The earth is waking here

Got outside and wandered around the area nearest the house yesterday. At this time of year it is easy to feel like there is nothing out there, but if you slow down and look closely, it can be surprisingly thrilling! The hydrangea blossoms from last summer have withstood some amazing winds during this winter. As fragile and delicate as these appear, they have toughed out several days of 40 and 50 mph gusts. Perhaps I should find a way to use them for roofing shingles, because they seem better able to handle the wind....
I was pleasantly surprised to find quite a bit of garlic growing along the fence. Some of it didn't get harvested last year, so it looks as though we'll find out what second year bulbs are like.
Some of the walkways have been mulched, and they grow colonies of this fungus. It reminds me of brass bells, or maybe cliffside dwellings. I'm sure that they are very important in the lives of the fae.
The cutting celery was a huge surprise. The bunnies liked it very much last summer, and I didn't get much. In fact I suspected that it was gone. Pulling back a little debris in the garden, there it was! Can the bunnies be far behind?
One of the tiny field cresses. It has the laciest rosette, and in the chill of pre-spring it has a burgundy cast. Soon tiny stalks of white flowers will rise followed by coin shaped seed pods that will rattle in the wind.
I think this is baby cleavers. This early in the spring, my plant sense is a little cob-webbed and it takes a few weeks before I really recognize my old friends.
The chives! How strong and insistent they are as they shove their way through the grassy mat they left behind in the fall. The current cover of The Essential Herbal is from this very patch, taken last April. It won't be long before the glorious pink blossoms will host the recently awakened bees.
Athough this looks like some sort of mosslike growth, it is the beginning of the chamomile patch. The entire area is this glowing chartreuse, a very unusual shade of green in nature - at least here.
Ah.... the luscious, soft, fuzzy, and oh so fragrant first leaves of the anise hyssop. One of about 100 plants that I hope to soon transplant into their own patch. I dried the leaves last summer and was sold out by October!
There was a lot more, but these were the most exciting to me.
When I see this stuff, I can't help but notice that there is a sort of equivalent sap rising in me as the spring approaches. I'm ready to be done with this hibernation.

Marching on...

I woke up this morning to a dusting of snow. It was quite a surprise. That's when I realized it is spring here - because the snow was shocking. That, and the fact that next weekend begins DST here! I LOVE the extra hour of light in the evening! It brings me out of my hermitage and I wake up to become social again.
We got in the last items from our shopping trip to NY. The cinnamon boxes were my favorite purchase. They are beautiful and highly fragrant. If you've been following my adventures of trying to make herb bowls, you'll know that these are the ultimate success!
We got some lightweight cotton totes too.
So now we have all kinds of fun items - magazines, books, dvds, kits for making soaps or balms and salves, dried wild-crafted herbs, tinctures, henna paste, carved wooden boxes, soaps, lotion bars, herbie implements, seed kits, seed-saving kits, magnetic poetry...
... all KINDS of cool herbalicious stuff!
Come look around at EssentialHerbal.com and get a little taste of spring yourself!
So free shipping offer for domestic orders over $100 just keeps looking better and better, doesn't it? And that includes subscriptions or renewals too!

TEH button for your site or blog ?

Do you have an herb related site or blog? Are you a fan of The Essential Herbal? Do you subscribe, write for the magazine or advertise in it?Would you like to help get the word out? Lots of you already have links on your sites, but we thought it would be good to give you a little something back! Choose one of these buttons and let me know.I'll send you your very own special link to use with the button! You may resize the buttons to fit the spot you'd like to use them. Please write to me at essentialherbal@aol.com and we'll get you all set.

That was some decade!

For some reason, this past month has been calm and quiet enough that it has sent me looking out the back windows and thinking about the decade we closed in the end of December. I don't think I've ever done that before. There were years that ended with a wiping of the brow and a "good riddance" from me, but in my personal 5 and a half decades, I've never looked at one as a chunk of time before.
The "aughts" were quite a gang. I haven't decided completely if they were a gang of thugs or a gang of friends. Personally and in the world, so much has changed in such a small period of time. Without a doubt, this gadget I am thumping away on is the chief cause of much of it. It is difficult even to remember life before!
Up until 1999, my sister and I had a brick and mortar shop with a website AND a cart, and we were pretty far ahead of the pack in that regard. At least 50% of the country still wasn't online. Almost all business was conducted via fax or telephone, and very few suppliers had sites (or email). If they did, they didn't have online shopping capabilities. We knew all of our suppliers from talking to them over the phone or meeting them in person at conferences and festivals. It was not unusual to drop a letter in the mail to request a catalog, since not all businesses list phone numbers.
After a brief business hiccup, the magazine was started in '02 and did not have an on-line presence for a full year. Can you imagine? I traveled to as many herbal events as possible, and used a few other tricks, but looking back... it was a rough time to get traction. That was the year I met my sweetheart, and without im's and emails it's hard to imagine how we could have made it work. In fact, it occasionally amazes me to think about the people I converse with on a given day, and how many continents they come from. This is nothing for someone under 30, but for those of us who remember not being allowed to talk to the kid a town over on the phone because of long-distance charges, this is nothing short of a miracle. As late as '99, we were dialing an 800 number and a 5 digit code prior to dialing a long distance number in order that it would only cost 5 cents a minute.
By '05 the blog was up and running and things started to really take off. '05 was a big year. Mom died and we moved into this house. Molly changed schools. The magazine was now large enough for bulk mailing rates. We could write about the gardens here and post pictures. We added recipes and instructions, tutorials and poems... We fell in love with blogging and were reaching more people through the magazine than ever. We started meeting lots of herbies who send interesting, unique articles for each new issue. Heady stuff!
The next year my brother moved in here for a 3+ year losing battle with liver disease. That was a true learning experience. Some things were just clearly reinforced. For instance, when I gave birth to Molly, motherhood was a struggle. Not because I didn't care enough, but because I too closely identify with whoever is in my care. To this day, if Molly (20) needs to blow her nose, *I* sniff. Taking care of my sister's dog while she's away this weekend, I woke up several times at night wondering how difficult it is for him to wait until morning, both mornings dragging on clothes and going to let him out long before the sun came up. Some people think I am cold and don't have pets out of selfishness. The truth is that it's too darned painful. So anyhow, you can extrapolate from those things just how challenging it was to care for a terminally ill sibling. I've already forgotten more about the horrors of liver disease than I ever thought I'd have to know. Certainly the internet helped us take care of him, and even keep him alive longer. We found information and got guidance that was truly helpful. When he didn't make it, the internet was filled with solace and kind words.
As the decade grew older, my child got her driver's license (we had to schedule the test on-line), moved from high school to college (applications for everything - on-line), and has become a fairly independent, strong, interesting woman.
Facebook arrived somewhere in there, and brought along vast amounts of information and news of current events. Actual news from either the TV or newspapers is bland and passe, while there is no end to the information available on-line. The business page for the magazine has been so much fun to work on! Now that I'm getting the knack of it, something new will surely come along that I will need to figure out.
This morning I was reading a trade journal (print, btw) on computer mechanics and the notes from the editor concerned when they would eventually switch to an on-line magazine rather than print. It's a little odd that they are just now having this conversation considering the material inside... and they are working with information gathered during a '06 survey. Four years in that decade might as well have been 25 years in the first half of my life.
Eventually it will be a conversation I will have to have with my readers too. Probably mid-decade, I assume. The post office may not even exist by then, and what about printers? If you think I'm exaggerating about the post office, ask a 20-something when they last mailed something. Ask them how much the postage is for a one ounce letter.
So... that was some decade, wasn't it?
We had a lot of fun. We had a lot of heartache. And now we're ready to see what this decade has to throw at us. I'm afraid this will be the decade during which I learn that I can learn no more :-).
So often while we were growing up, we marveled at our grandparents and how they watched as cars replaced horses and buggies, and men went to the moon. They didn't make it to see computers. Mom just barely made it to the emailing era. What miracles will our children see?

New Goodies at The Essential Herbal

There actually was a point to the trip to NY a few weeks ago, and that was to find fun things to add to the website that herbies would love. They have been arriving (although not quite all here yet), and I'm pretty excited about it and enjoyed adding them to The Essential Herbal website .
First up are the Magnetic Poetry in themes like "Healing Words" and "Nature". We've been big fans of the standard version for years. I stopped to read the door of the freezer today, and was really stunned by some of the poetry, haiku and imagery stuck up there by the people who pass through.
We got tins full of seeds that are all organic, themed to create specific gardens. Small tins make me think of guerrilla gardening adventures while the larger vegetable garden for containers is really fascinating in the varieties represented. There 9 various choices to look over, AND THEN we got a seed-saving kit, filled with everything you'd need to get started saving your own seeds. I really love that one!
I just finished putting up some implements like teaballs, and such. I expect we'll be adding to this category, but since we have tea it just seems to make sense.
As more arrives, it will be posted here!

Horseradish - from Jan/Feb '11

Horseradish
by Tina Sams
Jan/Feb '11 issue, The Essential Herbal Magazine

Horseradish (Armoracia rusticana) is a member of the mustard ( Brassicaceae ) family, known for the sharp taste that immediately opens our sinuses when eaten. It has been cultivated for at least 2000 years, but the exact origin is not known. Delicious on meats, vegetables, potatoes, and seafood, it is rarely used as an everyday food. That may change a bit this year, as the Int’l Herb Association has chosen Horseradish to star as herb of the year in 2011. More than any herb they’ve chosen in the past, many of us have a lot to learn about Horseradish.

We are so spoiled here! I wracked my brain trying to come up with a new way to approach this Herb of the Year, and literally smacked my forehead when it dawned on me that some of the best Horseradish in the world is grated and sold fresh right here at our amazing Central Market 3 days a week. Let me tell you a little about “our” market.

One thing that almost all Lancaster Countians have in common is our immense pride in the Lancaster Central Market. In 1730, Alexander Hamilton included it in the original plan of the city, and conveyed personal property to the City of Lancaster in a deal that ensured that the market would always be there. It has run continuously from that time, with a building being constructed first around 1757, and then being remodeled into our outstandingly beautiful current market house in 1889.

Central Market continues to be the jewel in the crown of the city. On market days (Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday), the city teems with shoppers. It is a real testament to the vision of Alexander Hamilton that this one vibrant part of our heritage has been the thing that kept our town from suffering the fate of so many similar towns.

Michael J. Long is the 4^th generation of Longs at the helm of Long’s Horseradish.

The family has held a stand at Central Market since 1930, having started the business around 1906. It was originally started by the Goldbach family (Michael’s father’s maternal family), changing over to Long’s with Michael’s father.

Throughout all those years, the Horseradish stand has been there (Tuesdays and Fridays only). They always have a fan blowing the pungent scent of the roots over the market house crowd as a utilitarian iron grinding machine is put to service throughout the day. That scent to me IS the smell of the market house, and I’m certain that the beams are infused with it. As the roots are ground, they are periodically added to a kettle, covered with vinegar, and the lid is replaced on the kettle immediately. The hood that covers the grinder must retain a lot of the scent, but Michael told me that many people have gotten teary eyed in front of the fan.

H.J. Heinz is probably the oldest continually operating Horseradish processor in the country. Since Horseradish is a seasonal business, a second income was generally needed to tide families over during the off months. Heinz went with tomatoes while the Goldbach/Longs were tinsmiths in the early days, and as transportation and refrigeration improved it became a year-round occupation.

While the Longs do grow Horseradish for personal use, what is used for production is mainly from the Mississippi River Valley states, and they are beautiful, fleshy white roots. As I asked that question, I already knew the answer. We were asked that all the time when we had an herb shop, but with success comes the inability to do both the growing and the business end, so it becomes necessary to rely on growers.

I’ve only ever known good, fresh Horseradish – except the rare “off-brand” cocktail sauce that people unknowingly serve, or the even rarer sauce (if you can seriously call it that) served with a fast-food roast beef sandwich. We are so privileged to expect the best because it is the only thing we know here! The Horseradish will have been ground between 2 and 4 hours earlier if purchased at market, but Long’s is available at grocery outlets as well. They also make a superb cocktail sauce, full of zing, and spicy mustards.

In fact, I only put it in my own garden this past summer when a good friend sent me a piece through the mail. It is so easily available I never considered growing it.

Recently, Dr. Oz talked about the three herbs we should add more often to our diets. They are: Rosemary, Saffron, and Horseradish! He added that Horseradish is very effective at helping digestion and liver detoxification. The gall bladder is stimulated to release bile when we eat Horseradish, making it a great alternative for digestive problems.

Ah, but the good doctor merely scratched the surface!

The root contains a cornucopia of vitamins and minerals. Higher in vitamin C than oranges or lemons, it also contains lots of vitamin A. Add a healthy dose of chromium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, riboflavin, calcium, manganese, niacin, and zinc, and we have a nutritious condiment that deserves a more revered place on the table.

The diuretic effects of Horseradish can be helpful in cases of bladder infections and kidney stones, and it also increases perspiration, which can lower fevers. It is antibiotic, anti-oxidant, anti-microbial, and anti-inflammatory.

It’s very hot taste comes from the glucocides sinigrin and 2-phenylethylglucosinolate. When cut, cells are crushed, enabling an enzyme called myrosinase to interact with these two substances, releasing the oil, explaining why a Horseradish root has no smell until it is cut, grated, or ground. It also contains glucosinolates thought to provide resistance to cancers. The root is considered beneficial in cases of lung infections, sinus problems, arthritis and gout.

Although there is much written in reference to using Horseradish externally (think mustard plaster), the juice can cause blistering of the skin, so caution is advised. In fact, the essential oil is classed as hazardous.

Horseradish root is a staple ingredient in the Fire Cider recipe popularized by Rosemary Gladstar, and that can be found easily on the internet.

Some other simple remedies using Horseradish:

Expectorant Syrup (also good for hoarseness)
Boil ground Horseradish root with brown sugar and a small amount of water.

Horseradish Juice is taken ¼ to ½ tsp between meals to improve sluggish digestion and decrease indigestion.

Cough Remedy

1 t freshly ground Horseradish mixed with 1 T honey and steeped in I c hot water, drunk like tea.

One cannot be “the Horseradish man” at market without gleaning lots of great tips for uses of Horseradish – as if 4 generations of passed down information weren’t enough.
Michael told me that no matter what the recipe says, ALWAYS add the horseradish to the dish last during cooking. This is backed up by my research, that emphasizes high heat kills some of the beneficial medicinal properties of the root. The only exception to this rule would be when coating a roast with Horseradish prior to putting it into the oven. In that case, the flavor will penetrate the meat and be even more delicious. A customer told him to try making gravy with the drippings from that same roast, and he assured me that it is heaven on earth.
Another surprising tip he passed along is to cut the leaves before they get to 12” high, and take out the center vein. Sauté them, or simply add them to salads for a surprisingly delicious and different flavor. And now I am glad to have planted a bit in my own garden!

From Long's:

CREAMY HORSERADISH SAUCE ---- 1 cup sour cream---1/4 cup prepared horseradish---1 tsp. pepper---2 tbsp. worcestershire sauce-(mix together and use with beef)

PAULA'S DEVILED EGGS-------6 hard-boiled eggs,sliced in half lengthwise---2 tbsp. mayonnaise(light or regular)1 tbsp. prepared horseradish---1 tsp.chopped sweet pickles---1 tsp. parsley--salt to taste---1/4 tsp. dry mustard--dash of paprika. Put egg yolks in bowl and mash well with fork,combine all other ingredients and mix well,fill the white halves with the mixture and garnish with parsley, pimiento, or slices of olives. ADD HORSERADISH TO YOUR FAVORITE BBQ SAUCE or CREAMY SALAD DRESSING

long's horseradish c/o michael long 2192 west ridge dr., lancaster, pa. 17603
(717)872-9343--coming in march 2011 www.longshorseradish.com

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My Mom's favorite at Thanksgiving was twice baked potatoes.. and then my Sis in Law kicked it up a 'notch' with horseradish.

Twice Baked Potatoes w/ Horseradish

- bake the potatoes
- cut in half
- scoop out the insides (don't rip the skins)
- mash w/butter, milk, cheese, horseradish
- salt pepper to taste
- re stuff into potato shells
- top with pat of butter
- back in oven til golden brown (approx 30min)

Roe at sunrosearomatics.com

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A goodly amount of freshly grated horseradish in a clear bottle of vodka makes a simple and most excellent "snow globe" holiday gift -- just add a big red bow. Bonus: the bloody marys get spicier with every shakeup!

Cheers! Christie

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I add horseradish to my beef stroganoff. My mom knew there was a difference when I made it but couldn't figure it out.

Beef stroganoff

Beef( I like to cook mine with fresh garlic and Rosemary)
Sour cream- full fat
Egg noodles
Horseradish- to taste

Yum!
Katrina Kruczko

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Why do I love Horseradish? I first fell in love with it in my late 20s when I was rescued from a lonely, alone-in-NYC-Thanksgiving, by my friend's Mother-in-Law. I was whisked out of the city to Long Island, where I discovered I could see the sky on that crisp Autumn Day. My hostess lived near the Long Island Sound so we took a long pre-feast walk along the pebbly shoreline to the place where the Sound opens to the Atlantic. The winds whipped at my face and I was chilly yet at the same time flooded with the heat of all that thrilling expanse of ocean openness. Our walk ignited our appetites, so we nearly trotted the 1/2 mile back home. Enter Horseradish. I was offered first a glass of rich California Chardonnay, then presented with a huge platter of smoked, flaky, not too salty salmon and a bowl mounded with what looked like whipping cream??! My Hostess handed me a cracker, with a hunk of the salmon and an alarmingly large dollop of whipped cream. Thinking sweet pie whipped cream, I braced myself, praying I wouldn't gag. I was glad for the wine. With no desire to be rude, I took a bite and to my delight was consumed with a heated blaze which soared from my mouth into my chest, into to my nose, and I am sure out my ears. But the taste! Sublime! I sadly don't have the exact recipe for this (she doesn't have a recipe - one of those cooks who always cooks on the fly), but it is simply a gradual folding-in of whipped cream with freshly grated horseradish and a pinch of salt. She mentioned something about lemon juice "perhaps" but I've never used it.

My devotion to horseradish was sealed about 6 years later when my son, 3 1/2 at the time experienced his first earache. It seemed to hit him out of nowhere, on a Sunday of course. His sudden wails of agony stripped me absolutely bare. I'd handled fevers, stuffy noses and coughs but this was sure to crumble the tower within. I tried onion poultice. No change. This happened at a time when we were fortunate enough to have a Homeopathic Pediatrician who was also of a certain age. I phoned his S.O.S. line and his first words were "Have Courage." Okay. Got it. Next he gave me instructions to grate some horseradish and put it in a cloth and massage it behind his ear. My dear husband drove to the gourmet market we knew would have one, while I continued to rock our son, and admittedly did some weeping myself as I sat there feeling helpless. As soon as my husband returned, I made up the warm poultice and within moments, moments of applying this poultice the wailing ceased. All over, done, fini. Whew.

Process: Take one fresh horseradish, grate approx 1 tsp. finely, and warm this a little bit by pouring a tiny amount of very hot water over it. Scoop it up and place in a small soft piece of fabric, flannel is soothing, but anything you have on hand will work. Twist the fabric, making a small ball where the horseradish is (think little lollipop) and then right away gently massage the back of the ear, just where the ear meets the neck. You will want the horseradish poultice to be nicely warm, but not so hot that it hurts the delicate skin. You can also palpate the area and in older children and adults they will be able to indicate where the pain is. Massage the area gently until the skin turns pinkish. Adults can take a little more time than small children who's skin is so delicate. You'll need to keep close watch because you don't want it to burn the skin. Repeat in a little while if needed. Keep the entire ear warm afterward with a soft cap and my rule of thumb is not to go outside until a few days after pain has ceased.

The horseradish gets the fluids moving, unblocking blocked Eustachian tubes. I've used this technique on both myself and my husband with the same rapid success. It did not work on an earache of mine once which turned out to be fungal rather than bacterial.
Of course none of this is intended as medical advice!

Carey servinggaia.blogspot.com

The Essential Herbal - Mar/Apr 2011

The new issue is out, full of late winter, early spring herbs, recipes, musing, crafting, and general wonderfulness. Take a gander at the table of contents below!

The Essential Herbal Magazine -March/April 2011Table of Contents
Field Notes from the Editor
What exactly is an herbalist these days?
Chives, Tina Sams
Simple recipes to enjoy these beautiful spring blossoms and stems.
Herbal Connections, Adaptogens, Marita A Orr
Learn the herbs that help the body handle stress and find balance.
Make a Bagel Birdfeeder, Melissa Nicole Sidelinger
A fun craft gives the birds a treat while they wait for nature to produce.
Winter Detoxification & Remedies, Mary Graber
Easy, natural ways to clear the winter gunk and be ready for spring.
Color Harmonies in Your Garden, Patricia Myers
Planning the garden – what a concept!
Lemon Herbs & Other “Fruity” Herb Flavors, Barbara Steele
Delicious refreshing recipes using herbs for their lemony flavoring
SouthRidge Treasures, The White Pine – Tree of Peace, Mary Ellen Wilcox
Much more than a Christmas tree!
An Introduction to Muscle Testing, Part 1, Karen Mallinger
Muscle Response Testing – what is it? Can *I* do it?
Earth Mama, A Cold Process Soap Recipe, Marci Tsohonis
A sultry, feminine soap that feels as good as it smells.
New Uses for Tea, Marcy Lautanen-Raleigh
We love to drink it, but here are several recipes for body care using tea.
Recipes for Spring, Susan Evans
Wild greens, rhubarb, and violets are all utilized in Susan’s recipes to welcome Spring.
Sumac, More Than Meets the Eye, Cathy Walker
How to identify staghorn sumac, and what to do with it when you’ve got it.
Because of Parsley, Rita Richardson
A memoir….
Second Trimester: Supporting Your Body & Your Growing Baby, Betsy May
Great ideas and recipes that can be used by anyone, with or without children.
Elderberry Through the Seasons, Michele Brown
Keeping the bushes healthy and productive.
Urban Herbalism, Stephany Hoffelt
One woman’s decision to bloom where she’s planted.
Getting Ready for Spring – Starting Your Garden, Jackie Johnson
Wonderful advice from seed to garden. All that’s left is the harvesting!
The Sweet Delight of Cinnamon, Melissa Nicole Sidelinger
Cinnamon is becoming a well known medicinal herb. Try it as a tea!
Looking Forward to Spring – Loc Tay, Scotland, Cath McGregor
A visit to Loc Tay through Cath’s eyes.
Beat the Late Winter Blues, Mary Graber
Need a little pick-up while you wait for the sun to return? Lots of great ideas here.
The Herbal Adventures of the Twisted Sisters, Part 1, Tina Sams & Maryanne Schwartz
Our book is out of print, so we’re printing it in sections for our readers.
Word Scramble, “Somewhere in This Issue”, Tina Sams
Herbs of the Zodiac: Taurus, Susanna Reppert/Bertha Reppert
Taurus, it’s your turn to find out which herbs are your friends.
Wild Things, Tina Sams
A bit about ramps, plantain, and chickweed.
Musings from the Mountains, Gale LaScala
Gale dreams of spring.

a little warmth goes a long way

There's talk about a warming trend. Last year we got 40" of snow in the first half of February, but up until February, we'd had almost nothing. In contrast, this year it feels like there has been snow on the ground since Halloween... or was that Thanksgiving? Well it's been a l-o-o-n-g time.
Some years it doesn't much matter to me what happens outside. Most years, in fact. I like all the different weather we get here, but this year the snow has been around too long. I yearn for some GREEN! This year spring can't get here fast enough. I need it now!
Today we had our first warmish day for a long time. The snow is finally starting to give way. I pulled on some boots and had a look around. There's not a whole lot to see just yet. The horehound is amazingly continuing to grow. I didn't take a picture, but don't mind saying that I find that a wee bit scary for its neighboring plants - the fennel, gooseberries, and something else that I can't remember at the moment (it's still buried under the white blanket).
There are three rosemary plants out back. They really aren't fond of the bitter cold temperatures that we got this year, especially before they were covered with snow. Looking at this one, it's hard to say whether it will survive or not, but the lower part of the plant that was protected by snow looks more viable than the tips.
The golden elderberry bush has swelling buds. Just this year I learned from Barb Steele at Alloway Creek Gardens that having more than one variety of elderberry will increase the yeild from all of the bushes. That explains the 6 weeks that I spent frantically drying, freezing, and tincturing last year (still have some dried berries available on the website, btw....).
Under the elderberry, a deceptively weak looking plantain is greening up. There are many plants showing green - chickweed, garlic mustard, and plantain in particular, although most of them are still under snow.
The long row of Munstead lavender is silvery white without a tinge of green yet - but I have no doubt that it will survive. I suppose it's not good to be so cocky, but the lavender seems to love the soil here, and in 5 years they've done nothing but spread and grow, needing vigorous haircuts last year. These particular plants flowered continuously for 3 months last year.
The front yard only has two patches of ground, surrounding the trees. It makes me wonder about whether the roots produce some kind of energy/heat. Certainly there isn't as much snow under trees, since the branches would form a shield, but this is kind of interesting.
This coming week we should head towards 60 degrees by the end of the week. I can't wait!

livin' the dream

Yes, I get to live my dream. That's pretty much always been the case as long as I kept my nose to the grindstone and my eyes on the prize, but this isn't about me.
We had many interesting encounters during the last week, and it made a big impression and gave me a lot to think about.
Several times during our stay in the Big Apple, my sister and I discussed how gracious people were, and how they seemed to take joy and pride in what they did for a living.
It started out with a malfunctioning shower in our hotel room. Strange plumbing is always a challenge for me, so I dragged Maryanne into the bathroom to see if she could get it to work. Nada. Then I called the desk and asked if there was some trick to it. They sent up maintenance, and it turned out that a part needed to be replaced. The Russian man who came to fix it turned down our offer to go to breakfast while he worked, and had it done in about 15 minutes. My sister joked that back home it would take several days, and he said, "Ah... but this is the Holiday Inn!" and smiled as he left.
At breakfast, our waiter Singh asked where we were from, and we found that his cousin has a gas station in the area we grew up, and a home less than a mile from our old house. He told us how he loves our town, and that his family in India are farmers. I asked if it was a difficult transition from the farm to NY, and he agreed that it was. He took very good care of us during our stay, and made a point of saying goodbye on our last day.
Later, on a shuttle ride to the trade show, we sat close to the driver. We watched as a driver in a small car pulled out of an icy space and did a u-turn directly in front of the bus, and that led to a conversation with Lena, our driver with a very thick Spanish accent. She doesn't like driving in the city much, preferring runs to Atlantic City, but they needed her. She told us that she has 4 awards for her driving, that her daughter is a doctor, and that she is very proud to wear the uniform - even if her mother doesn't understand why. Her bus company gave her a diploma, and it was the only diploma she's ever gotten. She framed it and it means as much to her as a PhD might to someone else. She LOVES her job.
This is in contrast to some women who sat near us on another shuttle and discussed the various merits and disappointments in exotic vacation locations they've visited. Or the vendor who told us about how difficult the grind is going from show to show (and I do know that's true). Or the goof on the train home, trying to impress a young woman with tales of how much work he manages to skip out on.
This is not a commentary on immigration. NY is a thrilling mixture of accents, nationalities, and ethnicity. I cannot imagine what it would look like if it were homogenized, but still that's not the point here.
So often my friends and I talk about perspective, attitude, and creating our own reality. Over and over we were treated to living, breathing examples last week. None of these examples were typical goals that we think of in our lives, but these folks were living their dreams. It was inspiring to see. All work has value, but it is up to us to find the happiness in it by taking pride in our performance of that work.

NYC travelogue, our way

We'd been muttering about how long it's been since we attended a wholesale show for a good while, and Sunday we decided to head out for NY the next day for the International Gift Show in NYC. Skipping between weather fronts, we got on a train and went.

The city is full of interesting things, and sometimes the smallest things are fascinating. We ordered pizza, and found that it arrived with a pile of packets of herbs and spices. This probably isn't all that unusual to other people, but since we don't live in an area that has food delivery, it was pretty interesting to see.
Our friend Laura took us to see the musical WICKED, and it was fabulous!
The entire theatre was transformed into Oz, with fanciful artwork, furniture, and employees in character. It was a wonderful experience! I'd read the book years ago, but the musical was so much fun and so BIG!
Outside the theatre I took this picture of Laura. She's a very talented singer and actress, so I would love to see her picture on the poster!
Our main goal (oh yeah, I forgot...) was the trade show. Pictures aren't really allowed, so this is the lobby just prior to getting on an escalator into the fray.
I snapped a shot in the middle of one aisle just as the show was opening one morning. There are at least 50 aisles. They were on three levels, so it got confusing. The building is 2 city blocks wide, and it feels like about 3 blocks deep. There are literally miles and miles of booths. Only a small fraction of them held anything we were interested in, but the linens, tabletop, artglass, holiday, etc., etc., etc., were eyecatching. One needs to be very careful to avoid purchasing something that while exquisite, has nothing to do with their shop.
I dumped the catalogs from one day on my bed at the hotel.
Having internet in our room was pretty cool. Here's Maryanne keeping up to date with the news in Egypt. Or maybe playing some game. Either way, it was good to be able to stay on top of emails and business while hundreds of miles from home.
Our last night there, friends Rob and Laura took us to a great restaurant up the street - Strata 57. Rob got the squid-ink pasta and we all got a taste. It was delicious.
We all enjoyed every morsel. This picture of our friends came out like a painting because of the lighting, and I really like it.
On our last morning, a friend that we'd only met on-line trekked into the city to have breakfast with us. Carey was delightful to meet, and it was as comfortable as seeing an old friend we'd known for years.
Then it was time to go home. We got checked out and decided to have a quick soda in the bar before grabbing a cab to the train station. Only $9.50. Hahahahaha... time to go! Maryanne is looking ready.
Just for posterity, this was the view from our room. Lots of snow, slush, and ice, but the tree below showing signs of spring. We were happy to be on a lower floor, and surprised by the lack of noise. It was a great stay.

Right across from the station, the US Post Office stands, and you can't really read it, but the motto: Neither rain, nor snow, nor gloom of night... is engraved over the columns. Since I am so involved with the post office in my business, I snapped a picture.
We got to the station with plenty of time for people watching. Crisp businessmen and high, high heels were the most striking visions for me. Thousands of people passing through this room in the course of a half hour. Amazing, really.

Our trip home was by far our least favorite part of the week. We'd spent 5 days in a city with a reputation for ill manners, but had been treated with nothing but kindness and an attitude of pride in sharing their city that was so noticeable that we discussed it a few times. The train ride back with people from our part of the world was very different. That's all I'm saying about that, but thanks for the hospitality, NYC!

And now it's time to get the Mar/Apr issue of The Essential Herbal into the mail. It was delivered while we were gone. In the next couple of weeks, the things that I found at the show will be popping up on the website. Stay tuned!

Natural $$$

Sigh....
Just recently, we've been reading about the sell-out of the big natural and organic corporations to Monsanto and genetically modified crops.
I wish it were just a little bit more surprising. I wish that just once big money and truly natural and organic products could honestly swim in the same pool, but it doesn't seem likely. Oh, sure... there are wonderful companies where the people running them do well, but there is a division, and once we start talking "corporation" and "stock options" the numbers fall off quickly. In all seriousness, we should all know better by now.
We've watched this game for a good long while. Not as long as some, but the last 20 years have told a weary tale of hope and deceit. Hopeful, exuberant people learning to use plants for healthier lives, and deceitful business people seeing dollar signs in those glowing faces.
For me, it started in *I think* 1992, when my sister and I trekked to what I believe was the first Natural Products Expo East and found an entire wholesale show that catered to exactly what we were looking to add to our shops. We were beside ourselves with excitement! Row upon row of booths run by family businesses making and selling their wares, and we were able to talk to the people who blended the teas, made the tinctures, or wrote the book. We found incredible, innovative natural and organic products.
Imagine our surprise when the very next year the whole thing changed, and instead of long-haired hippies in jeans and tie-dye, we found chrome and glass, suits, and booth bunnies selling things like glandulars, body-building formulas, and weight-loss capsules. We were devastated. The big boys had followed the scent of money to be made.
I distinctly remember having a drawn-out argument with some "suit" who stopped us in the aisle offering an "herbal cure for herpes". Really. To begin with, you rarely find the people who actually make things standing in the middle of the aisles hawking and blocking the way - just sayin'... But we took a look at the ingredients and noticed there were no herbs in the list (nevermind the whole CURE thing). It contained vitamins and some amino acids. So we asked him to please point out which of the ingredients he considered to be herbal. He couldn't believe we were being so petty because, you know, what's the diff? You see, he assumed that as shop owners we would be just as interested in pulling the wool over someone's eyes to get their cash as he was. He really couldn't understand how he was insulting our whole industry, and besides, he was just hired for the show to work the booth. He didn't actually know about the product or care if it worked.
About that time, the pharmacist from a large drugstore came in to our shop and really gave us a ribbing for all the HILARIOUS products we carried. Can I tell you how highly amused we were to find that within another month or two, we found that they were carrying many of the same products? Or that from then on, we always saw his boss at the Expo? And of course the CVS that opened a block away from our main shop did the same thing.
And then we took a series of classes covering the various forms of alternative medicine. During one of the classes, we were told about a new chain of grocery stores, where you could walk in and buy anything, sure that it was healthy and natural. Every eye in the room got misty at the mere thought of such a foodie Nirvana. However we were told, they wouldn't be opening in our area because surveys showed we were "not a highly-educated area". Even at that moment, I knew it couldn't be about education. You can scarcely swing a cat without hitting an institution of higher learning around here. It was about money. I'm glad Whole Foods never came to our area because that has meant that we have honest, family-run establishments run by knowledgeable people who have managed to stay in business here! Whole Mart destroys small business the same way WalMart does, except they manage to cost a WHOLE lot more. We have CSA's, herb shops, herb farms, and our grocery stores carry local produce. We have an amazing array of farm markets. We were way better off without the expensive chain, and learned how to shop for ourselves.
In the meantime, I like to think that a lot of people have been learning what they need to know for themselves. Every day I get to converse with readers of The Essential Herbal who are in the process of learning to make their own herbal products - or purchase them from our advertisers who are not big money corporations. I'm proud of spending the last 10 years helping to share that information and getting people together to teach and learn.
That's where it's at, folks. It really is up to the individual.

a wandering mind

The other day my daughter called and told me that she needed to write a paper about something "either thrilling or traumatic from my childhood or adolescence." As her mother, my mind went tearing around to several ...um... interesting instances that would have fit. Hers went in a completely different direction, finally settling on a particularly horrific hair choice I made for her as a child that apparently has scarred her for life.
This conversation lit up certain parts of my brain, and it's been firing for days now, hitting on various *odd* things that have happened along the way.
One of those that keeps making me laugh to myself every so often is about 20 years old. It was from our days at the renaissance faire. One of the gypsies had a bed of nails and a pet rat. At some point he decided that it would be a good promotional idea to make a tiny bed of nails and train the rat to use it while he wandered the streets hawking his show. Not necessarily thrilling or traumatic - but clearly in the odd column. It reminds me of how much more time people had before the internet.
Another would have to be the day I realized that hot air balloons have some risks. Bob, my bil was the pilot, and he and I were sailing along when Maryanne radioed up that the ground winds were picking up. We saw a good landing field coming up fast, so Bob let the balloon sink into a tree that would slow us down enough to land there. This is not really unusual, but we hit too low in the very tall tree and instead of just slowing us down, the basket got caught and we found ourselves on our bellies hanging on for dear life to avoid being dumped out on our heads. It was one of those moments where the illusion between every day life and "Oh $*!%" clash, of which, looking back, there have been entirely too many. I'm fairly certain it was my last flight.
My daughter had a lot of interesting adventures growing up. Lots of thrills, and plenty of trauma, and much of both were my fault - especially when she was very small. I can't decide how to feel about her settling on a bad hair style as a worthy topic, but since one of my favorite college papers was an ode to a volunteer tomato plant and another a love letter to my 17 year old car, I suppose it's all in how we look at things. I can't wait to read what she writes!

not as quiet as it sounds

I keep chastising myself, feeling like nothing is getting accomplished around here.
January is a weird month. The days are so short, and as the sun goes down my internal clock is set to wind down with it. This year brought a cold, frosted winter, and it finds me indoors much more than usual, but a quick look back reminds me that this month has been just as full of things to do as any other... it's just that I'm not quite as willing as April or May will find me.
There's the year end paperwork, and then a couple of birthdays. Molly was home until mid-month, and managed to squeeze in a nasty little intestinal virus. That was fun. We've even had a couple of days where we took off and just didn't work at all. But we did lots of work too.
At the moment, we're finishing up the Mar/Apr issue of The Essential Herbal, and it will probably go to the printer in the morning. The early spring issue always surprises me because of the volume and number of great articles that come in. Here I am slogging along, but thankfully others are not. In fact, although we haven't done it for almost 2 years, we felt that we needed to add pages to this issue, and it's still packed with page margins as small as we can safely make them. Every time we send out a new issue, it is exciting to think about readers receiving them, but this time... well, I can't wait!We've also been busy with Maryanne's soap biz. In fact, we finally broke out the oil melter (from soapequipment.com) that's been stored in my basement for 3 years. We are VERY slow to change the way we do things. We got the whole set-up, but are implementing the parts one at a time. For a long time, the cutter made enough difference in the process that we were able to keep up, but it became clear that it was time to start using the melter. Weighing up solid oils in the winter (especially after they've been in "cold storage") is really difficult. We used to be able to pre-weigh them in warmer weather, but no more. Sometimes we get stuck in a rut of thinking small, and need to be forced to step up. This soap making equipment allows us to do it in our own way, and each step seriously changes our lives for the better.
As with any big change in a routine, there are small bugs to work out, so we've been doing that. We think we've got it now :-).
It's become boring for me to take and post pictures of COLD, so it's seemed quiet around here - but I guess it isn't after all.

Under the Snow

We haven't had much snow this year. That's good and bad. Good, because the roads are clear and travel is easy. Bad, because the perennials don't have the insulation to protect them from the cold. Even so, I saw a few frosted violets the other day in a sheltered area that never gets a snow build-up. This is how it looked out the back door just a few days ago....It has been cold though. We lost three guinea hens in the past few days. Not really sure what happened to them. Two cuddled up against the wall of the barn and expired together (odd that they didn't seek shelter and died at the same time...), the third seems to have just disappeared - which probably means it is down in the woods.
More snow is in the forecast, so I took a moment to go outside and see what was going on in the garden. It's interesting to see what happens out there.
Today the snow has melted back from some of the plants.
The horehound is very busy growing. Not as vigorous as it would be in the summer, it still continues to grow, unperturbed by the lack of sun and warmth. That is one stubborn little plant!
The rosemary is still kicking. It remains to be seen whether it will make it through the winter. There are three of them out there, and usually at least one survives. It all depends on which way the wind blows, the amount of snow, and how cold it gets for how long.
Sage leaves are also continuing to grow through the winter. We think these plants are dormant, but as it turns out they are not completely asleep.
The chickweed has made a nice carpet close to the ground under the conifers. There is always plenty of that around here as it seems to really love the climate under the boughs.
It felt good to go out and poke around in the ground. We've been staying pretty busy with indoor pursuits in the past few weeks, and are just about to dive into the next issue of The Essential Herbal (Mar/Apr '11). With more white stuff on the way in the next few days, it was now or never. I think I'm starting to wake up from my mini-hibernation.

herb bowls, another try

I've been wanting to give the herb bowl project another try. White sage has been in the back of my mind for various reasons, only one of which is the resinous quality in the leaves. It grew beautifully in the garden this year. The scent is glorious and grounding, and depending on the purpose of the bowls, might be just about perfect. The original plan was to use simply sage, water, and tragacanth.
Today I decided to add a little peace to the bowls by using some lavender distillate I made that's been hiding in the fridge for a while. That took the place of the water.
A rough recipe (at that point) was about 2/3 cup powdered white sage, 1/4 tsp tragacanth, and 1/4 cup lavender distillate.
The clay didn't want to hold together well at all. It clumped okay, but wouldn't hold a shape.Fine. Maybe a rounded Tbsp of yellow sandalwood to make it more uniform, and another slosh of the distillate. Still not quite there, I added an additional 1/4 tsp of tragacanth. I was avoiding the extra tragacanth, because it absorbs so much liquid that in the end result there are more cracks from the shrinkage. This is still half of the amount I used with the first attempt at herb bowls a couple of months ago.
It still didn't get exactly to the consistency I wanted, and wasn't roll-able. These are the end result. The tiny bowl has a stick through it so that a ribbon handle can be added later.
I'm going to keep at it. Eventually there will be a magazine article here when I've got it perfected, but in the meantime this the play.

Yay - Back to Business as Usual!

My sister and I were talking on the way to the hardware store to pick up some shelving today, about how we are seeing people lamenting the end of the holidays on the various social networking sites. It almost makes me feel guilty. Not quite, but almost. We've been there. In times past, I've worked the shift work, the holidays, and the 13 twelves followed by a single day off for months on end. It's not that I don't appreciate how precious those days off can be. It's just that these days I love my work more. Jerusalem artichoke seedheads still on the stalk.

We are with family every day, so holidays are no different for us in that department. We did take a few days off during the last week or so, but not completely, and not necessarily by choice. There have been 4 days without mail service in the last 9, so that kind of made it necessary.

Over the holidays, we eat too much (although *I* was pretty good this year...), watch too much blather on tv, and just generally feel somewhat restrained waiting for the year to end and get the heck over with already. The kids (hah - 19 and 24) are getting restless, and that's never a good omen because they usually come up with things for *us* to do. Vitex berries that the birds are saving for a colder day.

The bottom line is that we love what we do. We wake up every morning chomping at the bit to see what work awaits, what orders need to be prepared, what might be showing outside, and what new project we can get into. So while it seems that everyone else is dragging their feet wishing that this week would never end, it can't be over soon enough for us.
We thank our lucky stars almost daily that we have chiseled out this life for ourselves. It's really hard to call it work.

1-1-11

The numbering of our days is usually just an interesting factoid to me.
The first day of this millennium struck me, but I was so much younger then...
Today I woke up thinking that this was truly a fresh new slate. All ones - what could be clearer? Being a writer, there's nothing like page one in the next magazine or book staring at me to remind me of all the possibilities and opportunities that are waiting to unwind. Sometimes, those possibilities and opportunities are golden. Sometimes they are dark journeys, and we have no choice but to step in and begin. Sometimes we don't realize we could choose another path until it is too late. Life is funny that way.
2010 was a most unusual year, and I'm sure someday I will see the humor of it. So often as the weeks ticked by, I found myself murmuring, "it was the best of times... it was the worst of times..." from:

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens

There were amazing, wonderful things that fell into my lap with no effort on my part, and there were devastating losses that came out of nowhere and caught me in a riptide that slammed me repeatedly against rocky shores.
From 2010, I learned that the illusion we carry about having control over our lives is but a shimmery veil that is blown aside by the slightest breeze. Thanks 2010, I needed that. I guess...
So happily, I step out of that year, close the door, and walk into this brand new 1-1-11, the FIRST day of the rest of my life. I no longer kid myself about having control over anything except my reactions. That isn't cynicism. It's freedom.
We sat last night and brainstormed about new things to try this year, new ways to do things, and dared ourselves to take some risks. No resolutions - just newness, believing in what we've built so far, and helping to make those things grow.
I am excited to get this ball rolling!