Natural and Herbal Medicines, YES in your Garden or Weeds

I used to be quite in to herbal medicine many years ago. I haven't had a steady supply of anything in years, but I have plenty of little labeled spice jars waiting to be refilled. One of the things I used a lot was white willow bark. Best aspirin around, just steep in very hot water & drink as a tea! I always found the flavor pleasant, I miss it. It's not exactly something that you can just plant & grow, but if you have a WW tree around, it might be worth looking into for harvesting some bark.

Another that always worked for me was pleurisy root. That was the best expectorant I've ever come across when I've had those borderline whooping cough chest colds. I think it's botanical name is Asclepias Tuberosa, and I believe it does well in the southwest & midwest regions. Don't overdo it though, 2-3 tsp daily (2-3 cups of tea) is effective. It's not going to kill you if you use too much, but it'll give you the trots if you use too much of it. I learned that the hard way.

This is a very good thread. Lots of interesting info. I know a lot about some of these things. One really important plant is the dandelion, it stimulates the kidneys and liver. Another great plant is the thistle, it is powerful medicine and is still used by medicine. Don't forget Yarrow either. A poultice made from yarrow will stimulate the healing of wounds and if you get cut in the woods, grab the plantain and put it on the wound, it will help stimulate the coagulation of the blood.

Burdock root and dandelion root also contain caffeic acids that actually fight cancer. These caffeic acids are also in the white potato, carrots,rutabaga, and coffee. Funny how people seem to have created rumors that these vegetables are fattening and more and more people are getting cancer. Who is starting these rumors? If we could find the source it would be nice. I think they are somehow originating from someone who profits by us being sick.