A Crazy Season in the Life of an Herbalist!

Well, it's been a long time since I sat down at my computer and put any energy into this neglected child. Since April 2nd to be exact! I've contemplated it a few times, but the truth is that it has been such an incredibly busy seven months there hasn't been any time for it. Harvesting season begins in early to mid April, depending on how quickly things thaw, and ends some time in November or December when the ground freezes and I can't dig any more. This has always been a busy time for me. During the most intensive periods of harvesting, which are mid May to the end of July and late October to mid November, it is often necessary for me to devote the better part of three days per week to harvesting herbs and preparing tinctures - and that is on top of everything else that I need to do. There has always been a bit of travelling that was necessary during this time as well. Mostly to teach workshops but hopefully there is time for a holiday at some point. However, in the last few years my work has expanded into some new realms that require me to travel a lot more than I am used to. This year my travelling began on April 28th and ended on November 5th. During that time I was away three weeks in May, two weeks in July, one week in August, two weeks in September, two weeks in October, and the first bit of November. All of it was work related except for a week holiday in early September. We actually had to cancel a planned road trip to Nova Scotia in mid August because it would have been too much on top of everything else.

The interesting thing is that I'm not particularly into travelling, so it's surprising that my life has taken a turn of this nature. I'd rather just stay put and deepen my relationship with the land where I live from season to season, year to year. Nevertheless, the work that I am doing that requires me to travel is amazing and expansive, and I know in my heart that it is an important part of my path. It was a busy half year but it was all amazing. The challenge has been finding time to harvest all of the herbs that I need and fit in all of my clients on the few weeks that I am here. As it was, there were a few herbs that I wasn't able to get. In my world, that means that I have to use them less to stretch the stock that I have. When I eventually run out I won't have those herbs available until three months after I harvest them next year (three months is the minimum amount of time that I macerate tinctures).

It was a busy workshop season: Discussing black elder (Sambucus nigra) at an Herbal Field Studies workshop in early July.

This year things were even more challenging because of the weather that we had. After a record breaking, bitter cold winter and late thaw, we had a very strange spring and summer. It was much cooler than normal but not in the usual way. We do typically get a cool summer about once per decade. But those summers are usually very cloudy and wet, with very little sunshine. This year it was cloudy and wet a lot of the time, but we didn't get the days (sometimes weeks) of constant rain that we usually get during this kind of summer. On the rainy days the rain was more intermittent. We also had very few thunder storms. On the positive side, most weeks we still got at least a few sunny days. This was very important from an herbalists perspective because during years when it is almost constantly cloudy and rainy, although herbs that like that kind of weather such as stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) and coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara) do very well, herbs that don't like it such as red clover (Trifolium pratense) and common St. Johnswort (Hypericum perforatum) do very poorly. For many herbs in the latter category it just isn't worth harvesting them as the quality of their medicine is very low. Fortunately, many plants can tolerate a range of habitats that get different amounts of sunlight. Therefore, it is possible to partially compensate for unusual weather conditions by harvesting them in different locations. During hot, dry years it is often possible to find healthy populations in the part of their range where they get less direct sunlight. In these areas they will experience less heat stress and the soil will be more moist. In cooler, wetter years we harvest them in the part of their range where they get the most sunlight. Here they will get as much sun as possible and the soil will be less wet. However, during extreme years even this doesn't work for some herbs and I have to pass on harvesting them and make up for it by using more of some of the other herbs that can be used as a substitute in various contexts. This is one of the reasons why it is necessary to work with a rich and diverse group of herbs. I also usually try to harvest enough herb to make a two year supply of tincture for herbs that this is manageable, meaning the ones that I use in small to moderate quantities. This is partly so that I don't have to harvest every herb every year, but also to build some resilience into my supply of tinctures. If for some reason I am not able to get some of the herbs that I need in a particular year, there will be more choices if I have to use substitutes.

Common St. Johnswort (Hypericum perforatum) doesn't like cool, cloudy, wet years.

In our area, from mid June to mid September we can usually count on at least a few weeks of hot, humid weather with temperatures of 30+ °C (86+ °F). This year we only got a couple of days of temperatures in the 30s in June and then another couple in July. As a result, although plants that like a fair bit of sun, such as wild mint (Mentha arvensis) and wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), and flower earlier in the season did fairly well with the amount of sun that we had in spite of lots of rain and cooler temperatures, some of the plants that need more heat and flower later, such as peppermint (Mentha x piperita) and spearmint (Mentha spicata), really suffered from the cumulative affects of the weather. In our area they didn't flower until early September and the quality was too poor to harvest.

Wild mint (Mentha arvensis) got enough sun and produced some good medicine this year.

Another thing that stood out this summer was the continuing decline of the local honey bee (Apis mellifera) population. Around my home there are many species of clover. They all came into flower in June: first red clover; then alsike clover (T. hybridum); then white clover (T. repens); then yellow sweet clover (Melilotus officinalis); then white sweet clover (M. alba). Honey bees love many flowers, but the clovers are among their favorites. Yet, during their peak flowering in June and July I didn't see a single honey bee. A few years ago these flowers were covered in them! There is a wild hive in the woods about 400 m from my house. This year it didn't become active until early July. As their numbers increased they gradually expanded their range, but I didn't see any within 100 m of my house until the Canada goldenrod (Solidago canadensis) was well into flower in mid July. Recent evidence suggests that a major factor in the collapse of the honey bee population in much of North America is the use of a group of pesticides that are nicotine derivatives called neonicotinoids. It's typical for us to look for simple, unidimensional solutions, but as with everything in life the cause is a lot more complicated than that and due to a combination of factors. In all likelihood the bees are being killed or weakened by the combined effects of neonicotinoids and other pesticides and, as a result, the weakened individuals are also becoming less resistant to various parasites. There are probably other environmental factors involved as well, but something needs to be done about it quickly and reducing the use of neonicotinoids is a good place to start.

The population of this colony of honey bees living in a crack in an old white pine (Pinus strobus) near my home

has been significantly reduced in the last few years

Needless to say, between the travelling and the weather conditions it was very difficult for me to get all of my harvesting done this year. There were a few plants I didn't have time to harvest and a few more that weren't good enough to harvest. This has continued up to the present. Unlike the spring and summer, September and October were warmer than usual. This had it's own challenges. For instance, I had to be away from October 24th to November 5th. I needed to harvest maidenhair tree leaves (Ginkgo biloba) before I left. I have found that the best time to harvest the leaves is in the fall when they are about midway between their transition from green to gold. In the region where I live this is usually around the third week of October. However, because of the warm weather, when I went to harvest them on October 21st they were only just beginning to turn. I knew I couldn't wait until I came back because by then they would have fallen, so I harvested them that day. They weren't perfect but they were good enough.

The maidenhair tree leaves (Ginkgo biloba) started turning gold late this year because of the warm fall.

Note the contrasting yellow and orange of the sugar maple trees (Acer saccharum) in the background.

When we returned from Mexico on November 5th the warm weather was still with us. Right away I had to get to work because the aerial parts of most of the herbaceous plants had already died back and it was time to start harvesting roots and rhizomes. We need to get them done before the ground freezes and we can't dig any more. There are also a few fruits that I need to harvest at this time of year, but they have to be harvested after a couple of good frosts, so they weren't ready yet. Things started out OK. We were getting highs of around 8-12 °C (46-54 °F) and lows of 4-7 °C (39-45 °F) and not too much rain. Perfect root harvesting weather! We got to work right away.

Here's Monika harvesting stinging nettle rhizome (Urtica dioica).

Then on November 11th the temperature went up to 18 °C (64 °F) and the next day it dropped below freezing! For a few days it wasn't so bad because the the daytime temperatures were staying above freezing. But by the end of the week temperatures had dropped to January levels. I still needed to harvest several herbs and was worried that the ground might freeze before I could do them all. The unseasonably cold temperatures weren't just a stress for us. Everybody was feeling it! On Sunday morning in my peripheral vision I caught a movement outside my kitchen window. I knew it wasn't a bird that should still be hanging around here at this time of year and sure enough there was a yellow-rumped warbler (Setophaga coronata) shivering in a tree just outside the window. That was November 16th. I have never seen any species of warbler around here later than mid October. He was probably migrating through from somewhere much further north. With the lingering warm weather he must have been taking his time. That choice could turn out to be fatal!

This is a yellow-rumped warbler (Setophaga coronata), but not the yellow-rumped warbler.

As if the cold temperatures weren't enough of a challenge, last Sunday night and all day Monday it snowed. Fortunately, we didn't get that much. I can't imagine what it must have been like a little south of us in Buffalo, New York where they got completely buried! That would have definitely been the end of the harvesting season for us.

It was incredibly beautiful in the woods on Monday afternoon. The first snow. It was perfectly still and silent, and everything was covered in a blanket of white. Monika and I would have preferred to have just gone for a nice walk. But, still racing against winter, instead we went out and harvested wild sarsaparilla rhizome (Aralia nudicaulis). This herb is a colonial species with a network of rhizomes that does not leave a recognizable stalk standing after it dies back. Below the snow and fallen leaves, the only way to identify it is by the crowns with the buds of next years growth that usually sit a bit higher than the surface of the soil. Finding them is easy, but only if you know exactly where they are growing! It's simply a matter of clearing away the snow and leaves, finding the buds, and following the rhizome from that point.

Harvesting wild sarsaparilla rhizome (Aralia nudicaulis) last weekend. Note the bud in the centre foreground.

Since Monday it has been even colder. The ground is starting to freeze, but fortunately hasn't yet completely because we got just enough snow to insulate the ground a bit. Yesterday I was able to get out and harvest high bush cranberry fruit (Viburnum opulus), which are ready now that the temperature has gone below freezing. There are a few good sized colonies of these shrubs on the property where I live. But for some reason none of them produced fruit this year. They all flowered. I can only assume that there was something about the conditions when they flowered that affected their ability to produce fruit. As a result, I had to hike a couple of kilometers into the back fields in order to find an area where there was a good supply of fruit.

High bush cranberry fruit (Viburnum opulus) can't be chopped on a cutting board because they are too juicy.

They need to be ground for a few seconds with a bit of menstruum. Great colour!

Starting today the temperature is going up again and we are supposed to get rain with the temperature peaking at around 13 °C (55 °F) by Monday before it starts dropping again. That will melt the snow and warm up the soil a bit and it looks like I will be able to harvest the last two herbs that I need to get: marshmallow root (Althaea officinalis) and wild ginger rhizome (Asarum canadense). After that harvesting season will be over for this year and I'll be using the time that I have been devoting to harvesting to converting classroom courses to online courses. This is something I don't have much time for during harvesting season. I'll also have more time to put up some more stuff on this blog. It won't be another six months until the next one!

Until next spring I can spend more of my time in nature just being with a lot less doing. I'm looking forward to that. I'm also putting out some good energy for my little winged friend and others like him that lingered too long. I hope they are able to make it to the warmer regions down south!

Harvesting Herbs: Dancing With Weather

OK, I'm back! I haven't posted anything since I returned from my back-to-back trips to Mexico and Lake Superior - and, yes, my leg is doing great! I'll provide more on that in a future post.

Unlike last year, during which the warm weather came very early in the spring and the spring and first half of summer were extremely hot and dry, so far this year it has been unusually cool and wet in the region where I live. This can have a significant influence on many plant species. Each plant has an ideal habitat that it prefers, including type of soil, moisture level, amount of sun, and climatic conditions. However, there will be a range of conditions in which it can do well and a wider range of conditions that it can tolerate. What these conditions are and how much variation it can tolerate will vary from plant to plant.

The plant life in my area can be pretty lush when there is lots of moisture like there is this year.

There is always a certain amount of climatic variation in any given region. The amount of variation in the Great Lakes region where I live is probably moderate compared to other regions. However, since around 1970 our climate has been noticeably changing - and the amount of change has been increasing with each successive decade. The kind of change is consistent with what we can expect given global trends: a progressive warming with greater extremes. This has had a noticeable impact on plant and animal species.

So, let's get back to the conditions this year. It is fortunate that, although it has been cooler and wetter, we have at least had one or two sunny days most weeks and even on some of the days that it has rained there have been sunny breaks at some point during the day. As a result, some plants that do very poorly if there has been very little sun are managing to stay relatively healthy.

Many plants that don't do well if there is too much rain and too little sunshine are still doing fairly well this year.

On the other hand, there are a few plants that are looking a bit stressed. This is particularly the case for plants, such as a few of the bedstraw (Galium) species, that grow in lower light areas that are relatively moist. Examples include cleavers (G. aparine) and rough bedstraw (G. asprellum). When there is as much rain as we have been getting this year, the typically moist areas where some of these species grow tend to be moist to the point where they are somewhat wet - and not all plants that grow in these areas necessarily like wet conditions.

Rough bedstraw (Galium asprellum) is finding many of the areas where it lives too wet this year.

As an herbalist that wild-harvests almost all of the medicines that I work with, years when it is very cloudy, rainy and cool can be challenging in a couple of ways. Firstly, most herbs need to be harvested on a sunny day and there needs to be at least one additional sunny day between the day they are harvested and the last rain. For some plants there needs to be two sunny days in between. This is because the plant tissues tend to otherwise be too wet and there are many important constituents, such the components of essential oils, that are produced in much lower quantities if there isn't much sunshine. If there are too few consistent periods of sufficient sunshine, there are also a lot fewer days when herbs can be harvested. If the timing of the sunnier periods doesn't line up with when the herbs are ready to be harvested, I may not get some herbs that year. Secondly, there are some plants, such as red clover (Trifolium pratense) and common St. Johnswort (Hypericum perforatum) that are significantly less potent during such conditions to the point where it isn't even worth harvesting them. In unusually wet (and dry!) years many plants will also be affected by mildew, making them unusable.

Red clover (Trifolium pratense) isn't happy when it's too cloudy and wet!

When the conditions are cooler, cloudier and/or wetter than usual, it is best to harvest herbs in the sunnier parts of their range where they will get maximum direct sun and the soil will be a little bit drier. In years when it is hotter, sunnier and/or drier than usual, it is best to harvest herbs in the shadier parts of their range where they are more protected from excessive sunshine and the soil will be more moist. This year, herbs such as stinging nettle (Urtica dioica), which can tolerate full sun but doesn't usually do well in it, is doing very well in more open areas.

Our native stinging nettle (Urtica dioica ssp. gracilis) is doing very well this year in more open areas.

I typically spend about one day per week harvesting the medicines from mid April to mid May; two days per week from mid May to mid June; three days per week from mid June to the end of July; two days per week in August; one day per week in September; I only harvest on two to three days in October; and then it's back up to two days per week in November. This means that during harvesting season I have to minimize the amount of days that I have a fixed schedule, such as clinic days and scheduled classes and workshops. Which days I need to harvest on depends on when the herbs reach the right stage in their life cycle for harvesting and, of course, the weather! During the peak harvesting season I do my best to allow four to five days per week when I have nothing in particular scheduled so that I can head out on a moments notice whenever the herbs and the weather align! Fortunately, a lot of the work that I do can be scheduled around my harvesting days.

This intensive harvesting schedule means that if I harvest almost all of the herbs I use and don't cut any corners to ensure that the medicines are harvested in a respectful and ecologically sustainable way, and are the highest quality possible, I can only harvest and prepare enough medicines to comfortably run clinics two days per week scheduling about five to seven clients per day. I could maybe do three days per week if I really push it, but I would rather not. These constraints are fine with me. Healing work is very intensive. If one gives oneself fully to the medicine it is very difficult to be completely present when seeing more than 15-20 clients per week. It is essential that any healer live a balanced life and look after their own health and well-being in order to be able to fully live the medicine and offer the most to those who need it.

In my practice I only run clinics one day per week. The rest of the time I do other related work such as teaching, writing, and dealing with the various responsibilities I have as a result of being on the board of directors of both our provincial and national herbalist associations. For almost two years a lot of my time has also been devoted to converting the content of courses to an online format. This will continue for a couple of years, but out of necessity it slows down during harvesting season. By nature I do best with diversity and flexibility. My work also requires that I spend regular time deepening my relationship with Nature and the medicines, whether I'm out there observing or just being.

In years where the weather conditions verge towards the extremes it can make harvesting difficult. For instance, of the sixteen herbs that I had intended to harvest this spring, I only managed to harvest ten of them. Fortunately, I didn't need as many herbs as usual. This is partly because I will often harvest enough to prepare a two year supply of tincture for herbs that I use in low to moderate quantities so that I don't have to harvest every herb that I use every year. For herbs that I use in larger quantities this isn't possible. Also, last year I used less of some of the spring herbs than usual.

 American black elder (Sambucus nigra ssp. canadensis) is right on schedule this year!

Another challenge associated with more extreme weather conditions is that it can significantly alter the life cycle of a plant. Although the timing of some species such as black elder (Sambucus nigra) and yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is pretty consistent from year to year, others can vary by as much as one to four weeks depending on the weather.

This year lance-leaved heal-all (Prunella vulgaris ssp. lanceolata) came into flower sixteen days later than last year.

Ultimately, all I can do is surrender! Herbalists have always had to learn to work with whatever Nature provides. Fortunately, I work with enough medicines that if I can't harvest a sufficient quantity (or any!) of a particular herb in any given year I usually have one or more herbs that are similar enough that I can use as a substitute. In the mean time, looking ahead at the coming weeks there is still lots of rain in the forecast. In terms of the rest of the harvesting season, I'll just have to wait and see how the summer is going to unfold. All I know for sure is it will be an adventure!

Applying a Poultice

This post is an tangent from my series on Healing Bone Fractures. In that series I have mentioned applying herbal poultices to my leg. I had considered including more details about applying a poultice in one of those posts but decided to do it separately so I can provide more details. I would like to thank my friend Elyse Portal who took some great photos while I was applying a poultice to my leg last weekend.

For the most part, a poultice is the most potent method of application of herbs to a localized area. This is because as the constituents of the herbs are absorbed into our tissues through the layer of moisture covering our skin, they are immediately replaced by more constituents from the herbs that diffuse into the layer of water. Also, the concentration of constituents is very high because the ratio of herb to liquid is very high. We are using a lot of herb and very little water.

We usually use dried herbs, but I often apply what I call a "survival poultice" if I get some kind of injury or bite when I'm wandering around in the fields and woods. In these circumstances I will find one or a few good healing herbs in my immediate area, chew them up and apply them where needed. I used to do this for my kids when they were small and we were on a hike or camping trip. You don't need to worry too much about bacteria in saliva because the antimicrobial properties of the herbs are very concentrated when applied this way and will take care of any risk of infection.

Here is the bowl of dried herbs I'm using for this particular poultice.

When using dried herbs, they should be coarsely ground. I usually rub them between my palms or use a mortar and pestle. We apply just enough boiled water to moisten them but so that they are not runny.

The herbs after moistening them with boiled water.

The purpose of the poultice I am preparing is to help heal the incisions from my surgery and to penetrate deeper into my leg to help heal my broken tibia (shinbone) as well. This poultice consists of 1 part common comfrey leaf (Symphytum officinale), 1 part stinging nettle leaf (Urtica dioica), 1 part purple loosestrife herb (Lythrum salicaria), 1 part pot marigold petals (Calendula officinalis), 1 part Canada goldenrod herb (Solidago canadensis) and 1/2 part whole flax seed (Linum usitatissimum). It is essential that a poultice is very mucilaginous. Comfrey is one of the few herbs that is mucilaginous enough that it doesn't require the addition of a more mucilaginous herb. However, since comfrey is only making up 20% of this formulation, it is necessary to add something to make it more slimy. My preference is to use a small amount of whole flax seed whenever I prepare a poultice. It will add the extra mucilage that we need and has important healing properties of its own. Never use ground flax seed. We just want the mucilage. We don't want to release the oil.

Getting ready to apply the poultice. At this point I had been poulticing the smaller incision on the right twice per day

for two weeks and the larger incision on the left for one week. There is clearly a difference between the two.

When applying a poultice I always put some gauze between the poultice and the skin. This serves two purposes: firstly, it ensures that small particles of herbs can't get into an open wound; secondly, it allows the poultice to be easily lifted off when finished without having to wipe bits of herb off the skin. This is important because when we remove the poultice we want any remaining herb infused liquid to dry on the skin. We use the minimum amount of layers of gauze to prevent bits of herb from getting through. The number of layers will depend on the thickness of the gauze.

Laying the gauze in preparation for the poultice.

When we apply the poultice we must completely cover an area a bit larger than the area we are working on with the moistened herbs and press down on them so that there is good contact with the skin. I usually apply it with a spoon and use the spoon to press the herbs once they are applied.

Beginning to apply the poultice...

...and finishing it off.

Under normal circumstances our skin is water-proof. In order to get the constituents of the herbs in our poultice to penetrate through our skin our skin must be hydrated to eliminate its water-proof characteristics. To accomplish this it is necessary for the entire area where we wish to apply the poultice to remain moist. We can't allow the skin to breathe. To accelerate this process it is also necessary that the poultice be applied as hot as we can tolerate and remain warm for the duration of the application. This process also takes time. The longer the poultice is in contact with our skin, the more hydrated our skin becomes and the better the penetration. I usually recommend a minimum of 30 minutes, but an hour or more is sometimes necessary, depending on the severity of the condition being treated. To facilitate the hydration of our skin it is best to wrap the poultice in plastic so that our skin remains in complete contact with herb infused liquid from our poultice and isn't able to breathe (no contact with air). Most types of plastic wrap are made of polyethylene which isn't known to leach any toxic chemicals. After wrapping the poultice I recommend pushing down on it once more to make sure there is good contact with the skin and no air spaces between the plastic and the herbs.

The poultice wrapped in plastic.

This whole process must be done as quickly as possible so that the herbs are still hot. Once the poultice has been wrapped in plastic it is necessary to cover it with a towel or something similar to help insulate it to keep it warm. If is going to be applied for a long period of time it may be necessary to apply a hot compress over the plastic. A cloth soaked in hot water that has been wrung out so that it isn't dripping will do. The cloth can be reheated periodically when it cools down. If the area where we need to apply the poultice isn't too large, a hot water bottle will also work and is more convenient than using a compress.

Covering the poultice with a couple of layers of towel.

Once we are done we can remove the poultice. For my leg, I have been applying a poultice for 45-60 minutes twice per day. When we use gauze the whole thing will lift off really easy.

The poultice has been uncovered and is ready to be removed.

When we remove the poultice the skin will be moist with herb infused liquid. We don't want to wipe this off. Let it dry completely before covering the area.

After removing the poultice we let the remaining liquid completely dry on the skin.

Notice the larger droplets of herb infused water.

Once the remaining herb infused water has dried completely the process is complete. We can bandage the area, if necessary, or cover it in some other way. We can also apply an ointment or liniment to the area, if appropriate, to further assist the healing process.

Which herbs we use, how often and how long we apply a poultice will depend on the situation, but the basic elements of applying a poultice will always be the same.