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!

Healing Bone Fractures, Part 2 of 5

This is the second in a series of posts in which I am documenting the process of treating a serious fracture of my right leg. In Part 1 I discussed the details behind the injury and the initial protocols that I used with the remedies I had available while I was still away. In this post I am going to explain the protocol that I implemented when I returned home.

I returned home on evening of Sunday February 3rd, four days after my injury and three days after my surgery. On Monday we picked up some additional supplements that I needed and then on Tuesday I made up a couple of new formulations specifically formulated to address my injury. This is the protocol that I implemented at that time:

Homeopathics: I am taking Arnica 200C, Hypericum 200C and Symphytum 200C individually, four pellets per dose alternated throughout the day. The dosage of each remedy varies over time according to the following protocol:

• Week 1: Arnica 4 doses per day; Hypericum 4 doses per day; Symphytum 4 doses per day.
• Week 2: Arnica 3 doses per day; Hypericum 3 doses per day; Symphytum 3 doses per day.
• Week 3: Arnica 2 doses per day; Hypericum 2 doses per day; Symphytum 3 doses per day.
• Week 4: Arnica 1 dose per day; Hypericum 1 dose per day; Symphytum 3 doses per day.
• Week 5 and onwards (until my bones are completely healed): Symphytum 3 doses per day.

Herbs: I created three new formulations to address my specific needs:

• A systemic herbal formulation prepared from 1:5 fresh herb tinctures containing turmeric rhizome (Curcuma longa) 18%, common horsetail herb (Equisetum arvense) 15%, boneset herb (Eupatorium perfoliatum) 15%, St. Johnswort herb (Hypericum perforatum) 15%, American plantain herb (Plantago rugelii) 15%, common comfrey herb (Symphytum officinale) 15%, wild ginger rhizome (Asarum canadense) 5%, white pine leaf/twig (Pinus strobus) 2%. This formulation is a specific for healing damaged tissues and blood vessels, bone, and improving general circulation. Boneset and turmeric also have a significant tonic action on the liver which will help address any stress on my liver from the medications and other aspects of my hospital experience, as well as protect my liver from any toxicity from the pyrrolizidine alkaloids in the comfrey, which is the best herb I know for healing bones and well worth the very slight risk of toxicity. Given that the comfrey will not exceed the 15-20% range in any of the formulations that I use and will be combined with herbs that can mitigate its potential toxicity, the likelihood of any toxicity is almost nil. Boneset and horsetail are also specifics for healing bone tissue. This formulation is taken in 6 ml doses three times per day on an empty stomach, 5-10 minutes before each meal.

Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum) is an excellent healing herb that is very effective for the healing of bone tissue.

• A systemic herbal sleep formulation prepared from 1:5 fresh herb tinctures containing English lavender flowering spike (Lavandula angustifolia) 20%, St. Johnswort herb (Hypericum perforatum) 20%, catnip herb (Nepeta cataria) 20%, American plantain herb (Plantago rugelii) 15%, hop strobilus (Humulus lupulus) 15%, turmeric rhizome (Curcuma longa) 9%, white pine leaf/twig (Pinus strobus) 1%. The dosage of this formulation is 6 ml immediately before bed and additional 3 ml doses through the night, as required. Getting sufficient sleep is one of my greatest challenges. I tend to be a light sleeper. I sleep on my sides and wake up four or five times a night feeling a bit stiff and change my position, flipping from side to side and then falling back to sleep fairly quickly. With my broken leg I can only sleep on my back. This is difficult for me because as a general rule I can't sleep on my back, and it also doesn't allow me to shift my position sufficiently. By half way through the night my lower back is very stiff and sore. Most nights I'm only getting five to six hours sleep, and that's with the sleep formulation. Occasionally I get a bit more. Getting sufficient sleep is critical to the healing process, so I made this formulation to help me sleep better. Notice that it contains a few of the herbs that are in my daytime formulation. This is to help continue to support the healing process through the night. It is also important that the overlapping herbs contribute to the sleep formulation. You will find few, if any, references to plantain having sedative properties, but it does. As a general rule, whenever someone is taking more than one herbal formulation concurrently, it is usually preferable if there is some overlap between the herbs in the different formulations. As in this case, the overlapping herbs must contribute to the desired actions of both formulations.
• A topical liniment made up of a base containing 1:5 fresh herb infused oils of pot marigold flower head (Calendula officinalis), Canada goldenrod leaf (Solidago canadensis), wild bergamot herb (Monarda fistulosa), coltsfoot leaf (Tussilago farfara), St. Johnswort herb (Hypericum perforatum), northern white pine leaf (Pinus strobus) and American plantain herb (Plantago rugelii). This infuse oil was prepared last year. The herbs are in descending order based on proportion as I am not certain of the exact percentages. To the base oil I added the following essential oils at an overall potency of two drops per ml of base oil: rosemary leaf (Rosmarinus officinalis) 25%, English lavender flower (Lavandula angustifolia) 25%, black spruce leaf/twig (Picea mariana) 15%, marjoram herb (Origanum majorana) 10%, eastern hemlock leaf/twig (Tsuga canadensis) 10%, Roman chamomile flower head (Chamaemelum nobile) 5%, yarrow herb (Achillea millefolium) 5% and eastern white cedar (Thuja occidentalis) 5%. I apply this twice a day, immediately upon waking and just before bed, to the lower thigh, knee and half of the foot of my injured leg as my leg below my knee and half of my foot are covered by a tensor bandage. I also apply it to the hip, knee and ankle of my left leg, and my wrists, as these areas are being stressed in unusual ways due to using crutches.

In this photograph we have common plantain (Plantago major), an alien species that has naturalized throughout

North America, on the left, and American plantain (P. rugelii), our native species, on the right. Notice the

reddish colour at the base of the petioles (leaf stalks) of American plantain. Most people

(including herbalists) don't realize that these are two different species.

Two weeks after my surgery I went to the hospital to have my stitches removed. There was a lot of pressure on my stitches due to the edema in my leg that occurs whenever I am moving around in an upright position. The blood and lymph tends to pool in my leg because I am not using my leg to walk, which is necessary to efficiently pump the fluids out of my leg against the force of gravity. As a result, the doctor decided to leave every second stitch in my lower, longer incision for another two weeks. In the mean time, beginning a couple of days after I got my stitches out I started poulticing the shorter incision from which all of the stitches were removed. I am applying a poultice twice per day for 30-45 minutes. The primary herbs that I am using are common comfrey leaf (Symphytum officinale), stinging nettle leaf (Urtica dioica), pot marigold petals (Calendula officinalis), purple loosestrife herb (Lythrum salicaria), and a bit of whole flax seed (Linum usitatissimum) to increase the mucilage content. I use these herbs in roughly equal proportions (except for the flax seed) and each time add a sixth herb in a similar proportion. I have a lot of "ends" which are small quantities of herbs that are left over from when I harvest herbs to make tinctures. I dry these remainders and use them when the opportunity arises. This is one of those opportunities. Each time I make a poultice I use a different sixth herb. Some of the herbs that I have used so far include elecampane leaf (Inula helenium), wood nettle leaf (Laportea canadensis), Canada goldenrod herb (Solidago canadensis), blueweed herb (Echium vulgare), blue vervain herb (Verbena hastata), wormwood herb (Artemisia absinthium), yarrow herb (Achillea millefolium), yellow bedstraw herb (Galium verum) and pearly everlasting herb (Anaphalis margaritacea).

Supplements: I was able to obtain the additional supplements that I need over the course of the first week that I was back so that since about a week and a half after my injury I have been on the full complement of supplements that I need to help heal my leg. These supplements are very important whenever there is significant tissue damage, but they are particularly important for healing damaged bone, cartilage, tendons and ligaments, regardless of the cause of damage. I use a similar supplement regimen for the treatment of osteoarthritis and osteoporosis. Although there are a number of supplements available that are formulated for building bone tissue that contain some of these nutrients, I chose not to use any of them because I didn't like any of the formulations. All of them were missing important nutrients, had way too much calcium relative to the other ingredients, and most of them were compromised in some way by using cheaper, low quality ingredients such as magnesium oxide. As a result, I had to put this supplement regimen together using a fair number of products. Nevertheless, the importance of using all of these nutrients in the right balance can not be over emphasized. I have listed them here by nutrient instead of by which ones I am taking with each meal, as I did in the first post of this series, so that it is more clear what I am taking. All of these are taken with meals:

• Vitamin A: 3,500 IU with breakfast; 3,500 IU with dinner.
• Beta-carotene: 750 IU with breakfast; 750 IU with dinner.
• Vitamin C (calcium and magnesium ascorbate): 1,485 mg with breakfast; 1,360 mg with lunch; 1,485 mg with dinner.
• Vitamin D: 1,200 IU with breakfast; 1,000 IU with lunch; 1,400 IU with dinner.
• Vitamin E (mixed tocopherols, acetate): 115 IU with breakfast; 40 IU with lunch; 315 IU with dinner.
• Vitamin K: 60 mcg with breakfast; 80 mcg with dinner.
• Calcium (citrate, ascorbate, malate): 150 mg with breakfast; 135 mg with lunch; 450 mg with dinner.
• Magnesium (citrate, ascorbate, malate): 60 mg with breakfast; 60 mg with lunch; 260 mg with dinner.
• Zinc (citrate): 5 mg with breakfast; 25 mg with dinner.
• Silicon (aqueous horsetail extract): 4.7 mg with breakfast; 4.7 mg with lunch; 4.7 mg with dinner.
• Manganese (chelate, citrate): 0.5 mg with breakfast; 5.5 mg with dinner.
• Copper (citrate): 0.5 mg with breakfast; 1.5 mg with dinner.
• Boron (chelate): 350 mcg with breakfast; 350 mcg with dinner.
• Selenium (chelate): 50 mcg with breakfast; 150 mcg with dinner.
• Polyphenol complexes (flavonoids, anthocyanidins, proanthocyanidins and catechins from extracts of berries, citrus, grape seed and green tea): 325 mg with breakfast; 225 mg with lunch; 325 mg with dinner.
• Quercetin: 100 mg with breakfast; 100 mg with lunch; 100 mg with dinner.
• Lutein: 0.5 mg with breakfast; 0.5 mg with dinner.

Blueberries (Vaccinium spp.) are a very rich source of anthocyanins and flavonoids, including quercetin.

Some of these are ingredients from a multivitamin that I am taking with breakfast and dinner. It is a good quality low potency multi with an excellent trace mineral content. It does not contain iron. I did not list all of the ingredients of the multivitamin, only those that are important for bone repair. However, the full range of nutrients in the multi are important to support healing in general. Mostly what I haven't listed are the B vitamins and some of the other trace minerals. In addition, I am also taking omega-3 fatty acids in the form of organic flax seed oil, 2-3 teaspoons taken throughout the day mixed in food (but not heated).

In addition to the above supplements that I am taking with meals, I am also taking the following on an empty stomach three times per day 30 minutes before each meal:

• Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) 400 mg.
• Glucosamine hydrochloride 300 mg.
• Betaine 80 mg.
• Hyaluronic acid 10 mg.

Probiotics: Another one of the challenges that I am dealing with is constipation. It started with fasting from food and water for 16 hours before my surgery and was further aggravated by the intravenous hydromorphone and three courses of intravenous antibiotics that I was given through the night after my surgery. However, the ongoing issue is that I am spending a lot more time sitting and can't walk or run, which is important for good bowel tone. I am addressing this by taking a high potency probiotic supplement that contains 25 billion active cells of a combination of eight active strains of bacteria. I take this first thing in the morning in a glass of warm water with a tablespoon of whole organic flax seed. My bowel movements gradually returned to normal during the first week that I took this and I am continuing to take it on an ongoing basis.

Lactobacillus rhamnosus: An important probiotic species.

Exercise: This is another of my major challenges. The surgeon wants me to spend most of my day sitting or laying with my injured leg raised. This is not an option. It's bad enough that the muscles in my right leg are getting weaker. I'm not going to sit around and let my whole body atrophy. Plus, I have clients and students that depend on me and lots of work to be done. My life has definitely slowed down and there are many things that are too difficult or impossible for me to do, but I'm not out of commission completely. I have sit stations all over my house where I work, eat and rest consisting of a padded chair to sit on and a second chair with a pillow on it that I can put my leg up on. I have found that there is a delicate balance between sitting and moving around upright. If I do either for too long, the edema in my lower right leg gets worse.

Aside from the exercise I get moving around on crutches, every morning before breakfast I do an upper body workout with light weights and lots of stretching. I'm also working my injured leg as best I can. Whenever I'm sitting for periods of time I periodically massage my thigh and knee. I also wiggle my toes a lot and gently stretch the tendons and ligaments in my ankle and knee. In addition, I'm doing my best to work out my right knee and hip as best I can without being able to walk. To maintain some level of strength in these joints I do leg lifts from my hip raising my whole leg, and from my knee raising my lower leg several times per day for a few minutes. I also "pump" my leg while I'm walking on crutches by raising my leg and bending my knee on one step and then lowering my leg on alternate steps. As before I also continue to do deep breathing exercises in which I "feel" the life force or qi energy flowing into and out of my leg.

Diet: My diet is pretty good in general. It is almost completely organic and I get a lot of variety. My only concern is getting a bit more good quality protein. I have been a vegetarian for 33 years. Contrary to what some people believe, it is very easy for vegetarians to consume sufficient protein. Nevertheless, a good supply of high quality protein is necessary to heal bone tissue. Rather than bump up some of the typical high protein vegetarian foods such as beans or nuts which are harder on the digestive system, I have decided to increase my protein somewhat by eating one or two organic, free-range eggs most days. I have to strike a balance here and not eat too many eggs because for me eggs tend to be constipating.

So there you have it! This is the regimen I am following at this time. It is very intensive. I probably spend about 10% of my waking hours engaged in some aspect of this healing protocol. However, that's not bad considering I am still working at about 60% capacity instead of laying around like the surgeon advised me to. Also, with the exception of the intravenous hydromorphone and three courses of intravenous antibiotics that I was given through the night immediately after my surgery, I did not fill the prescription for painkillers that the surgeon gave me and only had to take a single dose of acetaminophen about 24 hours after my surgery. When I had the stitches removed, the surgeon prescribed another course of antibiotics and some anti-inflammatories. I didn't fill those prescriptions either. My intent is not only to stay relatively functional through this process, but also to make sure that my bones heal well and are strong enough to allow me to continue doing what I've always done. I'm also hoping to be able to start putting some weight on my leg a fair bit earlier than the three to four months that the surgeon predicted.

Overall, I have to say that the biggest challenge for me has been not being able to walk the land. In my normal life, every day I take my dogs out for about an hour and a half and walk the trails through the fields and forest where I live. Aside from the obvious benefits of the exercise and fresh air for the dogs and myself, it provides me with an opportunity to deepen my ongoing relationship with the land; to observe what changes are taking place; to stop periodically at one or more of my favorite sit spots and just be. I'm also missing the winter. Last year was the warmest winter I can remember. There was pretty much no snow. This year we are having a somewhat more "normal" winter. I am missing walking through the snow; breathing the cold, crisp air; feeling the wind on my face; the calls of the chickadees, goldfinches and nuthatches. At best a couple of times a week when the conditions are good I can put the spiky snow things on the bottom of my crutches, go out and sit behind my house by our fire pit and gaze out over the landscape. I really do appreciate those moments.

"The Land" in winter.

Most of the details relating to the protocols that I am using have been covered in these first two parts of this series. From Part 3 of this series onwards I will discuss any changes that I make to these protocols and provide updates on how things are progressing.