Supermarket SOS

Got the chance to try out some remedies this week, in my battle with a horrible flu thing. Not having my usual stocks of herbs and remedies, for one reason and another, I was unprepared and at something of a loss - but its amazing what you can still do with just a quick trip to the local supermarket these days. Fresh sage, fresh lemon thyme, a squeezy pot of organic runny honey, a couple of lemons and a big lump of ginger. And a ferret around in my box of essential oils. Here are some things that really worked ..

Strong cup of sage tea with a dollop of honey stirred in for a sore throat - gargle with each mouthful before you swallow.

Lemon Thyme tea with dollop of honey stirred in for nose, throat and chestiness - this one was better made in a pot and allowed to brew for a good 10minutes.

Steam inhalation for congestion - washing up bowl, hot water and a few drops of Rosemary, Eucalyptus, Peppermint essential oils - towel over your head and inhale!

A few drops of the same oils in a table spoon of carrier oil (I used sweet almond but sunflower oil would do) as a chest rub and in the bath for when you start coughing and/or it goes to your chest.

For mornings when your cold is so bad you think you will never be able to get going: lemon juice and several slices of root ginger in hot water, strong as you can take it with a nice dollop of honey mixed in. I peeled and crushed some of the ginger to get the juice. You can feel this warm you up all the way down to your toes - and its great when you can't taste anything anymore, because you will definitely taste this.

And as soon as you feel the slightest suspicion of a cold coming, take a garlic capsule every day I'm sure this lessens the impact and gets rid of it faster. I also tried a Nigel Slater thing - roasted a whole head of garlic, then popped the flesh out of each clove and spread the puree onto toast. It was absolutely delicious and I sure being in the warm kitchen smelling the roasting garlic in the oven didn't do me any harm either.
Hope this helps someone else out there feeling poorly and miserable!!

Please contribute any tried and tested cold and flu remedies that you set store by?

Pumpkin

I was given an ENORMOUS pumpkin for halloween this year ... so I've been looking up recipes as I'm determined not to waste any!



This recipe is from my Abel and Cole organic box newsletter. They have lots more pumpkin recipes on their fab website, too.

Pumpkin Muffins
225g pumpkin flesh
2 eggs
tspn ginger
1/2 tspn cloves
125ml milk
50ml honey
50g brown sugar
2 tbspn butter
175g plain white flour
1 tspn baking powder
tspn cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C. Steam the pumpkin flesh until tender then puree and allow to cool.

Mix together the eggs, milk, honey, sugar and butter and mix with the pumpkin.

Combine flour, baking powder and spices and add to the pumpkin mixture. Stir to mix but don't overmix.

Pour into muffin pans and bake for 18 to 20 minutes (makes 12).

Halloween Herb Workshop

What a wonderful way to spend Halloween! In case anyone else is in the area and is interested ...

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The Witches Halloween Flying Ointment Workshop

Saturday 31st October 10.30am -5.00pm

Come and meet the wonderful witching plants

This workshop will introduce you to some of the solanaceous and other plants associated with witches and flying. We shall be using all our senses of observation and concentration to tap into a communication with the Herbs. We shall look at their use in herbal medicine and the history
£60
concessions available
We would like a deposit of £20 if you would like to attend

At Lee Valley Village YHA, Cheshunt, Hertfordshire
Well connected from London
In lovely surroundings with reasonably priced
accommodation available

karen 07865081927 / Fi 07830195745

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Trees for Health

An interesting article by The Woodland Trust on the benefits to human health of woodland .. and another good reason to support their work!

Babe in the Woods

This one's for Cheryl .. I don't really go much for sharing personal things on my blog as the internet is such a vast public space and I'm a very private person. So I might even remove this in a few days time. But just one little (albeit quite anonymous) photo of the newby!



This is littleun's first trip to the woods - it has been so sweltering here in London that we headed for the shady trees at Queen's Wood, Muswell Hill. There had been a monumental thunderstorm and downpour the previous evening and it was so refreshing - it smelt clean and green and earthy.

Recycle for Wildlife

Just wanted to share this request I received today for us all to donate our old mobile phones to FFI who can get a £5 donation for each phone received to put towards their wildlife conservation work..

"Did you know your old mobile phone could help FFI to save gorillas and other endangered wildlife around the world?

FFI is today launching a campaign calling for individuals, companies and schools to send us their old mobile phones. It is designed to coincide with Recycle Week, the official UK campaign to encourage people to recycle more.

For every phone received, FFI will receive about £5. It's a great way to support our vital conservation work without spending a penny."




Full information on where to send your old phone at the
Fauna and Flora International website.

Midsummer

Just a little shot of the St Johns Wort bobbing in the breeze! One of my favourite plants.. I have to decide whether I have the heart to cut and use it to make an infused oil, or whether I want to enjoy it in the garden.

The buds were ready to burst at the weekend, but the lovely little yellow flowers always open the week after midsummer - which shows how aptly named it is, as St John's Day is June 25th, I think.

Nature

Nature is a wonderful thing. Visiting my somewhat neglected roof garden, I was amazed at how much was going on up there, mother nature left to her own devices and just doing her thing!

In particular, I got a handful of huge plumptious ripe strawberries to eat still warm from the sunshine...




... these grew from runners which planted themselves into neighbouring pots, giving me a tangle of strawberry plants with lots of luscious berries. Yum!

North London Herb Events

Just to let you know about some exciting herbal events taking place this summer/autumn in North London...

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Paula at Lemon Balm , a lovely new herbal shop and therapy centre in Camden, is conducting a

Special Midsummer Herb Walk and Picnic in Regent’s Park
Tuesday, 23rd June, 7pm
Meet at Lemon Balm, 76 Parkway, London NW1 7AH.
£10 per person (concs £5).
Book now on 020 7267 3334, or via shop@lemonbalmonline.com

"Join Medical Herbalists Paula Grainger MNIMH and Kristine de Block MNIMH as well as the Lemon Balm team to celebrate Midsummer’s Eve with an evening stroll through Regents Park and Canal, discovering all the wonderful herbal plants growing wild in the heart of the city. We’ll talk about the magic and folklore associated with these plants as well as their place in the modern Herbalists’ Apothecary. Please bring a contribution to the picnic."

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The lovely ladies at Sensory Solutions, who travel the country dispensing herbal wisdom from their airstream trailer, run a range of courses, including a

Superfoods Berry Day
Walk 'n' Workshop with The Wild Wicked Witches
Sunday 27th September
10.30am - 5.00pm
Lee Valley Village YHA, Cheshunt, Hertfordshire.
£60 / £45 concessions - deposit £20

Fiona: 07830 195 745
Karen: 07865 081927

sensorysolutions@hotmail.co.uk

"Come and experience autumn through our Native Superfoods, the berries and hips that
grow around us. Autumn is the perfect time to gather all the last hips, fruits and berries to preserve them for those valuable vitamins to protect us from colds and flu's over the colder months. You will learn to recognise the plants and also how to make a delicious medicinal tincture. "

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Do let me know if you have details of other courses, workshops or events and I'll update the noticeboard regularly!

Forty Hall

A lovely day out in the sunshine at Forty Hall, Enfield on Saturday - the first time we had explored the beautiful grounds. Picnic lunch by the lake watching this family of Canada geese..



and a walk through the lovely walled garden, including beautifully laid out herb beds..





The extensive grounds are looked after by the London Borough of Enfield as Forty Hill Country Park and are open to the public free of charge - well worth a visit if you are in the area.