Dandelion’s Secrets

The secret of the dandelion is that they really aren’t a weed, they are actually a very useful herbal remedy supporting everything from digestion to water retention.  They are also extremely resilient and adaptable, even to mowing.  Have you ever noticed, that if you mow them, they just grow shorter.  I’ve even seen flowers growing just on top of the ground. 

The Miracle Herb:

The dandelion is nothing short of a miracle herb, usable from top to bottom, and one of the most diverse “weeds” in your yard. 

The Lore:

Dandelions have been referred to as the “Shephard’s clock” because the flowers always open around sunrise and then shut around dusk.  It’s also been known to predict weather as well.  Once a flower has gone to seed, if it’s going to be sunny, that seed pod will open up into the fluffy ball we are so familiar with.  But, if it’s going to rain, the pod will close up and will remain shut while it rains, only opening when the rain stops.

Precaution:

One thing to remember is to always choose your plants carefully.  You never want to pick or use any plants that have been sprayed with anything for at least three (3) years.  Make sure when you pick a plant, that it is far enough away from any area that may have been sprayed by any weed or bug killers.  You don’t want to ingest anything that may have been sprayed on them.

To top it off, dandelions are highly nutritious and they just taste good.  You really can use every part of this plant and for far more than just an herbal tea.  Here’s just a couple of uses for each part of the plant.

Dandelion Flowers:

You have to say that the flowers are sunny, bright and beautiful.  You can pull the petals and sprinkle them over your salad.  What a beautiful addition to your food.  You can also add them to cookies and breads. 

They also make a delicious jelly that looks like honey and sunshine all rolled up in one jar.  The jelly is so pretty, it makes a marvelous gift for anyone.  

I’ve read they make a great wine as well, but I haven’t yet had a chance to try that. 

Dandelion flowers also have constituents that support your eyes, which is only fitting, really.

Dandelion leaves:

The leaves contain several minerals including iron and calcium, rivaling other beloved greens like spinach.  They have a slightly bitter taste and this is what triggers the digestive process to begin.  The younger the leaves the better tasting they are.  The larger and older the leaves, the more bitter they become.

Many people turn them into pesto just as you would basil, or cook them as you would spinach.  They can also be made into a tea as a great after dinner drink.

Have you ever wondered why salads were served before your main meal?  The salad got your gut ready for the main course.  This can help to eliminate indigestion and incomplete digestion, which can cause stomach gas and can sometimes be accompanied by pain. 

The salads of yesteryear were not the salads of today.  Back in the day, salad greens had a much more bitter taste than our various greens of today.  Today we have worked to grow the bitter taste out of our greens losing some of the benefits that bitter tasted offered us.

The leaves are also a strong diuretic.  They are used most commonly to address swelling, and symptoms of high blood pressure.  

While the name “dandelion” comes from the French words “dent de lion”, meaning “teeth of a lion”, referring to the leaves, the French actually most commonly call a dandelion “piss-en-lit”, pronounced peace-on-lee, which literally translates to “pee the bed”.

Dandelion Roots:

Dandelion roots are considered a liver tonic, supporting liver function in eliminating toxins from our body.  Inefficient liver function that can’t adequately get rid of the toxins in the body will generally show up in your skin first.  So if you are having skin problems, that’s always a good place to start.

Roasted roots are also considered a good replacement for coffee.  A dandelion, as a general rule, has one large tap root that grows straight down and they can be hard to pull without breaking.  Use a weed puller or a screwdriver and run it down beside the root and wiggle.  This will help loosen the root.  If you do break the root, no worries, another dandelion will grow again next year!

Wash it, slice it and spread it out evenly on a cookie sheet then roast in an oven on a very low heat for 3-5 hours with the door open to dry it.  Then turn your heat up to about 350 deg. And roast it for about 40 min.  Once it’s good and roasted, let it cool, then ground it.  I haven’t had an occasion to try this yet, but it is on my list.  I hear as it’s roasting it smells like mocha.

Not Just Tea:

My husband is not a tea drinker and not much of a salad eater either, so I like to make a tincture with it as well.   For those who aren’t thrilled with the taste of teas or just don’t drink teas, tinctures are always a good choice.

I hope this makes you want to try using the dandelion and begin to think of it as an ally, rather than just a weed.  The internet is full of information and there are many websites that have recipes and other uses for dandelions.  I hope you do some research and find a cool way to use the dandelions from your yard.  Share in the comments any recipes or uses you come up with, I'd love to hear them.

Easy Homemade Apple Cider Vinegar

I’ve made my own apple cider vinegar long enough I really don’t know how much it costs per quart at the store anymore.  But, I’m pretty sure homemade costs less and taste better than store bought. If you are using apples for any apple dish, you can make your own apple cider vinegar.

Chamomile, A Flower or a Weed

Is Chamomile a flower or a weed?  I guess that depends on who you ask.  Even some in the herbal community will call it a weed.  I never thought of it that way, although my husband does.

When I first planted Chamomile, I thought it was so pretty and it smelled remarkable.  On top of that it's full of uses, the best of which is drinking Chamomile tea.  At that time, I had no idea how it spread.  Even so, I think it's great, BUT, you have to learn to control it.

From my garden.

Chamomile, the first year

Years ago I planted Chamomile in a raised bed.  It was a circle bed about a foot & a half round.  It grew so pretty and made so many flowers.

I picked and picked and dried the flowers and used them for many different things.  At the end of that year, we had to move the bed.  I was going to lose my Chamomile, but I knew I could always plant some more.

Chamomile, the second year

The following year, I found little plants along the driveway and the patio.  I was so excited, I really didn't lose all my Chamomile!!

So I protected them by not letting my husband mow them down and I picked and picked the flowers again.  I was happy.

Chamomile, the third year

Then came the next year.  I found Chamomile in every corner of my yard.  The leaves are so feathery, the flowers are so pretty and smell so good and it makes magnificent tea, so no worries.

This time I had to really work to convince my husband to leave various patches alone so they could grow.  I even had to make a deal with him that he could cut that area down, if he would leave this area alone.  And I continued to pick flowers.

Some people may say that makes for a nuisance weed, I just think it makes the yard look nice.

There are so many things you can use Chamomile for, that I just can't imagine ever thinking of this plant as a nuisance.  Besides the fact that it smells divine, it taste great as a tea.  For those teas that don't taste so good, but are good for you, all you have to do is add a bit of Chamomile to make it palatable, to help the medicine go down, as they say.

Comment below and let me know what you use chamomile for.  I'd love to hear!!

Natural Weed Killer

It wasn’t until I had grandkids that “organic” and “natural”  even became a thing to me.  I actually felt bad enough for not thinking of it while my own son was young, that I apologized to him.

When the thought of having a grandchild actually became a reality, I couldn’t imagine bringing her around anything that was so full of chemicals.  The more I read the labels the more I didn’t want any of that stuff around my grandkids or us, for that matter.  I decided then and there, that there had to be a better way or at least a more chemical-free way.

We live in the country and have a very large driveway made of rock.  My husband wanted to keep it as weed free as possible since we can’t mow it.  When the kids come out and play on that driveway, so I wouldn’t let him spray any of that poison on it.  I had to come up with a better solution.

I searched the internet and found several different recipes and ideas, some worked okay and some not at all.  The more I read the more I started noticing common ingredients in a lot of them and decided I could  make my own.  When I finally put it together, it WORKED!!!  I was so happy.  Sadly it only kills the top of the plant, the part that the solution touches.  I can live with that.

            It actually impressed both of us.  This recipe is too easy not to try.  So I had to share.

Natural Weed Killer:

1. Add 1 cup of salt to a quart jar.
2. Fill the jar with water and let it sit for a week to dissolve as much of the salt as you can.
3. Put 1 gallon white vinegar in a 2 gallon sprayer
4. Add the quart of salt solution.  Rinse and get as much of the salt as you can out of the quart jar.  
5. Continue to let it sit for a short while longer to melt as much more of the salt as you can.  You want to melt as you can, so it won’t clog your sprayer.  (Don’t ask me how I know that.)
6.   Add a few tablespoons of dish soap to the sprayer (or actually I use the soap I make dish soap with)
7. Shake it up completely (or as best you can in a 2 gallon sprayer container).
8. Soak the plants with a sprayer on a day that you have lots of sun.  I’m not positive, but I think the sun helps kill the plant.  I’ll have to test that sometime.

          Within hours you will begin to notice weeds turning brown.  With large clumps of grass it may only kill the outside of the clump.  You may have to spray those more than once, but apparently, from what my husband tells me about the old “store bought” weed spray, it still worked faster and better.

Saturday 1 pm

Sunday 8am

This plant continued to die off until it became dust and blew away!!!  YAY!!!

           If you have some weeds to get rid of, you might give this a try.  If you do, let me know how it works for you.  We were highly impressed with how fast the weeds died.  

           Do you have a recipe that you use that works great?  If so, please put it in the comments.  The more ideas the better, in my humble opinion.

Essential Oils

I've just recently REALLY discovered essential oils.  I mean, I've always known about them and used them occasionally.  But recently, I've discovered how good they REALLY are and have started using them daily.  I didn't realize how handy they are.

Since our grand-daughter was born our lifestyle has moved to a more and more organic and natural one, making most of our household products and using less and less store bought cleaning supplies and personal products.  The oils just fit in perfectly.

I began seeing Doterra Oils a lot.  What I first liked about them is they are delivered through the mail!!!  I love that I can have them delivered because I really hate shopping.  Then I found out how to get discounted oils.

Doterra allows you to pay a fee (kind of like Costco) and you get wholesale pricing.  Nothing minimum to buy, just buy what you use, if you want.  You can go on to sell them if you want, but it's not necessary.  From what I read there are a lot of people who are making a really good living.  I like the mixtures they sell, and their oils are first rate and I'm happy with that, so they are worth the fee.  And considering how much we use them that discount way out does the fee.  If I go on to sell some, that's a bonus.

As time goes on I'll learn more and more.  I'm so happy with what I've learned and experienced so far I can't wait to share.  It's the easiest "help yourself" I've ever run across.  Besides, they smell awesome, make the house smell great and I can even use them for perfume.  If you'd like to look it over yourself and read some great information on your own, you can visit here.

I hope you come back for more as I hope to post some more information on oils.  I hope others can get as much out of them as we have.  And I'd love to know what you've discovered about essential oils and their uses.  Leave me a note on how you use them.

The End of the Weekend

Tis true, Sunday evening and the weekend is almost over. 

Ah well, a hot bath, candles, the right essential oils, a glass of wine and a homemade face mask will make tomorrow morning okay again.

Have a great evening and I hope your weekend was a great one.

Good Night.

Practicing to Relax

Do you ever feel like you need to work at relaxation?  Sounds like an oxy-moron, doesn't it?  But nonetheless, it's true.  For most of us relaxation actually is close to impossible.  In our day in age, relaxation has become an art...a hard earned art and only if you practice it.

I have to remind myself several times a day to relax.  It's not something I remember to do naturally.  If I don't my shoulders and neck start to hurt and I can get a headache before I even realize it's starting.

I've learned to relax in a number of different ways, depending on where I am and what I'm doing.

If I'm at work, I have to be able to use a quick method and is pretty low key as to what I'm doing.

I sit at a desk all day and in some cases I can sit there for several hours at a time using a computer so I try to stop every hour or so.  I'll put my hands in my lap, sit up straight, feet flat on the floor and take several deep breaths with my eyes closed.  While doing this I visualize a white/yellow light above my head and as I exhale, that light rains down on and through my head and body.  With each breath my shoulders and/or neck will feel just a little more relaxed.  After about 4 or 5 breaths, I'm ready again.

Or, I'll take a deep breath and lift and tighten my shoulders, hold both for a count of 4 or 5 and then release my breath and relax and roll my shoulders slowly, again to a count of 4 or 5.  Repeating this for 4 or 5 times.

While I'm at home I can use longer methods that are a bit more involved and more fun.

Sometimes a hot bath with epsom salts, or maybe some bubble bath always with essential oils and of course candles.

A bit of music maybe a mask made of crushed oats, yogurt and honey.

Listening  to music and just watching the flame dance on the candle can be magic.

Maybe take a walk and enjoy nature.

As the saying goes, stop and smell the roses (so to speak), enjoy the view, listen to the birds and even the wind blowing through the trees.

 The point is instead of thinking of all the things that need done, just listen to what's around you, enjoy what you see.  Look for the simple things and fill your head with paying attention to those things.

Whatever works for you, use it.  We don't do it enough and it makes all the difference in dealing with stress and strain in our full everyday lives.