Grow Your Own Drugs

After yesterday's I-hate-crafting meltdown, I spent the evening focusing on something I really enjoy: gardening. I'm new at gardening too but it does not try to thwart me as crafting projects do. I plant, I water, I pull weeds, I kill bugs, I eat well. It really is that easy. 

It's almost time to plant our winter garden. Here in the valley, seeds should be in the ground no later than the 15th of September. At least that's what the local garden expert on NPR said. I believe him. I guess it's only fair. We harvest pretty much year round except these few sweltering summer months. While people are enjoying fresh summer tomatoes we are pulling their withered corpses off the vines and tossing them into the compost pile. We don't have a traditional "harvest time" at the end of the summer. We have "pull-up-the- plants-that-the-sun-killed-and-plant-for-winter time."

We sat down and plotted out the beds. Along with the usual suspects I want to plant potatoes which we haven't tried yet and luffah gourds, which you can dry and use as sponges. And, I would like to use one of the smaller beds to plant a medicinal herb garden.

Just like the vegetable garden, picking what to grow in my medicinal garden was the hardest part. I decided to make a list of my families most common ailments and then match those ailments with the proper herbal remedies. For my family, we are most commonly afflicted with:

Headaches
Stomachaches
Colds
Diarrhea
Urinary Tract Infections
Cuts and Scrapes

I picked herbs that would be effective in treating the above ailments, as well as by how familiar I am with them. No use in growing some obscure plant that I'm afraid to use. I also picked plants that I just plain like because they are pretty and they smell good. These so-called "decorative" herbs I hope to use in homemade beauty treatments; lotions, soaps and the like. The list was long but space is limited. Here's what made the final cut:

Calendula-used for antiseptic and healing properties

German Chamomile-tummy soother and baby calmer

Echinacea-immune booster, good for fighting off colds

Lemon Balm-smells good, tastes good

Peppermint-settles stomach and I love it!

Spearmint-same as above

Feverfew-chewing a few leaves can relieve a headache

Goldenseal-good for urinary tract infections by keeping bacteria from adhering to bladder walls

Meadowsweet-helps with diarrhea, indigestion and heartburn

Garlic-multitude of uses but I'd like to experiment with it for ear infections

Lavender-it's my favorite!

The seeds have been ordered and soon I'll be growing my own drugs. I've been researching home herbalist courses that I can take correspondence style since my job as a stay at home Mommy prevents me from attending classes full time. If after completing the correspondence course I feel the need to dive deeper into study, I'll look into a more formal training program. For now I'm just excited that I will be able to care for my family on a whole new level.  Instead of running to the drugstore or the doctor's office for every little thing, I'll be able to walk into my backyard and find something that will help them feel better. There is a great sense of peace in knowing I hold the power to heal. I can't wait to see my seedlings sprout!