In a decade St. Johns wort has moved from obscurity to stardom. We use it now in our quest to regain joy, but it is a plant withmany other healing abilities. Originally from Europe, it follows us, our roads ,our railroads, our cattle, our bulldozing. It loves waste places, places overused and under respected.


     It will grow where no other plants will grow. A kind service, keeping the waste places green and      alive, changing illness to health. But the cattle farmers of Oregon would beg to differ for they curse      the spread of this herb to thousands of hectares of range land rendering it dangerous to cattle who      consume to much and suffer for it.

St. Johns wort (Hypericum perforatum) grows in our area and it is not the same St. Johns wort that gardeners use as ground cover, that is Hypericum calycinum, which has large yellow flowers that are about 3 inches in diameter. Our little medicinal plant, 1 to 2 feet high is hardly noticeable against the ambient greenery until it flowers, then its tiny, massed flowers which are about ½ inch in diameter, give a showy yellow display. You maynotice that the second word in its official Latin binomial name is "perforatum". This name refers to the tiny transparent glandular dots that are distributed throughout the leaf. If you hold the tiny leaf up above your head and look through to the sky the leaf will appear to have holes or perforations in it. This unique leaf structure will positively identify the correct plant for> you. If you take a flower bud between your thumb and finger and squish, it will bleed red. The red dye contains hypericin, thought by pharmacists to be the active principle in its ability to treat depression, though herbalists know that the healing powers of St. Johns wort are much deeper and more mysterious than the presence of a single chemical.

To gather St. Johns Wort hold the top of the flowering plant in a bundle in one hand and cut the whole thing with the other, about four inches below the tallest bloom and stuff into your collecting bag, just keep doing that, bundle and cut until you have what you need. When you take your harvest home spread it out on a sheet in the shade and let all the animal life leave, generally one finds little light green spiders, bronze beetles and maybe a little green bug or two. As you take each handful visually check for bugs, and shake them off. Both your oil and tincture should be made using the fresh plant.

The tincture is made at a strength of 1 part herb to 2 parts alcohol (overproof rum is good otherwise use vodka or brandy). Chop your herb, put it in a jar add the alcohol then push all the herb underneath the alcohol, sometimes the herb bounces up above the level of the liquid, keep pushing it down, or you can invert the jar every day. In 6 weeks your medicine is made and you can strain and bottle.

The oil is made by finely chopping the herb, filling a jar to 3/4 full and filling the jar to the top with olive oil. This you let sit in a sunny windowsill for 4 weeks or until the oil is a rich red color. The oil will seep so be prepared for that , my windowsills are pine with a rich red patina thanks to St Johns wort oil seep. Strain the oil through cheesecloth, let it sit for another day and decant the pure red oil from the top leaving the sediment and the waste behind.

Both the tincture and the oil can be used for depression. The dose is 20 to 30 drops 3 times a day using the tincture and one teaspoon 3 times a day using the oil. The herb also has other uses. It can be used for nerve regeneration, muscle pain, myalgia, neuralgia and sciatica. Since St Johns Wort stimulates granulation and capillary regeneration it will help in the healing of wounds. It was this coupled with its formidable antibacterial and antiinflammatory abilities that made the herb so popular in Europe during the time when wars were fought with swords.

Because St. Johns wort grows in waste places you need to be careful that you do not collect it where poisons have been sprayed. Happy gathering and do it soon because the dry heat of July will end the blooming period.

      Those dandelions you see blooming prodigiously outside your window have a history as colorful
      as their blooms. Known as a medicine and food plant by us since the dawn of our human evolution,
      dandelion was involved in several dark periods in our human history, which caused
      this honored plant to transform to an annoying weed.

      In 16th century Europe doctors were discovering a lot about the workings of the human body,
      circulation of the blood for example.


They felt that old ideas of how the body worked were archaic, which they were in part, but in a case of throwing out the good with the bad, university-trained doctors turned their backs on herbal medicine. In a bid for power and control these doctors, along with the clergy, began the movement to take healing out of the hands of the women. This lead to the burning of what is estimated to be millions of women herbal healers and midwives. The herbal tradition was replaced by bloodletting and eventually the use of metal cures such as mercury. The dandelion was clearly losing respect. Fortunately there were pockets of resistance. The Puritans would not change their reliance on herbs. The peasants who could not afford or did not have access to medical care continued to use herbs medicinally. There were also some renegade doctors who kept the herbal tradition alive.

In the migration of Europeans to the New World, settlers brought with them many herbs to use as food and medicine. Plantain, chickweed, st johns wort and dandelion were among these medicinal herbs, which served the pioneers well. These plants took to the land as intently as the settlers themselves, and in the case of dandelion, reached the west coast ahead of the human migration.

Dandelion became a full fledged weed with the inventions of the tractor and the chemical herbicide (and the mind sets that went with them). We were all supposed to expect "perfect food" from the supermarket and our lawns were supposed to be "perfect". Everyone was trying hard to eliminate dandelions from their lawns, flower gardens and sidewalks. How quickly we forgot (were encouraged to forget) that dandelion was a food and a medicine.

The dandelion, so incredibly prolific, stood its ground, small sentinels waving their yellow banners as if saying its not enough, all that poison, to kill us all, and we will stand peacefully waiting for you to listen.

Dandelion has the ability to heal us. The leaf and spring dug root is a powerful diuretic and so can be used to alleviate fluid retention, it is high in potassium which is a mineral often lost from the body when allopathic diuretics are used. The fall dug root is a bitter tonic which stimulates the flow of bile from the liver and gallbladder. This increased bile flow increases the efficiency ofdigestion and acts as a laxative. The root or the whole plant (leaves and root) dug in the fall decrease enlarged liver, gallbladder and spleen. The inulin contained within the fall dug root is a blood sugar balancer and can be used in the treatment of adult onset diabetes. Dandelion root or whole plant can also be used as an antibacterial and antifungal medicine useful in the treatment of candida and other infections. The whole plant preparation is also known as a blood purifier or alterative which refers to the plants ability to alter the human system towards a state of balance and health.

As a food plant dandelion needs just a few adjustments mainly to decrease its bitterness to be a fine food packed full of minerals and vitamins. Gather the leaves (which are less bitter and more tender before flowering), chop and boil in water for 5 minutes, change the water and boil again for 5 minutes. Drain and use the greens in any of your recipes that< call for cooked spinach or nettles. Try them in lasagna, spanakopita, potato and dandelion and cheese patties.

Since dandelion blooms abound right now I cannot resist ending this article by giving you a recipe for dandelion wine.

1 gallon dandelion petals 4 lbs sugar

1 gallon water 1 tablespoon yeast

4 oranges 1 lb chopped raisins

2 lemons 1 slice of toast.

2 inches fresh ginger

Pinch the flowers from the heads. Place them in a pot, add the water and bring to a boil stirring constantly. Simmer for 30 minutes. Strain and while still hot add the sugar, shredded ginger, shredded orange and lemon rinds and the juice of these fruits and the raisins. Stir andlet cool when nearly cool to room temp add a little water to the yeast to make a paste and spread that on the cold toast and float this in your liquid. Cover and leave for three days. Siphon the liquid into a large jar and cover with a cheesecloth until bubbles almost stop, bottle and cork and let age for at least 8 months.