.

Today's hike took us to Black Mountain. A 3 mile out & back hike with a rocky, flat summit and beautiful views. We packed soup for lunch, which Damien heated with our backpack/camp stove that he built (yep, that's my man). Unfortunately, our post lunch apples attracted wasps, one of which stung Brienne on the neck. So, our time at the summit ended abruptly. We descended much faster than our trek up, in pursuit of plantain or self heal. We didn't find either until a good 2/3 down the trail but once I chewed them up and applied them the sting, swelling and redness went away.

Our experience made me think I need to make a backpack/hiking dried herbal mix to apply to stings, cuts, abrasions, bruises etc... Since the herbs you need aren't always where you need them, like the summit of a mountain. So, I'm inspired to experiment but I'm hoping we don't get anymore stings any time soon.

Once again, our kids were absolute troopers both up & down. I'm ashamed to say I complained more than all them (they didn't whine once) about the hike - I was tired, I wanted to be relaxing, yah dah, yah dah. Even with her sting Brienne didn't offer a word of complaint but just sniffled and snuffled down the mountain (after an all out cry at the top). We met a guy at the summit who thought we had carried our kids part way up the trail!

Although fairly busy with house and mouse care we did go the farm today for our weekly work share and vegetablepick up. While working I was stung by a bee or something like that (poor guy lost his life stinging me as he left his stinger in my foot which I had to pull out). Thanks to another bee sting I got last fall while I was at the farm with Mom Tougas I knew just what to do. I found a plantain leaf, plantain is found almost anywhere grass grows, chewed it up a bit and rubbed it directly onto my skin and the pain immediately went away. I had experienced this once, last fall, but I forgot how effective it was.

When I was done working (pulling weeds in the flower gardens) I mentioned this to Jill the farm's owner. She shared a story that happened on the farm. A few years ago an inexperienced farm apprentice cut a major blood vessel in a sheep's tummy while shearing it. The sheep was gushing blood but a couple people gathered lots of plantain, chewed it up and applied it to the wound and the bleedly stopped immediately. As it turns out plantain stops bleeding as well as skin pain from insect stings. It probably does a lot more that Mom Tougas would know about.

I just wanted to share this in case you are out and about with your kids etc... and someone gets stung. I've used plantain to relieve the kid's insect bites as well although it wasn't effective long term (more than 3 hours). Mom Tougas is usually the herb person on this family blog but I just wanted to share one of my own experiences.