Rosemary is a beautiful plant! It helps protect mind, body, and spirit. This herb is both an ancient remedy and a culinary delight, and there are so many ways to work with it.
In the All About Rosemary booklet, which accompanies the autumn issue of Botanical Anthology, I shared my longevity tea recipe which combines this delightfully pungent and tasty herb with other plants valued for their neuroprotective properties. Here is the recipe portion of my article – you can find the full article in the booklet!
Materials
2 tsp rosemary, dried
1 tsp ginkgo leaves, dried
1 tsp goji berries, dried
½ tsp ginger, dried
Method
Mix the ingredients in a bowl to make a single cuppa, but you’ll probably want to scale up the
recipe and make a larger batch to sip often!
To brew one cup of tea, place a tablespoon of the blend in a tea strainer or disposable eco-
friendly paper tea bag. Pour just-boiled water over the tea and allow to steep for 10 minutes.
If you’d like, you can sweeten your tea with a bit of honey, maple syrup, or sugar.
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Aside from my tea, the All About Rosemary booklet contains so many jewels worth reading and recipes worth trying:
And all this accompanies the full Botanical Anthology magazine issue. I am sharing about it because this independent magazine, a labor of love by creative folks, is near and dear to me as I help edit and compile this publication and write articles for it.
With 40 articles from 38 contributors, there is something in this magazine for every budding herbalist, natural health enthusiast, (urban) homesteader, kitchen witch, and nature lover.
TODAY is the last day to download our digital version at a discounted price of $15 and receive the free All About Rosemary booklet. I hope you’ll consider treating yourself to a copy and enjoying the autumn plant goodness!
July’s Thunder Moon captures the essence of summer’s balmy, heady heat. Afternoon storms during this time help balance out the strength of the sun but also pack a punch with their turbulent energy. The sun in Cancer contributes a further watery element of heightened emotion and intuition; lightning can strike in so many ways.
Add to it the presiding Capricorn sign of the full moon this cycle, and you introduce an element of stabilization and determination. This synergy can be a powerful tool, offering a ripe energy for soul searching, brave and honest internal reflection and truth seeking.
Nettle lends strength to this endeavor and rose softens the heart to create openness. Cinnamon provides luck, and birch offers protection.
Thunder Moon in Capricorn Tea Materials
1 tbsp nettle
1 tbsp rose
½ tsp cinnamon bark
¼ tsp birch bark
Method
To make a single cup of tea, add 1 tablespoon to a tea strainer, eco-friendly tea bag, or French press. Pour 1 to 1 1⁄2 cups hot water over the tea and steep for about 5 minutes. Add sweetener of choice to taste, if desired.
Notes
To cold-brew, add the ingredients (1 tablespoon of tea blend per 8 ounces of water) to a glass jar or French press, steep overnight in the refrigerator (or under the moon), strain, and serve.
Yarrow is a plant that I had not previously worked with very much, outside of adding a pinch of it to tea blends here and there. So I am really loving learning more about it in terms of its medicinal and spiritual attributes.
Yarrow is a bit of a chameleon; it can be both cooling and warming, aiding flow and stopping it, and in astroherbalism terms it has ties to both water and air. But harmonizing lies at the center where these variances overlap. Finding wisdom in discernment, in balance, in both drawing clear boundaries yet allowing for flow and openness, all bring harmony. (Yarrow cards shown from The Herbal Astrology Oracle and The Herbcrafter’s Tarot.)
In folklore, yarrow is associated with love and visionary abilities; the tides of emotion and the clarity of communication that a combination of water and air brings.
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One of my new favorite ways to work with yarrow is in a lovely skin toner. Toners are not just about wiping down your face at night to improve skin and treat blemishes; they are a beneficial ritual that, when used before bed, can offer (magical-metaphorical-mindful-whatever you feel best calling it) plant-infused healing, nurturing, and intention. Botanical glamour magicks or simple self-care, it’s all the same.
Yarrow is at the heart of this new skin toner recipe I’ve created to offer the medicinal applications of astringency (pore tightening and texture benefitting), anti-inflammation, promoting circulation, and anti-microbial action for acne. But it is also present for its more esoteric value of promoting love, beauty, attraction, happiness, balance, and protection. Its association with war and battle—Achilles was said to have treated his soldiers’ wounds on the battlefield with it—means that your use of it each night is like putting on your own magical armor to defend against outside forces. And the folk application that witches might have used yarrow to boost the potency of workings translates here as an amplifier for your own inner power.
This toner also includes lavender for calming the skin and the mind, hawthorn for its antioxidants and heart-mending magic, and rose water for moisture, soothing, and beauty.
Add dried plant material to your jar. Add rose water, then top up with witch hazel, leaving about 1 inch of headspace at the top of the jar. Stir with a wooden chopstick or the handle of a wooden spoon to make sure all the plant material is submerged and your liquids are well combined.
If using a BPA-free plastic lid, cap it tightly; if using waxed paper and a regular metal canning lid, add the waxed paper first before screwing the lid on to prevent corrosion of the metal.
Label your jar with the contents and date, and allow to steep for 2-4 weeks. Top up with extra witch hazel if the plant material floats to the top and dries out.
Strain the plant material out with a mesh strainer and coffee filter or cheesecloth, bottle (a spray bottle works well), and use by spritzing or swiping over your face gently with a soft cloth.
Note: you can also add a few drops of lavender, rose, jasmine, or geranium essential oil to the toner if you’d like!
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This year will be my first year to grow yarrow in my little chaotic herb garden at home. I am a bit of a “throw it at the wall and see what sticks” gardener, so I have a few spots where I plan to plant a bit: in those “luck garden” flower beds I mentioned earlier in this month’s Little Rituals post, in a couple containers in my patio tea garden, and around my daughter’s new rose bush because my fellow PWC friend Erin Harwood (@plantmagicwitherin on Instagram and Ponderings & Wanderings on Substack) shared that yarrow can aid in attracting helpful insects that feast on pesky aphids. Check out her Substack for lovely plant content, by the way!
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Aside from love, beauty, protection, and healing, yarrow is valued for its divinitory insight, emotional strength, and has ties with the faeries and animal magic.
A simple yarrow tea can be drunk to aid in clarity and insight.
A pouch of yarrow can be carried as a token and talisman for courage, protection, and love.
In the kitchen, yarrow has a long history of use in fermented drinks like beer and mead. If you are a brewer, try replacing hops with yarrow to mix things up! Or, perhaps infuse some yarrow honey, add the young fresh leaves to a salad, or grind the dried flowers for seasoning blends and salts—I plan on trying that soon!
Sometimes you just need to treat yourself to a pampering session at home. These late spring days when the weather is just starting to warm up enough to wear sandals is the perfect time for a cozy home pedicure! Natural ingredients can make this a luxurious and healthy experience, and when the recipe is quick and easy to whip up, that’s all the better!
Coconut oil makes a great base for skin exfoliators. Its thick and whippy texture and moisturizing properties are the perfect vehicle for a sugar scrub. Add in nourishing and moisturizing sweet almond oil (or another botanical oil of your choice), nourishing French green clay, circulation-boosting ginger, and tea tree oil with its skin (and antifungal) benefits, and you have a recipe fit for a self-care goddess.
Combine the sugar, French green clay, and ginger powder in one small bowl with a whisk. You may choose not to use all of this mixture in your end product; it depends how much grit versus moisturization you prefer in your scrub.
In the other bowl, combine coconut oil, sweet almond oil, and essential oils, stirring well to combine. Sprinkle in the sugar mixture and stir well, testing the feel with your fingers as you go to decide how much you want to add.
Spoon into small glass jars for storage. Use this on rough feet before a diy pedicure, or on rough elbows and knees in the shower. This makes a lovely gift, too!
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For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
My love for Beatrix Potter knows no bounds. I wish so very much that I could sit down to tea with her and learn about her fascinating life! She was far more than just an author and artist: a studied naturalist, a conservationist, an entrepreneur, a generous benefactor to many causes, and an accomplished farmer and gardener.
One of my favorite tales by Beatrix Potter is that of Jemima Puddleduck. Poor Jemima—she just wants to be left alone to sit on her own nest of eggs. The farmer’s wife and children always seem to find her hiding spots, such as the rhubarb bush, and retrieve her eggs for the hen to warm instead. So, Jemima searches out a secluded spot in the woods to hide her nest, only to be offered a shed by an overly-polite foxy gentleman. More unforeseen events befall Jemima, but in the end she avoids catastrophe and hatches four ducklings on her own.
I created an herbal tea blend inspired by Jemima’s story, which includes the mint and thyme the fox requested for their dinner party, roses seen in an illustration of the garden, and rhubarb from the bush she attempted to hide her eggs in. (This tart tea is made with botanicals appropriate for a Beatrix Potter-themed baby shower, children’s birthday party, or Easter brunch!)
To make a single cup of tea, add 1 tablespoon to a tea strainer, eco-friendly tea bag, or French press. Pour 1 to 1 ½ cups hot water over the tea and steep for 3-4 minutes. Sweeten to taste with a bit of fruit preserves or simple syrup, if desired. (Strawberry can easily be substituted for rhubarb!)
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
We are firmly in the heart of Aries season, so I am sharing my simple tea recipe meant to help you ground into this energy! My daughter is a very fiery Aries herself so I am all too familiar with the spirit of this sign.
Associated with the Emperor in tarot; the root and solar plexus chakras; yang energy; red, pink, yellow, and white; and diamond, carnelian, citrine, and fire opal.
To make a single cup of tea, add 1 tablespoon to a tea strainer, eco- friendly tea bag, or French press. Pour 1 to 1 1⁄2 cups hot water over the tea and steep for 3-4 minutes. Add honey or other sweetener, if desired.
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For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
One of my most favorite forms of tea is jasmine pearls! Green tea leaves scented with delicate, luscious jasmine are rolled into little “pearls,” of which you can use 3 or 4 to a cuppa. Not only do I adore the mild floral flavor and relaxing sensation of enjoying this fancy-feeling form of tea, but it is also so lovely acting as the base of springtime tea blends!
Jasmine pearl tea tastes as delightful cold brewed or iced as it does hot. The pearls are convenient for preparing in a pitcher or mason jar, as they are quite easy to avoid when sipping (or you can scoop them out with a spoon). As for a traditional hot brew, green tea needs slightly special treatment! It needs a lighter steep so as not to turn too bitter. However, I’ve found jasmine pearls to be a little more forgiving than other types of loose leaf green tea in this regard.
It is true that green tea contains caffeine like its other Camellia sinensis counterparts, but less so, which lends well to the calming attributes it is found to possess. The tea plant in general is thought to aid in steadying and balancing the constitution, green tea especially. Jasmine’s presence adds further peace, calming, and uplifting.
This particular jasmine pearl tea blend includes catnip, chamomile, rose, and rosemary. The combination of light, flowery tea with nervine herbs that bolster the mind and soothe the spirit is the ultimate springtime self-care sigh of contentment!
As this contains green tea, be sure to use a slightly lower water temperature (don’t quite bring the water to boiling) and a shorter brew time, about 3-4 minutes.
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
We’re in the thick of winter, and it is a time to cozy up with both bright, invigorating aromas to bring a spark of sunshine, and rich, earthy scents for grounding and comfort. Orange and coffee both certainly fit those descriptions!
Orange’s sweetness and tartness give a vibrant boost during the dreary winter. Not only is it a potent reminder of the sun, boosting our mood just like the sun’s rays, but it provides antioxidant and antibacterial benefits that can aid skin. This makes it ideal in both skin and aromatherapy treatments.
Coffee is a botanical that energizes from the inside out. The caffeine in coffee can be invigorating and rejuvenating in skincare, especially tired and delicate under-eye skin. Use an under eye serum with coffee to brighten, awaken, and de-puff.
The scents and properties of orange and coffee pair excellently with rose, cardamom, and jojoba oil. So excellently, in fact, that this botanical-infused oil roller can also double as an aromatherapy perfume oil. Jojoba is nourishing and moisturizing, as is rose. While the scent of sweet orange essential oil enhances the uplifting and awakening scent of coffee, cardamom adds a spiciness that imparts earthy complexity. You’ll feel a calming and joyous energy every time you inhale this lovely and luxurious oil. (It would also make a sweet gift or treat to yourself for Valentine’s Day!)
To make the rose-infused oil, fill a pint jar about three-quarters full with dried rose petals. Pour jojoba oil to cover petals, leaving about 1 inch of headspace in the jar. Use a chopstick or the handle of a wooden spoon to push the petals into the oil so they are fully submerged. Cover with a coffee filter or cheesecloth and secure with a rubber band. Allow to infuse for four to six weeks, then strain out the rose petals and put the remaining oil in a clean jar. Add 1 teaspoon of vitamin E oil to extend the shelf life of this oil.
To make an aromatherapy / eye serum roller, fill a 10 ml roller bottle about halfway with rose-infused jojoba oil. Add 5 drops of coffee essential oil, 5 drops of sweet orange essential oil, and 3 drops of cardamom essential oil. (If you have sensitive skin and plan to use this as an eye serum, you can adjust and use less of the essential oils. If you want a stronger scent for aromatherapy, you can add about 3 more drops of each oil.) Fill the remaining space in the bottle with more of the rose-jojoba oil, leaving a little headspace for the roller. Insert the roller and screw on the cap, giving the bottle a swirl to mix the oils in.
Store any unused portion of the rose-jojoba oil in a cool, dark space.
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
I love making herbal sugars! They are so versatile, and can be used for so many things—like to sweeten tea and hot beverages, adorn a mocktail or cocktail glass rim, sprinkle on sugar cookies / shortbread cookies / other baked goods, add pizzazz to oatmeal, and even to make a batch of sugar scrub for botanical skincare purposes!
Orange is the star of this particular blend of herbal sugar. With its bright, tangy flavor, vitamin C punch, and complexity of bitter + sour + sweet, it adds depth and delight.
Orange offers so many nutritional and medicinal benefits. It aids the immune system, the heart, addresses inflammation, offers antioxidant benefits, and a host of other perks!
Herbal sugars can be utilized for ritual and spiritual purposes, too, and orange shines in this role. Orange is associated with love, joy, prosperity, luck, and divination. You could certainly change up the ingredients to suit your intentions, but the following recipe would certainly boost intentions of sweetness, joy, and love!
Mix white sugar, fresh orange zest, peppermint, and one vanilla bean (split and scraped, then the whole bean tossed in) in a bowl. Then spread it out to dry awhile on a cookie sheet before transferring the mixture (including the vanilla bean) to a jar. The vanilla bean will continue to impart its sweet flavor in the sugar and it will only get better!
Let the jar sit tightly lidded for a few days to infuse with all the lovely orange oil and vanilla before using it in all the delicious and creative ways you can imagine!
It is ORANGE month at the Plant Wonder Collective Patreon Study Circle! If you’d like to support the work of PWC, please consider joining our Study Circle for exclusive recipes, articles, digital downloads and printables for the plant of the month.
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
Today I’m sharing two herbal tea blends to enjoy for Yule // the Winter Solstice!
The Yule Tea blend is a sweet and festive spiced sip, full of immune-boosting ingredients that taste lovely. The combo of orange and spices is traditional for the season, in part because of those properties and in part because of associations with protection, divination, prosperity, and luck derived from them.
The Winter Solstice Tea tastes decadent like a holiday cake, but without the heartburn or feeling of overindulgence! With soothing herbs that promote digestion, relieve pain, and aid in circulation, it’s like a sweet, warm hug. And chamomile represents the sun that returns brighter each day after the solstice; juniper is a powerful talisman of winter protection, cleansing, and luck; and the other botanicals have ties to healing, love, and luck, too.
To make a single cup of tea, add 1 tablespoon to a tea strainer, eco- friendly tea bag, or French press. Pour 1 to 1 ½ cups hot water over the tea and steep for 3-5 minutes. Add honey or maple syrup to taste, if desired.
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
The Herbology Faerie 