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Herbal Compress

May 31st, 2018

Last Friday I got bit by a black fly on my eyelid. Fly bites tend to leave me with a ton of inflammation, often the size of a gold ball or larger. That means I woke up the next morning with my eye so swollen it wouldn’t open. Since I had an event to attend on Saturday evening, I was keen to get the inflammation down quickly. After a bit of research, I settled on a mis of: freshly harvested dill and rosemary mixed with some lavender blossoms from the pantry.

It was made into a tea into which I dipped a washcloth. After chilling the washcloth in the freezer, I applied the compress for 10 minutes every hour. By evening, the swelling was mostly unnoticeable. I think dill was the main component in the reduction in inflammation (the lavender helped tremendously with the itching). Five years ago the same thing happened to me and my eye was swollen shut for three days. This time, the compress made a huge difference in the length and severity of the bite. I’m quite happy to have discovered this gem of a compress, no doubt it will come in handy this summer as the deer flies will be out in July. It’s a good thing I always have a ton of dill in the garden!

What herbal remedies have you found work like a dream?

Fresh Cilantro

February 27th, 2018

I’m finally harvesting my own homegrown cilantro from under the grow lights and it’s AMAZING!!! I made a large batch of both corn salsa and guacamole the other evening for dinner. Freshly harvested cilantro is always much tastier than the stuff from the grocery store, much cheaper too.

I have the plants growing in soil blocks and this harvest was a thinning. I’ll let one plant continue growing in each block. In the past, I’ve grow in in a deeper windowbox style container. It did OK, but eventually got aphids. I’m thinking this method may work better, especially if I seed in succession.

Are you harvesting anything for your plate?

Homegrown Goodness for the Felines

October 5th, 2017

I always grow catnip in the garden. Little sprigs are picked throughout the growing season and brought in for the cats. This time of year I harvest armloads of it to dry for the stuffing of cat toys, which I make and give to friends & family. I found the fantastic Cotton & Steel fabric to use for the cat toys I make. I simply cut the cats out, back with scrap fabric, and sew a piece of cotton string in for the tail. So far all the recipients have fallen in love with their toys. As you can see, it’s hard to keep our cats away from the toys I make for others.


Catnip is also valuable in the garden because it’s a great insect deterrent. If the mosquitoes are bothering me while I’m working, I harvest a handful of the catmint and rub it on my exposed skin. This works splendidly for me (the cats love it too). I once went to a friend’s home and her cats were rubbing on me and licking my legs. We got a good laugh when I remembered that I’d rubbed myself down with catnip that morning because the mosquitoes were thick in the garden. Perhaps I’ll make a few to sell someday, until then, all of our cats and our friend’s cat will be happily enjoying the homegrown catnip.

What fun gifts are making? Are you able to use any garden items in them? 

Drying Herbs

September 21st, 2017

I’ve been cutting and drying herbs, mostly by hanging them on the back porch. After walking through the hot front porch many times a day, it dawned on me that this spot would be perfect for drying herbs. On sunny days, it hovers around 100 degrees, which is perfect for drying herbs.

I didn’t have an easy to hang herbs, so I put in a few nails, string a string between them, and starting clipping bouquets of herbs from it.

At the moment I have loads of catnip (more on what that will be used for later), oregano, and sage. These herbs will keep our winter meals savory and our cats happy all winter.

What herbs do you grow and dry during the summer?

Soothe the Itch with Plantain

June 2nd, 2014

Now that the weather has warmed the insects have come out as well. Here in Maine they come in droves at certain times of the year, at the moment black flies are biting like crazy. They don’t stop my from working outside. For the most part insects don’t bother me too much, but I do get bit on occasion. When I do I grab a leaf off a broad leaved plantain, pop it in my mouth and chew it for a few seconds, then I put the poultice on my insect bite.
plantain 1
plantain 2
This works like a charm every time, it also works well for bee and wasp stings. If you’d like to read a fascinating collection of the historical uses of plantains head on over and check out this article.

Do you have a tried and true way to dealing with insect bites?

About

This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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