Plants have evolved the ability to synthesize chemical compounds that help them defendagainst attack from a wide variety of predators such as insects, fungi and herbivorous mammals. By chance, some of these compounds, whilst being toxic to plant predators, turn out to have beneficial effects when used to treat human diseases. Such secondary metabolites are highly varied in structure, many are aromatic substances, most of which are phenols or their oxygen-substituted derivatives.Herbalism is a traditional medicinal or folk medicine practice based on the use of plants and plant extracts. Herbalism is also known as botanical medicine, medical herbalism, herbal medicine, herbology,Indigenous healers often claim to have learned by observing that sick animals change their food preferences to nibble at bitter herbs they would normally rejecHerbalists tend to use extracts from parts of plants, such as the roots or leaves but not isolate particular phytochemicals. Pharmaceutical medicine prefers single ingredients on the grounds that dosage can be more easily quantified. It is also possible to patent single compounds, and therefore generate income.Herbalists often reject the notion of a single active ingredient, arguing that the different phytochemicals present in many herbs will interact to enhance the therapeutic effects of the herb and dilute toxicity.
Himalayan Honey: Honey is produced by bees as a food source. In cold weather or when fresh food sources are scarce, bees use their stored honey as their source of energy. By contriving for bee swarms to nest in artificial hives, people have been able to semidomesticate the insects, and harvest excess honey. In the hive (or in a wild nest), there are three types of bees in a hive:a single female queen bee, a seasonally variable number of male drone bees to fertilize new queens,some 20,000 to 40,000 female worker bees.In the hive, the bees use their "honey stomachs" to ingest and regurgitate the nectar a number of times until it is partially digested.The bees work together as a group with the regurgitation and digestion until the product reaches a desired quality. It is then stored in honeycomb cells. After the final regurgitation, the honeycomb is left unsealed. However, the nectar is still high in both water content and natural yeasts, which, unchecked, would cause the sugars in the nectar to ferment. The process continues as bees inside the hive fan their wings, creating a strong draft across the honeycomb, which enhances evaporation of much of the water from the nectar.This reduction in water content raises the sugar concentration and prevents fermentation. Ripe honey, as removed from the hive by a beekeeper, has a long shelf life, and will not ferment if properly sealed.
Medicinal Herbs:For many of the field grown herbs, production of transplants is recommended. These can be grown just like vegetable transplants in the greenhouse. Check the germination rates on the seed packages. Keep in mind that most of these herbs have not been bred or developed in any way. The seed you buy may, in fact, have been collected from wild populations. So, germination percentages can be very low or erratic. Many of the open field herbs are planted in the spring whereas most of the woodland herbs are fall planted. Whether direct seeded or transplanted, use mechanical planters if possible to speed the task and save the back.Many growers are under the impression that herbs don't have disease or insect problems. Nothing could be further from the truth. It is not uncommon for there to be few if any problems the first year or two that you try to grow the crop. And when we grow a wide variety of herbs together in an herb garden, we don't usually have any major problems. But if you try to grow medicinal herbs in a commercial, monoculture system, sooner or later you are going to have some insect and disease problems. Keep in mind that there are few, if any, agricultural chemicals cleared for use on medicinal herbs. In addition, many buyers want certified organic herbs. So, controlling pests on herbs can be very difficult. Prevention is definitely easier than control. Good water and air drainage will go a long way towards preventing many problems. Maintaining a healthy soil, not overwatering or overfertilizing, and scouting frequently are necessary to keep pest problems low. Diseases we encounter include most of those you are already familiar with, such as rhizoctonia, pythium, alternaria, phytophthora, and fusarium. Insects commonly found include aphids, mites, whiteflies, cutworms, earworms, flea beetles, and Japanese beetles.Most of the open field grown herbs are harvested the same season they are sown. Examples of hese include burdock, dandelion, and milk thistle. Some are perennials which can be cut and regrown several times, e.g., Echinacea, St. John's wort, and stinging nettle. For dandelion and Echinacea, several cuttings of the plant tops can be made before harvesting the roots. The woodland botanicals must be grown for three years or more before harvesting the roots.
In the meantime, seeds can be harvested and sold.It is very important to plan for harvest long before the harvest is to take place. Available equipment can often be modified for herb harvest, but this takes time to prepare for. Considerations for harvest are that plants harvested for the herb (leaves and stems) must be kept clean, flowers must be handled gently, and root crops are often fibrous and matted together. We have successfully harvested Echinacea tops and stinging nettle tops with a stickle bar on a BCS two-wheel tractor and simply undercut goldenseal with the same blade we use for strawberry plants.Once harvested, the herb must be handled according to buyer specifications. Fresh herb must be cooled and transported quickly to the processor. Herb to be dried must put into the driers shortly after harvest to maintain color and quality. Roots must be carefully washed before drying. Roots washers are often constructed of a metal drum, mounted on an incline, that turns slowly while clean water runs over the roots. Root and herb must be very clean. Buyers will ash the product to determine the amount of dirt present. Too much dirt will cause the product to be rejected or bought at a reduced price. Buyers will also test the product for chemical constituency and bacterial contamination.Drying of both roots and herb should be done very carefully to maintain quality. The key is to keep temperatures low (95-100 degrees F) and air flow high. Modified tobacco barns have worked well and many simple driers have been constructed.Package the dried herb or root according to buyer specifications. This often means cardboard barrels or boxes (like watermelon boxes) or supersacks. Keep the product dry and cool..
Morel Mushroom:Morels occasionally contain insect larvae that drop out during the drying process.Morels are a feature of many cuisines, including Provençal. Their unique flavor is prized by cooks worldwide, with recipes and preparation methods designed to highlight and preserve it. As with most edible fungi, they are best when collected or bought fresh.One of the best and simplest ways to enjoy morels is by gently sauteeing them in butter, cracking pepper on top and sprinkling with salt. Others soak the mushrooms in an egg batter and lightly bread them with saltine crackers or flour before frying them.Morels are not improved by extensive washing or soaking, as it may ruin the delicate flavor and require long cooking times. Due to their natural porosity, morels may contain trace amounts of soil which cannot be washed out. They can best be 'flash frozen' by simply running under cold water or putting them in a bucket to soak for a few minutes, then place on a cookie sheet or pizza pan and place into a freezer. After freezing they keep very fresh with the frozen glaze for a long time in Tupperware containers. However, when thawed they can sometimes turn slightly mushy in the cap. Any visible soil should be removed with a brush, after cutting the body in half lengthwise if needed.Drying is a popular and effective method of long-term storage for morels, and they are readily available commercially in this form; dried morels can be reconstituted by soaking in warm water or milk. They may also be frozen after steaming or frying. Canning is not recommended because the necessary high pressure and temperature destroys much of the nutty flavor.Black morels may grow abundantly in forests which have been burned by a forest fire. The mechanism for this behavior is not well known, but appears to be related to both the death of trees and the removal of organic material on the forest floor.
Moderate-intensity fires are reported to produce higher abundances of morels than low or high intensities. Where fire suppression is practiced morels often grow in small amounts in the same spot year after year. If these areas are overrun by wildfire they often produce a bumper crop of black morels the following spring. Commercial pickers and buyers in North America target recently burned areas for this reason. The Finnish name, huhtasieni, refers to huhta, area cleared for agriculture by slash and burn method. These spots may be jealously guarded by mushroom pickers, as the mushrooms are a delicacy and sometimes a cash crop.Efforts to grow morels are rarely successful and the commercial morel industry is based on harvest of wild mushrooms.
Natural Herbal Soaps:
All natural cold processed soaps are perfect for even the most delicate, sensitive skin. Each bar is ultra moisturizing, non comedogenic, loaded with naturally occurring glycerin and created by hand in small batches using only the finest of ingredients; pure plant derived essential oils, olive oil for smooth soft skin, coconut oil for an exceptionally rich lather, and palm oil for a harder, longer lasting bar. These soothing luxurious cleansing bars have a wonderful dense rich lather that leaves the skin delightfully clean, soft and supple. Whether you have dry, oily, or problem skin, our all natural soap is fabulous for all ages and skin types; satisfaction guaranteed! Available in the following fragrances: Lavender, Tea Tree Sage, Orange Chamomile, Peppermint, Rosemary, Patchouli, Lemongrass, San Jose Blend, Vetiver, and Aloe Vitamin E. 4-6 oz. each.This aromatic herbal soap combines moisturising vegetable oils with therapeutic traditional herbs. Filled with our unique blend of natural vegetable oils, each with their own nourishing properties, the soap contains sweet almond oil to condition the skin, luxurious olive oil to hydrate and coconut oil for a rich, creamy lather. Beeswax is added to soften the skin, and it even acts as an anti-inflammatory. To this blend we add organic herbs and our essential oil based fragrances to give you a luxurious bar of creamy long-lasting soap to leave your skin completely cleansed and richly rejuvenated.
