Grow Your Own Pharmacy, 10 Healing Herbs You Need! 🌿

[Music] well when I first moved to my Homestead I thought I'd just be growing vegetables but reconnecting with nature has opened up this whole can of worms for me pardon the pun I am growing some very healing medicinal plants that I rely on pretty much every day and I thought I'd share with you some of my favorites in today's video show you the most incredible moisture izer using homegrown flowers that have a hugely medicinal healing power and a tea that calms me before bedtime giving me the most relaxing bedtime ritual and make sure I get

a really good night's sleep so if you struggle to sleep then stay tuned first let's get into my top herbs that I think are really powerful and ones that you should grow right now for all their healing benefits so first one on the list is beautiful Cula originally it was just to create a real good ecosystem so that my veg will Thrive these will bring in Pest and beneficial pollinators but then doing more research and getting into herbalism I realized that these lovely orange flowers have been used for centuries as a treatment for skin conditions

people with eczema would use kandula in BS and soothing moisturizers to treat the skin you can use it to treat cuts and burns and rashes its anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties make it the popular choice for healing wounds and soothing eczema but drunk as a tea or as an infusion this will help you if you have any stomach issues like ulcers or gastritis this is one powerful herb and what I really like often people call this the poor man saffron because it has such a vibrant color you can make like a Pella using this rather than

saffron just using the petals and I Infuse Cula to make the most nourishing hydrating moisturizing um moisturizer that I use on a daily basis on my skin and on my hair and I'm going to show you the recipe for that later on in this episode and I just want to put put a final note in about Cula I didn't sew any seeds for this patch each year they drop their own seeds and pop out of nowhere this is the Cula patch that I don't have to do anything for it comes back year and year cula's

bright blooms have also been associated with the sun symbolizing the warmth and healing in various folklore traditions where it was believed to bring good fortune and ward off evil that insects absolutely love these I pick a bunch often and just hang them upside down in my house to dry out before using them in teas and in my [Music] moisturizer guys so the next plant is probably my favorite plant of all time and it just grows wild and there's so many profound history and stories locked within it it's mind-blowing we'll get into that right away but

I just want to say a quick disclaimer guys if you have symptoms of an illness or you feel like you need to seek professional medical help then please do so that being said what I love about using medicinal plants is the Deep connection to Nature that I get when I collect them and learn more about it I feel like I'm going back in time and doing and what my ancestors did when healing was intertwined with our daily lives when we weren't living in big cities and modern places all on top of one another disconnected from

nature and for me herbalism emphasizes prevention over merely treating symptoms with pharmaceutical drug after drug so this is my favorite plant Yaro this is just a Wild Patch growing in the corner of my garden I do have some ornamental versions of it down in the garden but it is my favorite herb and it's got so many stories linked to it the Latin name is actually Achila named after Achilles because he knew the power of this herb it's healing power its power to treat cuts and bruises and wounds it actually has something in it that stopped

bleeding so he gave it to his Warriors and they healed fast and they were able to defeat their Rivals I just love this herb you'll identify it in the Hedge Dr by its lovely white flowers and sort of feathery leaves I dry this or make tinctures with it and if I cut myself or bruise myself I'll just use a little bit of Yaro tinure on my cut or on the wound and it'll heal me up good Yaro has a couple of nicknames solders wound wart or Nature's plaster due to its use on the battlefield it

comes in a variety of colors the white one and the pink one are often used for the medicinal benefits in folklore Yaro is believed to have protective properties and hung in homes to ward off evil spirits so I harvest the flower and the leaves and I would dry them in my dehydrator or just hung upside down in my house and then you can use them in teas or make a tincture with them and whenever I cut myself I use this incredible plant it's got a subtle sweet smell too free herbs free medicine growing wild now

I've only been studying these herbs for the last few years and I'm a newbie I'm always wanting to learn so if you've got any tips or any extra herbs that I need to getting in the garden then please comment them below I will recommend the books that I've read to teach me all of this stuff at the end of the video it's really important to get super knowledgeable when you're foraging and when you're thinking about herbalism this next one you should all know about eonia whenever you get a cold or flu or something like that

they tell you to take eonia because it's known for its immune boosting Powers it was actually first used in the Americas by indigenous people there who would use this to combat snake bites and other wounds eonia looks so beautiful in my garden I'm definitely going to be planting way more next year if you want to grow it at home and utilize the power the best way is to use it as a tea such a beautiful flower there and you can also make a tincture with it which is a very potent high strength version of whatever

herb you're infusing and I made a tincture in a recent video with alfl to get the calming benefits of alfl it's really simple to do so go and check out that video and I explain way more about tinctures talking of Al theflow the amazing thing about the alder tree is that not only do you get the flowers you get the Alder Berry too a few months after that's if you've left the AL theflow to turn into the berry and I've just spotted some in the Hedge R behind me and right now late summer you will

find Alder berries everywhere and this has been famed for centuries for its antiviral and immune boosting properties it's a Powerhouse and you know when these are ready to harvest when they've turned purple look at these clusters this is amazing that I have this just in my hedge R and these are a great source of vitamins A and C you can't eat them raw you need to process them but what you could do is make a really healing syrup with these or what I do is just dry them in my dehydrator and make a really strong

delicious in fact tea with the aler berries if I'm feeding under the weather if I feel like a Cold's coming on that's when I'll draw for my alderberry tea I love the look at this and it does make a real flavor some tea too so I love this plant I'm going to harvest a bunch of these leave some for the birds because they rely on this incredible plant that's a good sign when the when Nature's enjoying them it means that we should do too because they're probably really good for us and this one you know

there's so much so much knowledge around alderberry and Al thef flower I love this plant or love this tree so I'm going to grab a bunch of these [Music] before we go on to the next one it fills me with so much excitement to now be able to identify things like Alder or many herbs that I see on my walks or in the Hedge R it it is so exciting and it's something that I learned when I was in Jamaica and Mexico the locals were able to tell me what each plant in the Hedge r

or in the bushes would do for them and I was thinking to myself is this something that was lost in the UK or other parts of the world we just lost that connection to Nature and the plants around us and I feel like we have done maybe it's something my grandparents knew but just wasn't filtered down to me as life was modernized but I was so grateful for those trips and seeing the connection that the locals had to the plants that I had this motivation to learn as much as I could about the native plants

around me and the I got in my garden too so whenever I go on my walks it's a it's a treat oh look at that this is that pick this pick that it's so fun and exciting I mentioned these two herbs in a previous video and one of them actually just blows my mind every time this is called southernwood aka the Cola plant this smells like Cola or fizzy Cola sweets reminiscent of eating them as a kid oh it's so beautiful and I just had this grow in here and I just thought it was a

fragrant herb that people would enjoy when they walk past but actually this is fful medicinal benefits such as deworming or if you've got like a upset stomach or digestive issues then using this is incredible nowadays A lot of the time people use it in cocktails because of that smell and that Aroma but it was also used as an insect repellent too because of this pungent smell oh it's absolutely incredible in Pas time Southern wood was worn on clothing to ward off pests and illnesses and it symbolized protection and vitality it's also known as lad's love

and was sometimes tucked into clothing of young men as a token of affection and a symbol of vigor wellow if it's good enough for them it's good enough for me is that a symbol of vigor maybe the Hat alone is next to it I have lemon bomb again this just grew wild here just in this little patch in front of my front door and lemon balm has got the most citrusy refreshing smell and taste oh it's like if you go to a spa or a fancy restaurant maybe not that fancy but they give you like

a a warm towel and it's got that lemony Aroma that is what you smell lemon balm is incredible and it's one of the main ingredients in something I drink every day my bedtime sleepy tea that I'm going to show you at the end of this video this is so calming and has almost like a sedative relaxing properties to it this has been a beloved herb for centuries and has a calming effect on our nervous system it will help you battle stress and insomnia and lemon Bal has antiviral properties like with most of these herbs that

I'm talking about in today's video I often dry lemon Bal to intensify the herb but then again you can just make a fresh pot of tea using the fresh plant and it's very refreshing this has gone past its best now it's going to seed which is good for me because I know it's going to pop up next year and year and year after that I love lemon bar chickies come on chickies chickies come on chickies chickies come on come on chickies ah so the next one is lavender we love lavender don't we we love the

smell even my chickens love it that's why I planted this here because apparently it's calming to chickens as well as humans now the most common way to use lavender believe it or not when I was doing the research is to make a little pouch of lavender and pop it under your pillow and I thought no that can't work but studies show the scent of lavender is is really relaxing and will help AG you get a restful sleep and that's what it's been long used for it's renowned for its ability to soothe and relax and is

commonly used in aroma therapy to reduce anxiety promote sleep and ease headaches it's also great for insect bites too now again I dry this and I add it to my infusions or in tinctures and things like that and I just want to say an honor REM mention to plants that we think are just weeds like dandelion roots and dandelion in general and right next to me planting again famed for their medicinal Powers it's such a shame that we treat these common plants as weeds and uh I just want to learn as much as I can

about them and start sharing the [Music] knowledge before we go on to the final herb that I'm highlighting in today's video I just want to shout out to some of the other ones that I'm not mentioning today that I'm growing things like Feverfew and Mullen and lemongrass and passion flour all incredible herbs that I use very often from my garden some dandelion there now I could be talking to you for hours cuz there's so many herbs in this Garden that I'd like to highlight and right now I'm going to choose the last one and it's

not that really impressive in fact it's really sad looking but I've harvested loads of this already this is camomile we all know and love camomile tea and why do we have it and when do we have it we usually have it before bed for its calming abilities these Daisy like flowers have been cherished for centuries as a gentle yet powerful medicinal herb chomal is often used to ease anxiety stress and insomnia making it a popular choice for bedtime tea it's also an anti-inflammatory and is effective at treating digestive issues such as indigestion gas and cramps

Camal was also used to treat some skin issues as well in the past but for me there's no better tea than Camal and it's the most important ingredient in my bedtime tea blend which I'll show you soon it smells so good and this has just popped up out of nowhere and really hasn't taken much looking after but I just picked the buds and dry them out ready for my tea that smells so good all right let's go into the kitchen I've got some amazing things to show you when I was reading many of the herbal

remedy and herbal books that I've gotten into recently I realize that so many of the common herbs and spices that are in my kitchen cabinet often when used correctly are medicinal it's about the right dosage and the frequency and how in which you utilize these herbs so things like sage and cayenne pepper and coriander and the list goes on and on these are actually all medicine providing we take them in the right dosage so yesterday I made a big batch of my bedtime sleepy tea here's the recipe so what's the easiest way to utilize medicinal

herbs now for me is making te's or infusions and one of my go-to te's is something that I pretty much have every day it's my bedtime or sleepy tea now I don't know about you guys but I do find it hard sometimes to wind down and the ritual feeling of making my little caling tea in the evenings a couple hours before bed is it just sets me in that right mood and also with this combination of herbs that I use in my sleepy tea within an hour and a half I'm ready to hit the pillow

and I have a calming sleep most of the time and I found that these types of bedtime teas or sleepy teas from the supermarket they're always overpriced and they tend to just have camomile which is one of the greatest herbs I think as you know that I I love campile so much usually I'm growing loads of it and it's one of the important her in my blend that I'm going to make now but I think there's so many more herbs that you can utilize for a bedtime tea that you're not going to find at the

supermarket so what I do is make a big batch and that's what I'm going to do today and then I'll just have a couple tablespoons in my teapot each evening before bed the first thing I'm going to add to my mix is of course chomal it's well known for its Calon effects it induces that state of relaxation that we need particularly for before bed but what I like about it it's got this almost honey sweet beautiful Aroma and flavor and it's the perfect base for my tea so that I start off with chamal and to

every one part chomal I'll add half of all of the other herbs and we'll get into those after we've got my camer M so as I mentioned outside Lavender is Fame for reducing stress just cuz that beautiful aroma so this goes in and I love the blend of the flowers [Music] my favorite lemon BM next they're all my favorites actually this is just stuff from outside that I dried hung up on my little rope there and I've got it in my jar and I'll just crumble this in lemon balm calms the nervous system reduces stress

and will help promote deep sleep this this brings me a lot of Joy I feel like a a mad scientist or a wizard here a Welsh wizard making my concoction of healing calming goodness and they do make the most amazing gifts when you blend together especially homegrown herbs but even if you bought them you make your blend and you research each ingredient and you make a blend that tastes great it's the ultimate gift to give someone I always write a little note explaining what each herb does within that blend and I think today I'm going

to do that for you guys I'm going to fill this tube up with my completed sleepy tea blend once I've made it and if you stay to the end of the video I'll explain how one lucky person can win it I'll ship it to wherever you are in the world because I want to offer this gift to you but the next ingredient surprisingly actually is a herb or actually is a petal it's a flower it's rose petals the reason I add Rose is cuz it adds a lovely color running through this but also this very

delicate subtle flavor and it's got some surprising benefits to K me before bed now Rose wasn't one of the herbs that I mentioned outside in the garden but it is an important addition to this tea it adds a soothing quality and Rose is known for its mild sedative effects which will be the perfect addition to my tea so mint is actually the last ingredient that I add to my blend which is surprising probably to a lot of people but the reason I add it mint is really good for digestion and in mint tea that's why

I often you certain cultures around the world they will serve you mint tea after dinner for someone that eats quite late at night I know it's a bad thing I rely on having mint after my meals and it's great in this sleepy tea it also adds that beautiful Aroma that mint has and plus it just grows like a weed just hang it to dry and add it to your teas I feel like nodding off just as I'm mixing this cuz the aroma is so beautiful if anything this just on the side next to your bed

would probably do some good but in a tea is perfect I just put this in my container now and then over the course of the next few months this will be my supply of my bedtime tea and I just sip on that couple hours before bed and your stress melts away you're ready for bed you're ready to calm I'm feeling very calm just talking about it and it looks so beautiful with the colors as well and to think that a lot of this was home grown makes me feel so self-sufficient and grateful for this life

so before bed what I do is just make a simple infusion with this tea just two tablespoons into my pot I either Add boiling water or I get it gently Heating and infusing over a very low heat you want to allow at least 10 minutes for these herbs to infuse and release all their goodness and then just enjoy it enjoy the rich ual feeling of making tea with your own blend it is a beautiful feeling and it is fulfilling and it will put you in the right calming mood ready for bed [Music] [Music] we [Music]

there's another batch of Cula to dry now talking to kangela I mentioned that incredible moisturizer that I rely on for my skin and my hair so here's the recipe for that you will be amazed [Music] this is my totally natural homemade moisturizer that I use on my skin and in my hair it feels so good [Music] so I actually made a conscious effort to stop buying commercial like cosmetic products as much as I could it's hard in this world but I tried to stop buying them as much as I could cuz I felt like a

sense of unease when it came to the ingredients that were going in there from sort of artificial fragrances to preservatives and when you can make something at home it gives you the pride and it gives you that sort of feel Feelgood self-sufficiency bad javana that's how I feel when I make my homemade stuff from scratch and I also don't want to buy too much packaging or Plastics that a lot of these cosmetic stuff comes in particularly things like moisturizer now as I told you outside Cula is incredible for the skin it's so healing to the

point where people with eczema and skin conditions use it now I picked and dried my homegrown Cula in my kitchen and it's time to now Infuse it to get the best out out of it for this homemade moisturizer so I'm going to do a bit of a cheats version of this infusion most of the time herbalist will steep the Cula in olive oil or a carrier oil for months in a dark place in a big jar and that's the best way to get all the properties out of the Cula but I know we don't all

have the luxury of waiting months for our homemade moisturizer so I'm going to Simply Infuse the Cula for about an hour in a double boiler that just means in a sour spoon filled with a little bit of water and a heat proof Bowl put on top with some olive oil in it I also am going to add some dried lavender from my garden as well which will add that beautiful fragrance and all the caling properties that lavender has [Music] all right so you're probably wondering how I'm actually going to utilize that infused oil with my

homegrown kangel and lavender well the answer is majestic sheaa butter and cacao butter now Shea Butter originated in West Africa from the seed of the Shaya tree and cacao butter it's from the from South America and Central America now these two ingredients in their own right are here heing and really sacred to those indigenous people for centuries African communities have used shea butter not only as a powerful skin moisturizer but to heal Burns and scars and other skin ailments and the same with cacao butter indigenous peoples of the Amazon use it for his nutritional properties

both in skin care and sacred rituals so same method the double boiler ban Marie style method to gently melt down these two and Mel them together once they're melted together we'll take it off the heat and then strain in the infused olive oil all [Music] right w that's strain nicely but it's important to squeeze these herbs of all their goodness in the bow if you can get any extra juice you can tell the Cula has infused that olive oil is so orange it smells good and any little bits you get a free little moisturize as

you're making it so this needs to cool down slightly almost to room temperature because the next step is to whip this up to get loads of airation in it that's going to create a really light bubbly [Music] moisturizer all right so this has had time to cool to room temperature this is the fun bit whipping it up just with an electric whisk to get loads of airation in this moisturizer oh look at those ripples that is beautiful and it smells so good just in that short time infusing into the olive oil we've got enough lavender

and Cula in the mix now what I want to say is I'm not an expert at making Cosmetics like this I used to buy Shea butt and I still do from time to time when I haven't made my own from some really incredible artistan makers of natural cosme Cosmetics particularly shea butter moisturizers I want to shout out to my friends Earth toe Organics they make incredible shea butter moisturizer and a whole range of herbal Cosmetics with their homegrown um herbs from their Garden in Wales so shout out to them if you want to support them

click the link beneath this video but this is how I'm going to make my cheats version and I'm pretty happy with that I'm going to get this into the jar and I'll apply it to my skin pretty much every day but whenever my skin feels like it needs that soothing moisture [Music] this is whippy delicious it's so natural I could literally eat this I'm joking you good though do not waste a scrap of these precious ingredients and because we're going all out and making our own moisturizer I'm just going to garnish like it's a like

as it's dessert just with a few lavender petals because why not and I'm even going to grab some canger just get them on top [Music] too all right so my Lids go on these make the perfect gift actually my and Dad use them now since I've been making them and they actually do store for a long while because there's no water in in this mix these are just oils that they do last a long time so a good 3 months but to be honest I use this in my hair I'm on my skin so it

goes quite fast but it's a joy when you're using your homegrown ingredients plus the magic of shea butter and cacao butter beautiful done I never thought I'd be making my homemade moisturizer on the channel but there you go we all evolve and change over the years for the better [Music] hopefully all right guys well I brought out some of my collection of uh herbalism and foraging and hedro hand books some of these books are well all of them are great if you can recommend any too leave them in the comments cuz I really just want

to keep on learning as much as I can and I noticed that indigenous cultures all around the world including my homeland of Wales here we've each got our own knowledge but the beauty of the world being so small nowadays with social media is that we can learn from one and each other and find common ground and and realize that you know we're we are all human and I think that's one one beautiful thing about growing food in nature is that we all have an affinity to it we all want to connect to it and we

all feel great when we do so yeah the more I want the more I learn the better I think and the more I can share um my learnings and and and the the journey on here on YouTube so thank you for the support I hope you enjoyed this video if you want more like it just comment below and give me some feedback I do appreciate it all right guys I'll see you soon with a new video guys I am so happy to share with you my new book or actually this is actually a revamped version

of my old Christmas book that came out many years ago I wanted to modernize it and look at this beautiful green and the gold it's matching my new kitchen but more importantly inside there's a whole heap of new recipes new photos and it's perfect not just for Christmas but actually for Thanksgiving and any special festive occasion you'll find some incred rible new recipes in here from preservation to indulgent desserts and incredible party food and edible gifts too I'm very proud of this and I'm so happy to remake it and offer something else to the world

that's going to hopefully help you during the amazing festive Christmas times and so many other holidays and parties so here it is plant only holidays out now please support it really helps the channel just click the link beneath this video to get your hands on a sign copy that my mom sends out all around the world um if you don't want to get it from my website you can also get it from any good bookstore or on Amazon [Music] [Music] w [Laughter]