We have only begun to understand how to utilize plants for uses beyond eating. As we've learned more about herbs and their roles in guilds and bird and insect forage, we've also begun to use them medicinally. An herb spiral planted or potted herbs in zone 2 as part of a kitchen garden is one idea we have for limited space where we live now. In our first garden, we distributed culinary and medicinal herbs throughout the garden design. Preparation methods:
How and how much to harvest:
Selected herbs list with uses: Sage, in addition to its culinary and spiritual uses, can be used medicinally. It is considered anti-hypertensive, anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial. Different varieties have different uses. Violet leaves can be infused into oil while the flowers are candied or used in salads or drinks. When rubbed topically, its anti-cancer properties strengthen the lymph nodes. Chocolate mint is available at local nurseries which is a more potent form of mint that is medicinally used for respiratory and stomach issues. We have wild peppermint in the backyard. Comfrey can be used for injuries, good for the skin. Also a dynamic accumulator of potassium, comfrey is a great for mulching fruit trees and flowers. We recommend planting in close proximity to fruit trees so you can chop and drop - leave a small trench around the base of the tree so the comfrey doesn't rot.
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We’ve got several uninvited guests to the garden party, and for a while didn’t know who any of them were (well, we're more like the uninvited guests, since many of them were here before us!). We picked up this book – Wild Urban Plants of the Northeast – a great field guide by Peter Del Tredici that helped us to identify several of these visitors and learn more about them. We highly recommend this easy to use field guide, as it has opened our eyes to plants we've seen every single day, but can't name. Here are some we found (there are definitely many more) pictured below with a brief description of uses as provided by the field guide: Jewelweed, Pokeberry, Yellow Nutsedge, White Campion, Pale Smartweed, Lambsquarters, Purslane, Dandelion, Greater Celandine, Spotted Spurge, Bittersweet Nightshade, Wild Mint, Yellow Woodsorrel, Fireweed, and Garlic Mustard. We've also seen (but don't picture) Yellow Flag Iris, Bindweed and many others. So far we've eaten Dandelion greens, garlic mustard, purslane, and played a lot with the exploding seed pods of the jewelweed. What wild plants have you found in your area that you find particularly useful?
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December 2013
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