Herbal Face Food Plant of the Month: Yarrow
It's time for the Herbal Face Food(HFF) Plant of the Month! A monthly dedication to the various plants used by HFF to create their amazing skin care products. This months HFF plant moment is dedicated to the amazing Yarrow.
Yarrow has become one of my favorite wild herbs. Those who don't have it in their gardens probably are not aware of its medicinal and health benefits. Yarrow provides vitamins A, C potassium, zinc, magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, and niacin. Yarrow is also commonly known as an astringent with anti-inflammatory properties which is one of the main draws and with all of this its no wonder HFF wants Yarrow in their amazing serums.
About Yarrow
Yarrow originated from Europe and Asia and is now commonly found all around the globe. The scientific name for Yarrow is Achillea millefolium other names include common yarrow (the white wild Yarrow), nosebleed plant or soldier's wound wort. Several of these names tell us clearly that one of the benefits of Yarrow is blood and wound dressing. Dr. Nicole Apelian describes Yarrow in her book, The Lost Book of Herbal Remedies as, “nature's tourniquet.”
Yarrow comes in several colors from white to light pinks and purples to red and yellow. kidadl.com has a great list of specific types including their colors! I have read however that common Yarrow, that grows wild with white flowers is the best and strongest for medicinal use.
Benefits of Yarrow
The benefits of Yarrow are so vast, it truly is an amazing plant for skin. Here are just a few of the uses:
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- Yarrow can be used in teas fresh or dried for nausea or stomach flues, hard menstrual cycles or reducing fevers (as it creates sweating). Women that are pregnant should not drink Yarrow tea.
- Powder from dried yarrow can be used to stop bleeding (many sites caution not to use on deep wounds as it will heal it too quickly from the inside).
- Fresh yarrow leaves can also be used as a poultice for bleeding and the leaves can be used for stopping nose bleeds.
- Yarrow helps reduce swelling in bruises, or sprains or can be used as a antibacterial on scratches or minor cuts.
- Yarrow flowers can be used in baths for itchy skin or hives.
- The leaves and flowers can be made into a tincture with Alcohol or as an oil in olive oil or carrier oils. It can even be made into a salve with beeswax and infused yarrow oil.
- Yarrow can be substituted for hops and barley in beer and and mead.
Continue The Journey: Read more about growing and using this wonderful plant:
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- Growing Yarrow
- Yarrow Tea Recipe (coming soon!)
Brought to you by Herbal Face Food
The plant of the month series brought to you by Herbal Face Food. A company I'm very happy to support. Each of their products are made with 100% plants! The most powerful plants in the world. As they say, "HFF is not plant based it's plant powered" bringing together up to 100 different plants depending on the product. HFF is the only 100% plant based skin care product on the market. Note: I do make a small commission on referrals. As a result I'm able to offer a 20% discount to my readers along with tips on how to grow and use these same wonderful plants in your own home or plot gardens.
Growing Yarrow
Yarrow has become one of my favorite wild herbs. I received my first yarrow plants as an act of God. Yep, I found it growing wild in my pesticide/weed killer free lawn right next to the Dandelions! Once this fuzzy fern looking plant was identified as Yarrow, I knew it was staying and moved several clusters to a designated spot in the garden. It now returns annually. I do still tend to find more showing up in other areas. When this occurs I either move it to its designated spot, pull it up, or leave it right where it is and allow it to bloom.
Growing from Seed
If starting Yarrow from seed start indoors 6 to 8 weeks prior to the last frost. Plant in ground once all fear of frost has passed.
- If direct sowing start in early spring after all chance of cold has passed.
- Yarrow loves full sun, it can grow in partial shade however will not grow as strong. For this reason its best to find a sunny spot for Yarrow.
- Plant in sandy loam soil. Yarrow can grow in clay soil if water does not stand in the area for extended periods of time.
Companion Plants
- Lavender
- Garlic
- Onions
- Cabbage, broccoli, and all the Brassicas
- Oregano
- Spinach
- Thyme
Yarrow is susceptible to Powdery Mildew so DON’T grow it around plants that are also susceptible to Powdery Mildew. For example, squash, pumpkins etc.
Read more about the history and uses of Yarrow here:
HFF Plant of the Month: Yarrow
Brought to you by Herbal Face Food
The plant of the month series brought to you by Herbal Face Food. A company I'm very happy to support. Each of their products are made with 100% plants! As they say, "HFF is not plant based it's 100% plant powered." Bringing together up to 100 different plants in their products, HFF is the only 100% plant based skin care product on the market. I do make a discount for any purchases referred. In turn, I'm able to offer a 20% discount to my readers along with tips on how to use the same wonderful plants in your own home or plot gardens.
Herbal Face Food Plant of the Month: Lavender
Using Coffee Grinds in your Garden
Growing Rosemary
There are so many reasons why growing rosemary is essential in a garden, the simplest being that once established, rosemary is an easy to grow, extremely good smelling and edible shrub! Rosemary can grow up to several feet in height and can be hedged to fill hard to grow spots, tall background borders and rustic areas in gardens. It’s the perfect sun lover and is listed by the Farmers Almanac as a perennial in US zones 7 and up. Throw in all of the edible and medicinal values of rosemary and it’s easy to understand why growing rosemary is an essential herb.
Growing Rosemary from Seed
There are a few ways to start rosemary plants; one can use seeds, cuttings or established plants from a nursery or garden center. Although rosemary is a super strong, hardy and vigorous plant once established, starting from seed is actually the more difficult way to acquire one’s plants. Therefore, we shall start with seeds first.
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- It’s recommended to start rosemary seeds indoors or in a greenhouse a good 90 to 120 days before planting outside.
- Use small seed starter pots made from coconut husk soil or a good organic potting mix. Moisten the pods or soil mixed planters with water.
- Ensure the top layer is moist but not drowning. Shake the tiny rosemary seeds across the top of the soil surface.
- Rosemary is open air germinated so take care to not cover he seeds with soil. Simply press them on the soil gently and spray again with water to moisten the seeds. A quart water spray mister bottle is perfect for this stage of plant growth.
- Place moistened seeds in a warm bright window, greenhouse or lighted tent. Spray or mist with water daily ensuring seeds have a moist spot to germinate.
Once the babies reach about an inch tall, pot them up. Use large enough pots to ensure the roots are not disturbed and will enable the plants to grow a minimum of 90 days before they are migrated outdoors.
Weather and Soil
When migrating rosemary, consider the following:
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- Rosemary needs dry hot areas and once established to be left alone! Just come back every now and then for water and a good cut!
- Rosemary grows best in sandy loam soil. Clay ridden soil will be an issue as it holds water making it conducive to root rot. When faced with clay soil one will need to either modify the soil, move rosemary to another location, or consider them permanently potted.
Companion Plants
Companion planting is the process of joining plants in a way that enhances their natural abilities to thrive. Some of the best plants to grow with rosemary include:
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- Brassicas: Rosemary is a friend to brassica plants as its smell can confuse their predators . Therefore, always plant rosemary near cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, kale, Brussels, and any other plants in this wonderful family.
- Other plants that benefit when paired Rosemary include:
- Lavender, Thyme, Sage, Marigolds, Marjoram, Strawberries, Sunflowers, Rudbeckia
Cautionary plant combinations
Plant groupings one should avoid if possible; or, if necessary plan ahead ways to manage the challenges ensuring both plants thrive.
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- Mint: Mint needs shady moist spots; rosemary needs sunny dry spots. Right off the bat they do not get along.
- Basil: Basil loves the sun!! Yea! So why not basil and rosemary? Water of course. Basil loves the sun; yet, needs a consistently moist bed. Rosemary, yep.. must have dry soil!
- Other plants with the same conflicts include:Cucumbers, zinnias, tomatoes and any plant that loves moist hot conditions.
- Squash: Why? Powdery mildew. Squash and pumpkins or other plants in the squash family have a tendency for powdery mildew. Rosemary, although resistant to bugs, is prone to powdery mildew. Planting them together promotes situations where one or the other plants are consistently passing it back and forth.
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Next in works on this series
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- Growing rosemary from cuttings
Shop Oma’s Favorites
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- Western Chief is my go to place for Garden boots and shoes. So comfortable from home to garden for work and play! Use oma20 at checkout for 20% off!
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- I absolutely adore Vego Garden from their bags to their raised beds!
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- Visit Digz Gardening for comfortable, strong and cute gardening gloves!
Growing Serranos
Growing Serrano peppers is a joy. These peppers are similar to a Jalapeno with a much longer thinner body and a bit of a hotter taste. Although, I have personally found the Serrano Chili's flavor to be smoother than the jalapeno, making the heat seem much milder. These shiny green peppers are also red or yellow or orange depending on how long they are left on the plant.
Serranos are simply a wonderful pepper for the garden one plant can provide as many as a 100 peppers in a season. They are also extremely easy to grow or pickle and can be used in any recipe where a jalapeno has traditionally been used.
Tips for Growing Serranos!
- Plant Serrano's after all fear of frost has passed; or, start indoors using a heat pad to ensure soil is warm for germination.
- Once planted outdoors use a well drained loamy soil with good organic matter and some compost. I use a bag of Black Cow Compost mixed in with the soil.
- Serrano's do best in full sun. In zones 7 and above it can get upwards of a hundred degrees and Serrano peppers do well even in the heat; so, plant them in a sunny spot.
- Water Serrano's once every three to four days very deeply rather than every day. This promotes strong roots that keeps them healthy even in harsh weather.
- Serrano's grow well with a little bit of used Coffee grinds once a month along with Epsom salt and Fish Emulsion sprayed on their leaves. I prefer Alaska Fish Emulsion .
- Plan accordingly for space with Serrano's making sure to allow 18 inches in between each plant for the leaves to spread.
- Plan to cage Serrano's or provide some type of staking as branches tend to get heavy when producing peppers.
Companion Plants
Marigolds, chives, garlic, onions, sunflowers, beans, tomatoes, corn, zinnias all grow well together with Serrano peppers!
Shop My Favorites
I absolutely adore my Vego Gardens and will be adding many more as the season moves forward!
Western Chief is my go to Garden boots and shoes. So comfortable from home to garden for work and play! Use oma20 at checkout for 20% off!
I do make a small percentage for each product sold, so that I may in turn offer those discounts to you.
Amazingly Edible Sunflower
It's no secret I love Sunflowers. They’re on my fence, in my yard and make up about 60% of my tepees and arbors! However, let's talk about the amazingly edible sunflower plant! And not just seeds, all of the plant from the roots to the stalks to the leaves, petals and the seeds are edible. The majority of the entire sunflower can be eaten. It's quite amazing actually that most only know of the seeds; and, is the exact reason for this quick series starting with the leaves of the sunflower plants.
Let's Talk Sunflower Leaves!
Sunflower leaves are simply a joy to me. Why? They are so large, so strong and thick they are like pieces of leather on larger sunflower plants. They are beautiful to look at in a garden adding depth and color, texture and even height. The giant leaves add shade to plants on hot afternoons, helping to extend the lives of cold crops if grown above them. All of this is enough for one to love them. Imagine the excitement when discovering they’re also edible! I won't lie, sunflowers have a bite that's hard to explain; it's an extremely unique bitter flavor. Nutty in a way almost peppery as well. Lets look at ways to eat them!
Young Shoots
Young sunflower shoots are edible microgreens! Unlike their older siblings that get bitter with age, the microgreens are super soft, have a thick feel and at this point are actually sweet. Shoots are often grown in window gardens and used on salads and on sandwiches. Let some of the seeds fall each season and the yard will be so full there will be no issues sacrificing many of the babies to the microgreen category!
Tender Leaves
Tender leaves, those that are still young on soft stalks can be eaten raw in salads. The entire leaf can be eaten at this stage without removing the veins. Although, they actually taste slightly more bitter to me at this stage believe it or not, I prefer the mid adult leaves. One can soften the flavor some by removing the center vein of the leaf.
Large Adult Leaves
Large adult leaves can be cooked like greens, boiled, sauteed or steamed with salt, garlic and butter. The older they get the tougher they get and the longer they take to cook. When using the super large leaves, boiling first is best with a water refresh. I like to harvest the leaves in the mid range size prior to blooming. Once flowers bloom the leaves naturally start to die down.
I did say they are like the bitter lettuces, with a bite that leaves you wondering how to describe them. Serving with savory dishes compliments the bite of this beautiful green! They are also wonderful with mushrooms. The earthy flavor of mushrooms complements the greens well and they do great with fatty meats.
Here is a recipe for eating with fatty meats
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- 5 to 6 midsize Sunflower leaves
- 1 quarter purple onion
- 3 to 4 (or more if your like me 5) garlic cloves
- Balsamic vinegar
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Crushed pepper
- Butter
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- Wash, remove the center and main side veins from the leaves. Add olive oil to pan and heat while dicing garlic and red onion. Add Onion and garlic to oil and saute until slightly brown on a low simmer
- While cooking garlic and onion boil water and blanch the greens until slightly soft and the water is a soft green. Drain greens and add to butter, garlic and online mix.
- Stir fry the greens for a moment coating them with the oil. Add a few tablespoons of water. Add pepper flakes and stir fry in.
- Steam well for a moment and then add a generous amount of balsamic vinegar. Lower heat and let simmer for another 10 minutes or so. If liquid evaporates add more vinegar!
- Once the leaves are stir fried and the liquid has evaporated some add butter to the pan and allow it to sizzle
Add salt and pepper and serve hot!
Dandelions
Why do so many people hate them? The dandelion I mean not the garden boots and clogs. They're from Western Chief and I have to believe all would agree they are pretty awesome. The dandelion however, is so dreaded by so many. One can find many a gentlemen in a fit if these little guys show up in their lawn.
Personally, one of my favorite sayings is, “I have a beautiful yard, yet, it's not a lawn.” Lawn weed killer of any kind will not be used in these back gardens. That means dandelions and many other unwanted plants full of goodness are finding their way into this space. The dandelion has become one of the favorites! It's hard to believe that we as a people work so hard annually to destroy something 100% free, 100% edible and so good for our health.
Why Would one Want Dandelions?
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- Dandelions are perennials, they return every single year with no help from humans at all. Not only that, in many places they are some of the first flowers one will see. That means they bring the bees! These babies are like a light to the little pollinators of the world shining brightly and saying, “here, come here to my yard spring has arrived!” And come they will!
- The entire Dandelion is edible. From the flowers, (which are super sweet actually no wonder the bees like them) to the stems and the roots. I have grown to love grazing on dandelion flowers. Since I know the yard is poison free they can be eaten just as any other plant grown in this space.
- The flowers go in almost all salads and the young greens with them. Which by the way are one of the bitters; and, bitters do wonders for our gut. They can be used to make wine or when unopened pickled like capers
- The roots are large and long (which is why they are so strong) and can be used dried or roasted for anything from coffee to medicine.
Relocating Plants
Relocating Plants
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