Potato Gardens

echinacea

The witches garden contains many gentle plants to heal and soothe and energise, to work with spirits, to expand and to rest, as needed.  This year I am growing mint - for tummy aches, cooling the respiratory/circular system, toothpaste, and room freshener - ; nasturtium - for peppery salads and colourful resilience - ; echinacea - for boosting the immune system and to protect an endangered species - ; basil - for cleansing and cooking - ; thorn apple - for beauty and protection - ; aloe vera - for cuts and burns, cleansing the water/lymph system, and lovely skin.  I have sprouted them from seed and am busy putting them in pots!  Hands in the earth :)

thorn apple

In the future it would also be delicious to grow mugwort - for dreams - ; st johns wort - for an uplifted mooed - ; calendula and cucumbers - for gorgeous skin and cleansing - ; hibiscus - for vitamin c, shampoo, and feng shui - ; thyme - for colds and sore throats, cooking, and wounds; lavender - for incense and anitviral teas.  Since I am new to growing my own herbs, I'm taking it slow and learning about a few at a time.  It's rather like having babies, as each one needs careful attention as to its need for sun, water, drainage, its best companions, and its general temperaments.  Being so busy, I chose to use covered sprouting containers for mini greenhouse effects, and this worked wonderfully!  

mugwort

In times past women were burned at the stake for cultivating gardens which would aid and harmonise their families.  Today, we have licensed herbalists.  With allopathic care on the decline in terms of quality and affordability, many of us turn to natural remedies. As our systems continue to reorganise over the next 50 years or so I see the use of home remedies on the rise, an increase in connections between energetic and herbal headings, and a willingness to integrate natural and allopathic methods at socio-systemic levels.  In beginning my own witches garden I take responsibility for my own part in these changes, and embrace a willingness to care for myself at deep levels.

skullcap

I am lucky that my father was a budding herbalist, studying at it for many years, and he always had a remedy at hand.  A few years ago I inherited his best herb books and a box of jars, and now I am finally at it!  One of the best remedies he ever gave me was for relaxation and boosting a tired body.  He brought it to me in the hospital after I had given birth and this was pure magic!  It contained skullcap and a few other things I can't quite remember.... because of this I use skullcap regularly when I want to unwind.  Combined with valerian it is also a powerful sleeping aid.  

Another favourite is ginger and liquorice reduction for winter flus.  Ginger calms the tummy and increases circulation to aid fevers, and liquorice is powerfully antiviral.  Combined they help decongest a stuffy nose, and they taste nice too :)  

hibiscus

Recently, with all the travel and excitement, my immune system went into low drive and hosted an infection in the eye.  Being away from home I didn't have my choice of remedies at hand - goldenseal and eyebright tinctures- so I chose to use gooey antibacterial eye drops.  They are doing the job in terms of clearing the actual infection, however they did nothing to soothe the symptoms!    Then a friend piped up with one of his mothers home remedies I had never heard of....potatoes!  If you cut slices of raw potato and hold it over the eyes it literally sucks the inflammation out.  At first drainage came out of my eyes, then I could feel my eyelids shrinking, and then the potato slices became warm.  At this stage I threw the slices away and did it again...equally effective :)  Within a few hours the swelling had gone down completely, and then another friend came to my aid.  They made an infusion of tulsi tea and fresh mint, and once cooled, I washed my eyes with it.  The redness disappeared along with the sense of irritation :)  There are many remedies for every ailment our bodies may encounter, and they are free, and alive, and ready to teach us~ ohm.