I've been a busy bee

Hi, I may have been away from this blog forever but I've not been idle.  No indeedy.  I'm seriously contemplating (things don't happen fast round here) keeping some bees next year (see what I mean).  There is a thriving bee community on Gower that runs courses and supports novice beekeepers.  So this year I have sown zillions of flower seeds for my garden.  They are all bee-loving plants and, if the slugs don't get 'em first, will make my cottage garden a haven for insects and beautifully colourful too.
Here's the list of flowers I'm cultivating: (in case you want to help the beleagured bees too)

Echinacea, Cornflower, Calendula, Scabious, Chives, Cosmos, Achillea, Lavender (Munstead), Poppy, White Chrysanthemum (also known as Michaelmas daisies - much nicer name).  I already have quite a lot of flowers and herbs and Grumpy grows lots of veg but this will really boost the nectar bank.

If the weather ever rights itself, I plan to sit and enjoy the fruits of my labours later in the season and will post photos of the results here.

I was well impressed with the programmes presented by Sarah Raven on Bugs, Bees and Butterflies and her efforts to get local councils to sow swathes of unused land with wild flower meadow seeds.  I have contacted Swansea City Council and encouraged them to follow suit but, a month later, I'm still awaiting their reply.

Watch this space.

NEW COMFREY OINTMENT - FRESH BATCH FOR 2011

What a fantastic spring we're having! but rain is finally threatening from the west at last. My garden is so dry! Before the deluge I took the opportunity to make some fresh comfrey ointment from my organic comfrey patch. It is in full bloom looking very gorgeous and swarming with bees who love it - quite justifiably. The new batch of salve for 2011 is a vibrant green colour showing how chock full of healing goodies it is. Comfrey leaves are rich in allantoin which is traditionally used to heal bruises and even fractures, though should not be used on broken skin. Problems have arisen in the past with using comfrey root, which is rich in pyrrolizidine alkaloids, toxic to the liver so I only use the leaf, which happilly for us is richer in the healing allantoin anyway. Nature knows what she's doing.

The price of £3.50 is unchanged from last year despite the new snazzy 50gm PET plastic jars with trendy aluminium lids. Get some for your first aid cabinet now! Keeps very well for years.

Ingredients: organic comfrey leaves, extra virgin olive oil, sunflower oil, organic beeswax, essential oils of lavender, tea tree and camomile.

Merry Christmas - Bliss Out with Serenity!

Seasonal Greetings Blog followers.

My word it's freezing here and the poor birds are very grateful for the birdseed and hot water I'm giving them. Unlike us they can't immerse themselves in a fragrant and relaxing hot bath to warm themselves up and forget about the weather.

New for Christmas 2010 Serenity is launching its Bathtime Bliss products. These are aromatherapy blends in bath oil or bath milks expertly blended for different moods. There are relaxing muscle blends, sexy and sensuous blends and uplifting and calming ones. Ideal survival kits for getting through the festive round of parties, bills and relatives.

There is also a range of Bath Salts with a base of Epsom and Dead Sea Salts, both renowned for the health-giving properties. There are three aromas to choose from in this range -

Geranium and Rose - the ultimate feminine combination - the salts are studded with rose, camomile and elderflowers and embedded with a matching heartshaped fizzbomb.

Then there is tranquil cleansing lavender - complete with lavender flowers and lavender fizzbomb - the deceptively simple and gentle aroma of lavender will soothe and calm the most frazzled host or hostess.

Finally there is the beautifully sunshine mixture of Saffron, Marigold and Orangeflower with essential oils of Petitgrain, Mandarine and Sweet Orange so you can plunge into a Mediterranean scented bath and picture yourself in more southern climes and ignore the frost and snow outside!

The Salts are presented either in a smart, large jar with an aluminium lid - very useful when you've used them all up - it'll take a while there are 250 gms of them - or a beautiful ivory coloured voile drawstring bag. This is ideal for people who don't like petals floating in their bath. Simply hook the bag over the hot tap as you fill the bath or dunk it when you get in. The salts will dissolve away, leaving your skin silky soft, and you will be left with a little bag of flowers, which once dry, you can use to scent your linen. Perfect!

All are very reasonable priced, totally natural, handmade and very pretty. They make ideal stocking fillers and unusual and thoughtful presents.

Sit back, click the button and get your Christmas shopping done without leaving the house!

see http://www.serenity-healing.co.uk/ for details.

Summer lushness

Well, what a lovely summer we're having! I have lived in Swansea for twenty years now, and I love it, but never have we had so long without rain. I've been amazed at how the plants have loved it and are flowering their hearts out. We have had precipitation this week and I found it very restful but one day was enough and I'm ready for some more sunshine now, thank you very much.

The fine weather has been ideal for making home tinctures and sitting in my garden one day I reflected as I looked about me that all the medicine we need is growing right in our own back yard.

Within twenty feet of my garden lounger I could see meadowsweet, dandelion, nettle, cleavers, hawthorn, yellow dock, plantain, horsetail, self-heal, sage, marjoram, rosemary, melissa, vervain, comfrey, elder, mints, parsley, rocket, fleabane, butterbur, St John's wort, berberis, willow, artichoke, camomile, fennel, olive - and I could go on! Then there were the fragrances of jasmine, roses, lavender, honeysuckle and sweet peas. I won't list the vegetables and fruit but you get my drift. I thought of all the conditions these plants can heal and wondered why I buy in so much from suppliers from around the world when all the pharmacy I need is right here in my garden.

The most usual method of using herbs, apart from infusions or teas, is from tinctures. Tinctures are preserved in alcohol and, if you get the ratio of plant material to alcohol right, will keep in a stable condition for many years. This makes them very useful for the home herbal medicine cupboard. Making tinctures is easy. The most tricky thing is to recognise your plant correctly. If you are a gardener, you will probably have planted it yourself and can be in no doubt of your quarry. So on a fine sunny morning, after the dew has evaporated, get a basket or cotton bag (not plastic) and some scissors and clip away at the aerial parts of your herb of choice. (Some herbs are better gathered at the root in autumn, such as dandelion but all of those listed above are best collected from their leaves, flowers and fruits). Fill your basket with the foliage and weigh it. To five parts of vodka have one part of herb. Steep the plant in a widenecked jar in the vodka and set it in sunlight (a windowsill will do) for at least 2 weeks, shaking daily. At the end of that time, strain off the plant material and put it on the compost, where it will activate it nicely, and bottle the tincture liquid. Remember to label it with the date of harvest, where you sourced it and your 1:5 ratio of plant to liquid. Keep it dark and cool (an amber glass or PET plastic bottles are best) and it will keep for years. The standard dose is 5 mls 3 times a day, but check with a good herbal book about uses and doses. Or buy my ebooks from Serenity Healing for further infomation and pictures of these beautiful plants. There you will read about folklore, history, methods of use, doses, applications and see good photos for identification purposes.

Empower yourself and your family by growing your own medicines. Always check a reliable book for safety guidelines and be sure you know what you are picking. Many plants in the garden can be reliable friends in times of stress and illness and will cost you no more than a bottle of vodka!

Happy harvesting.

Alexx

spring cleaning

Well it's still cold and dull here in Wales but Nature, bless her, is springing up regardless of the long cold winter we've endured. Normally frosts are unusual wonders to tut at so close to the Atlantic coast but this year they've been routine - and damaging. Our dear friends the weeds don't seem to mind and the hedgerows are greening up everywhere though the trees are yet to leaf up.

Chickweed, dandelion and sorrel are just beginning to sprout. It's all the encouragement we need to get out for a good long walk to clear the cobwebs and bring some home as green treasure. Try this tasty salad with them:

Equal quantities of chickweed and dandelion young leaves

Half as much of sorrel

Some other greens - lettuce, rocket of choice

Add thinly sliced oranges or cherry tomatoes

Half a pressed garlic clove

1 Tablespoon of good olive oil

Some croutons, preferably sourdough, baked with olive oil and a little seasalt

Some softly crumbled oh so white feta cheese

Tumble together with clean hands and enjoy. Mmm feel all that goodness sorting you out after a winter of starchy carbos. The readily available chlorophyll is incredibly nutritious and gives a quick fix of minerals, vitamins and energy.

honeysuckle honey

Kiss me, honey, honey, kiss me ...

Honeysuckle flowers surprisingly late in the year and with this beautiful Indian summer the flowers are pristine and ripe for the picking. Pick a few blooms - say about a dozen - and immerse them in a jar of honey. Set the jar in the sun for a couple of weeks on a south-facing windowsill. Strain off and you will have a perfect cough syrup ready for the colds and flu season. And it will taste yummy too.

INFLUENZA

That headcold turned nasty. By Friday I was running a temperature but it's only Monday and I'm already on the mend. Out came all the remedies. Blues and flu's tea worked just as well as Paracetamol to bring down my temperature but tasted much nicer. The elderberry based flu tincture also tasted nice and cut through the gunge nicely. Potter's Vegetable Cough Remover was brilliant with the tickle. Eucalyptus, Thyme and Lavender oils inhaled over steaming hot water completely soothed my inflamed chest - always a weak spot with me. Eucalyptus oil on my pillow helped me to breathe through the night. Chest rubs with the same oils brought antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties to my lungs through my skin. I didn't smell of Chanel No 5 - my favourite perfume - but it was better than a chest infection or antibiotics. They bring you so low. Necessary sometimes but only if the above fail. Well - was it swine flu? How are we supposed to know? All the advice seems to be stay home, especially stay away from doctors, get yourself well and go back to work. They've even withdrawn the blanket Tamiflu. So thank goodness, yet again for herbs - hurrah! I'm on the mend and on the up. Damn that means I can no longer justify watching old swashbucklers in the daytime.........