|
||
I have been known to experiment with many things in my free time. I guess people assume that because I am a writer that I have tons of free time. While that is not entirely true, it is true that my hours are unusual and that I do manage to find time for a variety of hobbies that many of my friends laugh at me for. My latest venture is to start an herb garden in my backyard.
I have been trying my hand at gardening on and off for the past few years without much success. In fact, no one that knows me thinks of me as having much of a greenthumb at all. So when I announced that I was determined on having a successful herb garden not too many people took notice or gave me a sense that they believed in me to accomplish it.
What I loved about the idea of creating an herb garden was that it seemed much easier and much less consuming that having a vegetable garden or even a flower garden. I have no idea where that idea came from, but by harboring it my head I became more and more convinced that an herb garden was truly the best bet for me.
So I went to my local library and checked out every single resource on creating a herb garden that I could find. I spent the next few weeks reading these books any time I got. I made visits to several gardeners that I knew and I was online in any spare moment outside of that. I wanted to learn all there was to know about an herb garden so that I didn't fail at my attempt when spring came and it was time to plant my herbs.
Even my family members laughed at my latest pursuit. I think they might have placed bets behind my back as to how successful or unsuccessful I would be with the herb garden. I think most of them doubted that any of the food I cooked this summer would utilize the spring's worth of herbs that I had planted.
I proved everyone wrong. Dead wrong. My herb garden turned into the biggest success of any hobby project that I have ever attempted. I feel pretty good about my success and I have loved adding fresh herbs to many of the meals I have prepared this summer so far. I guess perhaps I have a little more down time than many people I know, but that is fine by me. They get to reap the benefits of all my hard work when I pass around baskets of herbs from my herb garden that everyone can enjoy.
First, let's get the pronunciation right, it is pronounced eh-kin-AY-sha. The echinacea herb is very important to grow in your herb garden for use in herbal medicine. By adding the echinacea herb to your herb garden not only will you be able to use it in your herbal medicine regime but you also gain a beautiful flowering herb.
It is mostly found in the Northern Plains and has been used by Native Americans for its healing power in herbal medicine. The Indians used the mashed roots on everything from wounds to snakebites. It was used as a mouthwash to help with painful teeth and gums. They brewed Echinacea herbs as teas for colds and other maladies, like measles and arthritis. The Indians prized this herb for its value in herbal medicine. They thought that the echinacea herb was a blood purifier.
As herbal medicine, the echinacea herb is useful in all its parts. It is a daisy like flower with a rich purple hue. This herb will outshine any other flowers in your herb garden. Monarch Butterflies will flock to your herb garden when you have included the Echinacea herb. The best time to dig up the plant is in the fall but be aware that it takes three years for the herb to be useful in herbal medicine.
In the later part of the 1990's there were scads of studies that showed the usefulness of the echinacea herb for colds and flu. But there have also been studies that claim it as worthless. You will have to try it to see how it affects you.
The echinacea herb is a stimulant for the immune system. The herb boosts the ability of macrophages (infection fighting white blood cells) to fight off invading germs. When taking the echinacea herb as part of your herbal medicine regime, infections cased by viruses, bacteria and fungus will heal much faster than without it.
Typically the root is used in herbal medicine. If you eat the fresh root, you should get a numbing or tingling of the tongue. It will also increase the flow of saliva in your mouth. This is entirely normal and should cease in about 15 minutes. The echinacea herb is best used in its fresh state. So you see echinacea is important to add to your herb garden. When you plant echinacea in your herb garden you will be adding one more natural plant to use in your arsenal of herbal medicine.
With the echinacea herb the most commonly used in herbal medicine is the E. augustifolia. However, E. purpurea and E; pallida can be just as useful in herbal medicine if prepared correctly.
Another way to get the benefits from the echinacea herb is to make a tincture, (look for my article on How To Make Tinctures). In a glass of fruit juice add up to 30 drops in the juice and take it three times a day. Adjust the dosage if you become nauseas. And, as in all things in life, you can get “to much of a good thing”. If you take the echinacea herb over too long a period of time, you will over stimulate your immune system. So, take a break when your symptoms start to dissipate.
There are some people that should not use echinacea in their herbal medicine routine. No one with auto-immune disease should take the herb since it could potentially aggravate that disease. And people with HIV should not take echinacea because by stimulating the immune system you may also stimulate the virus. It is most important to always check with your doctor before starting any herbal medicine regime.
Copyright © Mary Hanna, All Rights Reserved.
This article may be distributed freely on your website and in your ezines, as long as this entire article, copyright notice, links and the resource box are unchanged.