Reclaiming A Path or Two!

This is Supposed to be a Maintenance Path!

Now That's Better!

This is the Last Piece of the Puzzle!

We were gone so much of last season that the garden had really overgrown itself.  The other day after the rain stopped we got in there and with some teamwork, we got the first part cut back and tied back so that we can actually reclaim the maintenance path.  We still have to get the last part done, but we just have to do it together.  Really when we have a common goal, anything can be accomplished!  Hope you had a great day.  We finally got to mow and I made some arugula pesto.  Always something to do this time of the year.  Talk to you later.   P.S. This is my 1,100 post!  I'm coming up on an anniversary next week.  So stay tuned a giveaway is coming!

Medicinal Mushrooms - Highlights on a few favorites

Fungi of Saskatchewan from wikicommons

Medicinal mushrooms are continually grabbing the spotlight for their incredible health benefits, ranging from cancer prevention and treatment, to being anti-viral, to curing asthma and even prolonging life.

Type in any of the medicinal mushrooms listed below into a PubMed database and you’ll see countless scientific studies validating their use as medicine. But while science is looking in test tubes to substantiate the health benefits of medicinal mushrooms, people around the world have been using these fungi to improve their health for thousands of years.

But what are these strange creatures anyway? Placed in their own kingdom (fungi), mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of mycelium. Mycelium is an organism present in most healthy soils. It forms a dense web underneath the soils where it conducts a multidirectional transfer of nutrients between plants and itself. In one cubic inch of soil there can be 8 miles of mycelium (Stamets). The fascinating study of mycelium and its ability to break down and transform materials, even toxic materials, goes beyond the scope of this article, but one I highly suggest looking into.

Mycoremediation, which could help reduce toxic materials presently related to disposal facilities, help decontaminate and minimize road and farm runoff, creates buffer zones, reduces agricultural waste, reduces pollution in watersheds, reduces the risk of forest fire, and cleans up contaminated pathogenic bacteria such as Escherichia coli.

- Robert Dale Rogers

Mushroom Identification
In the early years of HerbMentor.com John and I always said we would never feature medicinal mushrooms on the site. While mushrooms are certainly a valid medicine we felt that a person really needed to learn how to identify mushrooms from an expert in person. And although we still feel that way, we decided to feature medicinal mushrooms that can be found in commerce. As a result, this article is not about identifying mushrooms in the wild. It is about using medicinal mushrooms bought from herbal apothecaries or even your grocery store. Just recently, my father-in-law was hospitalized and came close to dying from eating a misidentified mushroom. It’s not something to fool around with!

When purchasing mushrooms always buy organic. Conventional mushrooms, especially those sold in grocery stores are routinely sprayed with a myriad of pesticides.

Historically
People have used mushrooms medicinally and as food for thousands of years. The oldest written reference to people using mushrooms medicinally is from an Ayurvedic source from 5000 BP.

The Chinese have one of the most sophisticated uses of medicinal mushrooms and have a written history of using them that dates back several thousand years as well. Many medicinal mushrooms like cordyceps and reishi were so highly prized (and so very rare) that only the emperor was allowed to consume them. Now these mushrooms are cultivated and are often times affordable.

The Greeks and Romans ate mushrooms frequently. The Greeks said mushrooms were the “food of the gods.”

General characteristics of medicinal mushrooms
We believe there is over 1.4 million species of mushrooms on earth, but only 10% have been scientifically named and catalogued.

All medicinal mushrooms contain beta-D-glucan, which are a type of polysaccharide. These chemical constituents are commonly found in some plant cellulose (Astragalus, Echinacea, etc) and fungi. They have been studied extensively for their ability to modulate the immune system. Much of the modern scientific research done on mushrooms is related to cancer prevention and treatment, HIV and AIDS, and other immune function disorders.

Beta D-glucan

There are lots of different ways to prepare medicinal mushrooms. They can be cooked into food, made into a tea or decoction or syrup, or powdered and taken as capsules. Another method is to decoct the mushrooms and then add 20% alcohol to the water extraction to preserve it.

Christopher Hobbs recommends first extracting the mushrooms in 50% alcohol (using normal tincture methods), then straining that mixture and placing the marc (mushrooms) into a pan to simmer with 5 parts water to the mushroom volume. This is simmered for an hour and then strained. The water is then simmered again until it is reduced to 1/5 of its original volume. This is then added to the original extract in a quantity that leaves 20% alcohol in the final product.

In this next section we’ll look more closely at some common medicinal mushrooms that are readily available in commerce.

Common button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus)
That’s right, the lowly common mushrooms readily found in your grocery store are medicinal mushrooms! The use of these dates back at least to 1700 BP where it was described in a Byzantine treatise.

This is the most commonly consumed and cultivated mushroom worldwide. It is native to grasslands in Europe and North America.

There are over 300 different species of Agaricus and some are edible while some are poisonous. Portabellas, another common edible mushroom found in the grocery store, are also a part of this genus.

Another species, A. campestris, was used by Nicholas Culpeper, an infamous herbalist who lived from 1616 – 1654. He says “Roasted and applied in a poultice, or boiled with white lily roots and linseed in milk, they ripen boils and abscesses better than any preparation that can be made.”

Agaricus campestris

In China, mushrooms in this genus have been used for hypertension as well as in formulas for low back pain and tendon pain.

Like other medicinal mushrooms they have been studied extensively as a tool against various cancers and have shown promising results.

Since they are found so readily in stores, these make an easy addition to the diet. Just remember to buy them organically and to cook them.

Shitake (Lentinula edodes)
Shitake mushrooms originate in Japan, China and other Asian countries with temperate climates where they have been enjoyed as food and medicine for thousands of years.

They are now the second most cultivated mushroom in the world and can often be found in grocery stores. Growing your own is easy (look for shitake mushroom kits online) and results in the best shitakes I’ve ever eaten. In our household we eat shitake mushrooms a couple times a week. They are wonderful in soups or simply sauteed with garlic and butter.

Homegrown shitake

Shitake mushrooms grown in nutrient-dense soils produce nutrient-dense fruits. They can be especially high in potassium, calcium, phosphorous, proteins and magnesium.

These mushrooms have been studied extensively for their immunomodulating effects. Most studies, however, have been conducted using concentrated isolated chemical constituents of shitakes and not the whole mushroom. So while we know that these concentrated constituents have produced remarkable clinical results, we don’t always know that those same results can be achieved by simply eating the mushrooms or as a whole extract (as a tea or decoction).

We do know that shitake mushrooms are beneficial against cancer, not because they attack the cancer cells but because they enhance a person’s immune system. This is the reason they can also be helpful for someone experiencing frequent colds and flus and seasonal allergies. Shitake has also been shown to inhibit both herpes simplex 1 and 2.

Shitakes have been shown to promote cardiovascular health as well by optimizing lipid levels.

Shitake mushrooms are classified as a sweet taste with mild actions. They are considered building and strengthening in Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Like all mushrooms, shitake mushrooms should be fully cooked before consuming, as a small number of people can develop an itchy rash from consuming them raw. Christopher Hobbs says common dosages of the whole fruiting body are 6-16 grams of dried mushrooms or 90 grams of fresh mushrooms.

Reishi mushroom

Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum)
Reishi has long been heralded as the elixir of life. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) considers it to be in the highest class of tonics to promote longevity. This is the first medicinal substance to be written about by the Chinese and several entire books have been written about this single mushroom!

This mushroom is well proven to prevent and combat cancer and other immune system disorders. It has beneficial effects on the liver, helping both to regenerate and protect it. It’s also been shown to reduce fatty deposits on the liver. It has multiple benefits for the heart, helping to normalize cholesterol levels and regulate blood pressure.

In his book Medicinal Mushrooms, Christopher Hobbs outlines pharmacological effects of whole reishi extracts. These effects include: analgesic, anti-allergenic, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antioxident, antitumor, antiviral, hypotensive, cardiotonic, relaxing nervine, expectorant and antitussive, anti-HIV, adaptogen, hepatoprotective and immunomodulating.

The studies done on reishi’s immunomodulating effects and its benefits against a variety of cancers, auto-immunity diseases and viral infections is absolutely dizzying! Lesley Tierra specifically recommends it combined with astragalus for people who have extreme food sensitivities.

Reishi can also oxygenate the blood, making it a useful ally against altitude sickness.

In my experience, it [reishi] is especially suitable as a calming herb for people with anxiety, sleeplessness, or nervousness accompanied by adrenal weakness or general neurasthenia or deficiency syndromes. In this regard, it is to be much preferred to traditional western sedative herbs such as valerian, which could be too warm and actually stimulating for some individuals.

-Chris Hobbs

Medicinal Mushrooms

This polypore mushroom is too hard to eat and is commonly taken as a decoction or used as a powdered herb. The typical dose is 3-15 grams. Lesley Tierra recommends breaking the mushroom into smaller pieces and then decocting 1 oz of reishi to one quart of water for 60 minutes. One cup can be drunk 2-3 times a day.

Cordyceps (Ophiocordyceps sinensis)
Cordyceps are some of my favorite medicinal mushrooms, but admittedly probably the most freaky. This fungus invades a species of caterpillar that it eventually kills as the fruiting body erupts from the animal’s head. I told you it was freaky!

This mushroom is so highly sought after that the price of it per pound can reach into the tens of thousands of dollars. Luckily it is being cultivated in the Pacific Northwest and can be purchased at a much more reasonable price.

Traditionally, in China, cordyceps was consumed by first cooking it in a duck. Eating this meal is considered to be as potent as having a large amount of ginseng.

Cordyceps has been shown to be especially useful against lung cancers (in TCM it is said to enter through the Lung meridian). It is also used to increase libido, optimize cholesterol levels, address liver disease and to relax bronchial tissues, which is helpful for those with certain types of asthma.

Olympic athletes use cordyceps to increase their stamina. One week after I started taking cordyceps I was running up a steep hill that I had only been able to walk up previously. It’s currently being studied for a wide range of lung diseases.

Cordyceps can be taken as a tea, in capsules or cooked into duck. The typical dose is 5-12 grams.

Chaga

Photo credit

Chaga (Inonotus obliquus)
Chaga is a parasite that grows on birch trees. Technically not a mushroom, just a mass of mycelium, it has been used in folk medicine for centuries, most notably in Russia. Science is now validating its use, showing immunostimulating properties and that it protects against oxidative stress. It is most famous for its use against a wide range of cancers, notably cancer of the breast, lip, skin and colon.

Chaga can be used as a decoction or as an alcohol extract. The decocted root is tasty and is sometimes called a “coffee substitute”.

Chaga (Inonotus oblquus) grows slowly on beech and birch trees over many years. Chaga is a non-sporulating (non-fertile) hardened structure with a dark, cracked over-crust. Some mycologists call Chaga an above-ground sclerotium. Chaga grows on living trees, taking many years for a soft-ball size structure to form. Once the tree dies, a resupinate crust forms on the ground near the tree. This is the spore-reproducing structure. What scientists do not know is whether or not the removal of Chaga will harm the formation of the spore producing crust. We do know that wild harvesting of Chaga is radically reducing this species populations. And since we can grow mycelium -sustainably- while retaining its beneficial properties, please refrain from harvesting wild chaga for commercial purposes. Thank you.

Respectfully,

Paul Stamets

www.fungi.com

Maitake (Grifola frondosa)
Maitake is another medicinal mushroom masquerading as a gourmet food. It has been studied extensively for breast cancer and has been shown to reduce tumor size and aggressiveness. Like shitake mushrooms, maitakes can easily be incorporated into your food frequently.

Turkey tail

Turkey Tail (Trametes versicolor)
Turkey tails are frequently found growing on trees throughout the world. Although less studied than other medicinal mushrooms this one is well-worth looking into and not just for its health benefits. Paul Stamets (author of Mycelium Running and all-around mushroom extraordinaire) reports that it has bioremediation benefits and can help clean up toxic environments. The Chinese and Japanese have been using it as immune support therapy for cancer and Stamets claims to have cured his own mother of breast cancer using this mushroom.

Osyter mushroom

Oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus)
This common edible mushroom has natural statins that help to regulate blood cholesterol. It is commonly found in the wild in temperate climates and in our grocery stores.

Medicinal mushrooms are continually proving themselves effective for combatting serious diseases like cancer. Even better, they can be consumed regularly to prevent chronic diseases from ever occurring.

Further Resources

• Paul Stamets on How Mycelium Can Save the World
• Interview with Robert Dale Rogers 

Books

• The Fungal Pharmacy: The Complete Guide to Medicinal Mushrooms and Lichens of North America by Robert Rogers
• Medicinal Mushrooms (Herbs and Health Series) by Christopher Hobbs

This article was originally written for  www.herbmentor.com

Brother Cadfael Meet the Queen!

A bit of Olympic humor!  We have finally been out in the garden this morning and I spotted these two beauties.  The big pink one is Brother and the Queen is the dainty one behind him.  Who knew she was the new Bond girl!  Hope you are having a great day.  Finally no rain!  Talk to you later.

'Green Zebra' Is Still My Favorite!

While I can't eat much tomato sauce these days, I do love a good tomato and peanut butter sandwich.  A Kittanning thing!  Since I have lost weight, I'm not the one eating the peanut butter from the jar!  In fact, I rarely eat it.  This time of year, I make an exception.  So this was breakfast the other day.  Two pieces of lite bread toasted and a tablespoon of chunky peanut butter between the two and a sliced up 'Green Zebra'!  Yummy!  About 200 calories and I always have a small fruit salad and a glass of milk.  About 400 calories total.  Trying to decide what to do whether to start making jelly or work in the garden or going to the movies!  Hope you are having a great day wherever you may be.  Is it lunchtime yet?  Maybe another 'Green Zebra' is waiting for me!  Talk to you later.

Celebrating Her Birthday!

Peanut Butter Pie for Dessert for Mar

No Calories in This Coconut Cream Pie!  The Pines Tavern Makes the Best!

My best friend, Marilyn's birthday is today!  My gift to her was lunch at one of our favorite places, The Pines Tavern.  They have a really large garden that is used in all of their meals.  My other gift to her is the friendship that we have had for over 30 years.  It does take two for a friendship and Marilyn came to my rescue in my darkest hour a while back and pointed me into therapy.  It was the best thing I ever did.  So if you have a friend who you have known for a while or even a brand new friend, cherish that friendship!  I've got to run.  A big storm is headed this way!

The Heirloom Tomato Patch

Hope you are having a great day.  Talk to you later.

Drying Elderberries

Right now, we only have a small quantity of berries ready for drying.  Later, we'll have huge flats of screens out, but for now this is my favorite method and it works for just about anything you'd want to air-dry.

Most everyone has some of these paper plate holders around the house.  We rarely use paper plates, but the holders have become something that we use almost daily from the moment the first spring greens show up until the very end of autumn.

The berries can be heaped on the plate to a thickness of about 1/2 inch.  They will quickly dry down and separate, and I've never had any spoilage.  The same can be said for most flowers or leaves.  There is a lot of circulation, and open baskets are great for drying. 

After a couple of days the berries are starting to look like tiny raisins, and they will continue to dry for a week or more, depending on the temperature and humidity.

When they have completely dried, keep them in a sealed container in a cool, dry place and you'll have plenty to get through the winter!

Treasure from the Storm

We had a gully-washer last night, and a lot of branches broke.  We didn't notice any problem on any of our trees around the house, and I was very relieved to not lose any elderberry branches.  They usually are the first to go in high winds, being so heavily weighted by fruit.
This evening my daughter and I wandered around the tree farm a little bit.  We were about to go visit the puppies at my sister's when we came upon some mimosa branches that had come down in the storm.

We quickly set to work and soon found that a basket was needed, so Molly ran down to the workshop while I continued working in the quickly dwindling light.
The inner bark of mimosa feels so slick and emollient.  The wood beneath is as white as bones.  The bark came off easily in long straps, and we stuffed a large market basket with our treasure.

The bark and flowers of the mimosa tree are both considered to be extremely helpful for grief and sadness, and I have personally found this to be true during several intense situations over the past few years.  The easiest way to describe its action is to say that it pushes the gray clouds away and allows the mind to stop focusing entirely on the sadness.  It is also a wonderful herb to have on hand for winter blahs or times when I just want to cheer up a little bit because life is too serious.  In the past, I've dried the flowers, but they are very labor intensive and an overflowing basket dries down to a few cups of material.  It takes weeks of harvesting (and a few bee stings) to obtain a 1/2 gallon jar.  This year I didn't dry any, instead making tincture with the fresh flowers only.

On the other hand, the bark dries beautifully and retains the components better and for a longer time.  Every year I find a few small branches, but can't bring myself to cut a larger branch.  Usually I wind up with a cup or so of dried bark.  The bark is unusual in that the outer bark is almost paper thin (on branches - it's thick on the main trunks) and the inner bark is fairly thick.  This will make a great addition to winter teas, and some of it will go into the jars of flower tincture that I started a couple of weeks ago.

Storm and Sticks and Strings!

This does look like much, but I may not be around for a couple of days because a 20 minute storm did some damage.  We have to get more sticks and strings out.  People laugh about it, but sticks and strings keep the plants safe and when a storm comes through they survive.  The Herbal Husband came in in a funk after working before breakfast.  He gave me a list of plants that needed to be fixed.  Sooo I'm getting my working clothes on and going out to help him put things back together.  So if I'm missing in action, you'll understand.  No jelly for a couple of days.  I'll share photos later.  Hope you are having a great day.  Talk to you later.

The Herbal Husband's Harvest!

Think I Have Enough Garlic for Jelly!

Tomatoes from the 'Patio' Tomato Plant

The 'Patio' Tomato on the Patio!

The Favorite Bean in This House is Waxed

The Herbal Husband has been busy in the garden.  He dug the garlic last week before the rains came and thank goodness, he did.  The ones on the far left are volunteers that he planted seeds that took two years to grow!  If you leave garlic until it is entirely brown, it will most likely have split bulbs.  The paper husks over the cloves will start breaking apart.  I think a bit of green and brown is a good combination.  I try to make he dig a bit earlier, but stubborn sometimes wins out!  It was a great year because we were hot and dry for a good bit of the early summer.

The 'Patio' tomatoes on the patio have been a big hit and we know that some day down the road that this may be the go to tomato when we are done with a big vegetable garden.  Two of these plants would be more than enough for us.  The first harvest of tomatoes from the 'Patio' gave us a character!

The final photo is of our waxed bean plants emerging from the soil.  We are always running around like chickens with our heads cut off and again around this time.  The Herbal Husband has found that starting the bean seeds in a container and then transplanting them into the ground works best.  So it is supposed to rain, but the sun is brightly shining.  So much for the forecast.  Hope you are having a great day wherever you may be!  Talk to you later.

From the Vault

Something old, something new...

A few months ago, we received an extraordinary gift from The Rosemary House!
Any herbie worth their salt has read something written by Bertha Reppert.  She was a prolific writer whose mission in life was to spread the love of herbs far and wide.  Besides writing many books herself (many of which are still available at The Rosemary House), she was also quoted in many herb books and contributed many writings to various herbal newsletters around the globe. 
Prior to the advent of the internet, herb businesses were a completely different animal than what we've come to know.  They were nearly all physical locations - stores, gardens, and classrooms with doors that people walked through.  Marketing a business was an expensive proposition, and many herbal newsletters were published in order to stay in touch with customers and encourage visits and mail orders.  Some newsletters were stand-alone businesses, but more often they were used as marketing tools.  The herbal community enthusiastically provided content for these newsletters, contributing articles, recipes, and craft instructions in exchange for a way to also get their own names out there.
Mrs. Reppert was a favorite contributor, and she also received copies of all those newsletters and saved them - all of them - for close to 30 years.

So we were gifted with boxes and boxes of these herbal gems.  For the most part, the businesses are gone, and in many cases so are the writers.  The information varies from juicy tidbits to extraordinary revelations.  The audiences were typically small, with between a few hundred to a thousand readers, so many of these items were seen by few people - most of whom have moved on in one way or another.

We mulled this over for some time, trying to figure out how or *if* we could ethically enrich The Essential Herbal with any of this treasure trove.  We've decided to try to contact writers whenever possible, and give full credit to any re-print, putting it under the banner "From the Vault".  In the upcoming issue, you'll find an article on myrrh beads!

We're very excited about the opportunity to reclaim some of this herbal knowledge and expect that you'll find a little "something old" mixed in with all of our usual content that teaches and inspires, in just about every issue of our magazine for years to come. 

One Batch Down and a Bunch To Go!

This is my first batch of Cinnamon Basil Jelly for this season.  If you use the link to the left for the recipe, the one thing I see on Renee's Garden website is that you use 2 cups of packed herbs.  In her recipe book, she calls for 1-1/2 cups packed.  I think 1-1/2 cups is enough.  It has worked for me for 20 plus years of making this recipe.  This color purely comes from the basil.  I just love it.  I have one plant of lemon basil so I'm not sure that I will get much in the way of lemon basil jelly this season.  I have a lot of sweet basil and I will be making my Spicy Basil Apple Jelly a bunch.  It was a big hit last year in its first appearance.  I got to try it on the 4th of July and I must say it was pretty good.  Once it is made again, I will share the recipe with you.  Of course, I didn't write it down so I'll have to come up with the right combo and I promise I will share!  Here is a link for a basil post I did last year called B is for Basil or it could be O Too! which will give you some extras, my favorite book by Susan Belsinger and Tom DeBaggio about basil and my favorite pesto recipe.  Jim Long, another favorite herbal author just did a post on basil with some terrific suggestions as usual.  Here is that link called Five Exciting Ways to Use Basil.  We are back to the ickys and stickies!  Hope you had a great day.  We did and the bonus was I was in the air conditioning!  I'll be thinking of ways to be inside if the humidity continues!  Talk to you later.

An Herbal Cleanup Day!

Removed the Scorched Leaves of the Lady's Mantle

Looks Better Already!

The 'Lemon Gem' Marigolds are Growing a Bit Too Well!

Out Come The Sticks and Strings!  Much Better!

The Borage Needs to Come Out to Make Room for Beans!

Leaves on Top of Blooms for This Lamb's Ear!

Really too many cloudy days in the 'Burgh can be a downer!  Today was one of those relief from the hot, icky, sticky days we have been having!  It was cloudy and humid and cooler than normal, but The Herbal Husband and I were happy doing some cleanup chores after the rain.  We are still down 1.7 inches in rain, but we got over 2 inches in our gauge!  As Martha would say, it's a good thing.  Hope you have had a great day.  Talk to you later.

Summer "Salad"

So far, this summer has been an interesting one here on the farm.  For the most part, we are pretty well insulated from the very serious natural disasters that have hit so many parts of the country, but having so much contact with friends all over means that we are very aware of the bigger picture.  It was very dry here, and the anxiety we felt as the patch of sweet corn languished and died was just a small taste of what our friends in the midwest are experiencing.  The threat of brush fires was a constant reminder of the cauldrons to the west, and the weeks of high 90's and cloying humidity was still mild compared to many parts of the US.  We've been lucky so far, and the storms over the past week have refilled our streams, reservoirs, and ground water levels.  Right now the temperature is in the mid 60's (but that humidity is still with us...) so we're getting a break.

All in all, we went about our business(es) and had a few adventures.  We utilized the extreme heat to melt soaping fats and pounded out nearly 30 batches in the last month.  Every time the shelves looked full, orders poured in and emptied them again - but that's the plan, isn't it?

I've gotten to play with some different tinctures, like wild lettuce and lobelia, made a gallon of sour cherry "bounce" and our CSA share is keeping me busy trying new recipes and eating great foods.  Beets, squash, cucumbers, kale and eggplant are big right now.  Bob's potatoes and onions were harvested the other day and sit in crates down in the work barn.  We got to meet our favorite big-city beekeeping gypsy and Renegade Farmer, Zan Asha last week, and it was fun to toss ideas back and forth.  That was followed by a few days with my guy, and now we're looking forward to a little time with friends from the Big Apple.  It's a good mix here.  Although it might sound a little wild, everything falls into a lovely rhythm and we enjoy every bit of it.

In the midst of this, the deadline for the Sept/Oct issue of The Essential Herbal arrived.  I bundled up the well-stuffed file of articles and sent them on to Maryanne for lay-out.  I was more than a little surprised to hear that it looked "light" to her after setting all the content, but then we realized that several of the articles were in a format that didn't carry over when she got started - and then realized that we'd need to use a smaller font and shrink the margins to get it all on the allotted pages.  THAT'S more like it!  There's a perfect blend of articles covering all aspects of herbal use - culinary, medicinal, growing, and enjoyment - and now if I can just get a focus for the field notes section, we'll be all set.

It's hard to try to imagine what August and September will bring this year.  We're in new territory and have never had a year like this one before.  All I know for sure is that there will be a bumper crop of elderberries to process, and I'll be distilling lots of white sage from my own plants and there should be plenty fragrant leaves of rose geranium for the still as well.  We'll keep on keeping on and hope for the best.

Guest Blogging for The Herb Companion Magazine!

I get caught up by what is going on in the garden this time.  Duh!  Summer!  So my guest blog for The Herb Companion is all about taking a vacation in your bathrobe or pjs, really.  It is called Herbal Travels: Visiting Gardens During My Herbal Vacation.  I would ask a favor of you if you read it and like it, would you please click the Like button at the top of the article.  Thanks a bunch.  I have also put together a page of extra links for your viewing pleasure from the trips.  I will be adding to those in the coming days.  We are back to the Pacific Northwest temperature wise.  It is rainy, humid and cool!  Not complaining!  Hope you are having a great day.  May I just express disbelief and sorrow over the loss of life in Colorado!  I'm saying prayers for the victims and their families.  Talk to you later.

Herbal Suspension!

I'm hoping that my pineapple sage that made it through the winter inside will start to grow!  It is just is sitting in herbal suspension!  It is in a crowded place, but it grew just fine there last year.  I'll post another photo on this blog if we have an herbal life.  Gave it a shot of fish emulsion recently.  So I don't know what the heck is going on!  I don't think there will be any pineapple sage jelly this year!:(  Here is a link to my jelly recipe for Pineapple Sage Jelly.  Will have to make a note to myself to buy more pineapple sages next year.  Well, we had almost 3/4 of an inch of rain yesterday with more to come today.  We were in the low 70's after the rain, but still soupy.  Going to run some errands and go to our favorite lunch place, Panera.  Talk to you later.

Mint In Bloom!

Pineapple Mint

Spearmint

Variegated Mint

Well, here is three of my favorite mints.  I have some more, but these three are blooming at the moment.  The weather has been so hot that they have bloomed a bit earlier than normal, I think.  I have lost my herbal brain power to figure when these plants are usually in bloom.  I use all of these in tea blends.  Need to make up some new ones!  We had a round of severe weather with a lot of lightning.  So I'm going to post this quick.  Hope you have had a great day.  Talk to you later.

Chateau Val-Joanis, Pertuis, France, Part Three

A Beautiful Vitex Tree

Just Loved the Garden Ornamentation!

Love the Crow on the Post!

Loved the Fence Giving the Ornamental Grass More Structure!

Pears on Poles!  Say That Three Times Fast!

Apples on Pyramidal Shapes

Smoke Trees in the Distance

Another French Rose, An Herb of the Year

Lemon Verbena!

The gardens of Chateau Val-Joanis were conceived by Cecile Chancel in 1978 and with the advice of garden landscaper, Tobie Loup de Viane, she created three terraces, the potager with vegetables, herbs and flowers,  the second terrace for flowers and the third terrace for ornamental grasses, trees and flowers.  It used stones salvaged from a Roman pool in an area protected from the Mistral wind.  It is a remarkable garden.  This is the final part for this remarkable garden.  I hope you have enjoyed it.  It is like a furnace outside.  The Herbal Husband soldiers through and I'm like a wilted lily!  Hope you had a great day.  Talk to you soon.