It’s
been a while since we’ve had a guest post here on Sophia’s Choice; in fact it’s
been almost 2 years ! Wow. Time races by at such speed it’s hard to keep up
sometimes.
If
you’ve been an avid reader of Sophia’s Choice from the beginning, you’ll have
enjoyed guest posts about nurturing mums, making rainbow glitter candles, baking gluten free, home education, the joys of music & dance with children and
our very first guest post on embracing the joy of food with your little ones.
So what have I in store for you today? Well, if like me, you love a holistic way of being, then foraging for herbs which you can then use both in your cooking and therapeutically at home for the whole family will appeal greatly.
I’d
like to therefore introduce you to the lovely Vivienne Campbell, Qualified
Herbalist, who has an exceptional passion for her craft. I love connecting with
like minded souls, and Vivienne’s infectious joy & enthusiasm for herbs and
how they can enhance our lives and wellbeing, was too much not to share.
Read
on to find out more about Autumnal herbs you’ll find whilst on your country or
woodland walks in the coming months, and if you fancy taking your interest that
one step further, be sure to take a look at Vivienne’s fabulous online e-courses & exclusive offer to my gorgeous blog readers. Enjoy x
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Discover the wide range of
edible & medicinal herbs growing all around you
Did
you know that wherever you live, you are likely to be surrounded by plants that
are edible and have medicinal properties? Fields, woods, hedgerows and gardens
are bursting with plants that are tasty wild foods and can be used to make
therapeutic herbal remedies. Many of them grow in towns and cities too. Starting
to notice these wild herbs growing around you can really enrich your life, and
when you’re confident at correctly identifying these plants then you can begin
to add them to your culinary repertoire to enhance your dishes and/or start to
make your own safe and effective herbal remedies such as immune-boosting
cordials, healing ointments, nourishing iron tonics etc. Foraging for plants
and making tasty extracts from them can be a really enjoyable activity for the
whole family. Here are some of the plants that you might have growing near you.
Elderberries (Sambucus nigra
fruct.)
The
elder is a tree commonly found in towns, cities and the countryside. In June it
produces elder flowers, in autumn it produces elder berries. The berries are a
great immune tonic and help to fight flu viruses (an Italian study found it to
be effective against bird flu). They taste delicious when made in to a cordial
or syrup with cinnamon and cloves. I’ve yet to meet anyone who doesn’t love
this drink! It’s a perfect immune-boosting tonic for children. They’ll clamour
for it every morning!
 |
| Elderberries (Sambucus Nigra Fruct.) Image Courtesy of Vivienne Campbell |
Daisy (Bellis perennis)
This
is the common daisy that we all made daisy chains from as a child but, it has
the most remarkable medicinal properties. It is edible and contains nearly as
much vitamin C as lemons (just sprinkle the petals on to salad). Medicinally it
is quite stunning too. It is our local equivalent of arnica (arnica is a type
of daisy that grows in the Swiss Alps) and an ointment can easily be made from
it at home to ease bumps and bruises. Daisy was traditionally used to heal
wounds and modern scientific studies have confirmed this. Other recent
scientific studies have found that daisy may have anti-tumour properties and
that it also contains a chemical that is similar to anti-HIV medication! Quite
a remarkable plant and of course it grows around us in abundance.
 |
| Daisies (Bellis Perennis) Image Courtesy of Vivienne Campbell |
Sea Buckthorn (Hippophäe
rhamnoides)
This
grows around some coastal areas of Britain and Ireland. It is well-known as a
super-food. Its orange berries are very high in vitamin C, plant sterols, Omega
7 oil, vitamin E, beta-carotene and antioxidant flavonoids. There are numerous
therapeutic uses of seabuckthorn fruits and it’s been claimed that they can
improve immunity, help to regenerate tissue and heal burns, protect the body
from radiation, protect the liver, may have anti-cancer activity and help to
reduce stress and many of these claims are backed up by modern research. It’s
also become popular as a foraged food and the fresh juice is very easy to
extract. Have a look for this plant the next time that you stroll along the
beach.
 |
| Sea Buckthorn (Hippophäe rhamnoides) Image Courtesy of Vivienne Campbell |
Hawthorn Berries (Crategus oxycanthum)
Hawthorn
is a common tree in the UK and Ireland. It is often made in to hedging in
gardens or grows wild in fields and hedgerows. In September it is covered with
orange-red berries. Therapeutic extracts of the berries are used by qualified
herbalists to help people with heart problems. In fact in the early 20th
century some doctors were still using them. A G.P. in Co. Clare, Ireland used
extract of hawthorn berries to treat his patients with heart disease and he
became known internationally for his successful treatments. Qualified
herbalists still use hawthorn berries to help to ease conditions such as high
blood pressure. Don’t do this at home because heart diseases are obviously
serious conditions. Please consult a qualified professional. This is
particularly important if you are on pharmaceutical medication.
 |
| Hawthorn Berries (Crategus Oxycanthum) Image Courtesy of Vivienne Campbell |
Cleavers Coffee (Galium
aparine)
This
is a little known wild food but is one of my favourites. Cleavers is the sticky
plant that we all know because we threw it at each other as children. It
usually grows in the shade. Autumn is the time to collect the ripe seeds to
make a delicious hedgerow coffee. Harvest the seeds, wash them, dry them and
roast them in the oven. Grind them and use them the way that you would use
ordinary coffee grounds. Cleavers coffee has a rich flavour, is caffeine-free
and is also thought to boost the immune system because it helps to stimulate the
flow of the lymph. It takes quite a bit of time and effort to make this but I
always find it well worth it.
 |
| Cleavers (Ga;ium Aparine) Image Courtesy of Vivienne Campbell |
Starting
to notice the abundance of therapeutic plants that grow where you live can be a
joyful and rewarding experience. Only ever pick and use a wild plant if you are
100% certain that you have correctly identified it. Many wild plants are
poisonous. Consult an expert to help you to learn about wild plants. Using
local plants is more sustainable than using shop-bought imported plants. If we
want to build a more sustainable future then it is important to learn these
skills that were the common-place knowledge of our ancestors.
About Vivienne
I
am Vivienne Campbell BSc.(Hons), a qualified herbalist and I am passionate
about introducing people to the vast amount of therapeutic herbs that grow all
around us (I have done this many times on national television). I love to teach
people how to recognise these plants and how to transform them into safe and
effective herbal remedies or delicious wild foods. I want to bring the
landscape alive for you and help you to engage with nature on a whole new level
by discovering the wonderful therapeutic plants that grow all around you. I
want to empower you to take charge of your own health and well-being by adding
these nutritious and therapeutic plants into your routine. Kids enjoy
collecting herbs and making extracts from them so these can be lovely, healthy
activities for the whole family.
Learn with the Seasons:
Forage for and use Edible & Therapeutic Herbs E-Course
If
you would love to learn how to use these herbs safely, effectively and joyfully
then I would love to teach you. I have an on-line course called Learn with the Seasons: Forage for & use Edible & Therapeutic Herbs. This course
is designed for people to learn at their own pace; there isn’t any homework or
minimum time commitment. Just log-in whenever you want and watch videos of me
identifying herbs, making herbal extracts such as tinctures and cordials or
delicious wild food e.g. chickweed pesto.
The
course is packed full of information about the herbs, as well as safety
guidelines and recommended resources so that you can use these plants with
confidence. You’ll get life-time access to these courses so you can look at the
lessons whenever it suits you, as often as you like.
My
Autumn E-Course is currently running and I am offering 50% off the full price
to any Sophia’s Choice Readers who book this course by midnight on 22/9/15.
Full price €125 (approx. £92). Half
price €62.50 (approx. £46).
You can read more about this course and/or enrol on it by clicking this link. Enter promo code: SOPH50
to receive your 50% discount.
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Vivienne's website www.theherbalhub.com is full
of information about using herbs. And if
you wish to connect with Vivienne on Facebook, you will find her here.
Until next time x
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