Herbal Body Care: Hair Rinses

Believe it or not, I do not use any soapy shampoo or conditioners, and my hair is not a gigantic knotty grease-ball. I am also able to manage scalp inflammation and a cracked, flaky, psoriatic scalp by using herbs. First and foremost, it is very important for general hair and scalp health to have good circulation up there, so with any herbal hair rinses, I try to have either nettle or rosemary in there…

Herbs for flaky, itchy, cracked scalps:                                                                                             1. Rosemary= astringent, antiseptic, circulatory stimulant                                                         2. Nettle= circulatory stimulant, astringent                                                                                   3. Chickweed= super soothing, and relieves itching                                                                     4. Calendula= super soothing and healing, anti-fungal, and astringent                                     5. Comfrey= soothing and healing to cracked scalps, mildly astringent                                 6. Chamomile= anti-inflammatory and antibacterial, soothing                                               7. Pineappleweed= anti-inflammatory and antibacterial, soothing                                        8. Lemonbalm- soothing, antibacterial, anti-virul, astringent                                                 9. Apple Cider Vinegar= for flaky scalps it is anti-fungal and astringent, and restores pH balance to the scalp

Oily Hair: I would use a base of either rosemary or nettle. I would also add a strong astringent, like yarrow, and something cooling and astringent, like lemonbalm or chamomile/pineappleweed.

Normal Hair: I would use a base of either rosemary or nettle. And since I wouldn’t be focused on either soothing or astringent herbs for a specific purpose, I would pick herbs that are just soothing and anti-fungal/bacterial (to keep germs/smell off) like calendula or chamomile.

Traditional Hair Rinse: I have found out that natives in this area of western Washington frequently used a sword fern root tea for their hair! And since sword ferns are here year-round, they are a good source for a hair rinse!

happy experimenting,

-Vita

Herbal Body Care: Mouth Care

I like having a clean mouth, even when I’m in the woods! But when I say clean, I don’t mean soap-n-suds clean, like you might get with regular toothpaste… so use the following tips n’ tricks to help your mouth stay as fresh as possible.

The “Twig-Brush”- I like picking a small, young twig , chewing the end of it so it is soft and frayed, and using it to massage my gums and brush debris out of my teeth. It doesn’t get everything out, but it is a lot better than using nothing. I also like picking twigs from trees that have anti-inflammatory qualities, like willow, because gums can so easily get inflamed by trapped food, and thereby end up trapping more food–an endless cycle! I also like to choose twigs that have anti-fungal and antibacterial qualities, like cottonwood and birch, to help keep the germs away. And although those are my favorites, you can really use whichever trees you want (but make sure you know what tree it is… you probably don’t want to go brushing your teeth with cascara haha).

Mouth Rinses and Fresheners- I like rinsing my mouth with things that taste good, but more importantly with things that help keep my mouth clean. And feel free to mix and match herbs! I like Self-Heal mouth rinses, because it is antibacterial, anti-virul, and astringent, and I seem to find it everywhere during the summer. I am a big fan of lemonbalm, too, because it has the same qualities as self-heal, and tastes very good! Field mint, peppermint, and spearmint are also good rinses, and leave the mouth fresh. A new favorite of mine is using the common weeds pineappleweed and chamomile, which are both anti-inflammatories, antibacterial, and soothing. And what is one to do in the winter, when the green herbs die back? Well, try some evergreen tea! The tea of firs, pines, and hemlocks are not only breath freshening, but anti-fungal as well!

Now I must finish by saying this…the less you eat refined sugars and processed foods with crazy chemicals, the easier it will be to keep your mouth clean! Happy trails, and have fun experimenting!

–Vita

Herbal Body Care: Vaginal Health

Hello All,

The other day I got to sit down with some of the folks from Alderleaf Wilderness College and talk about using medicinal herbs to care for your body. This post is basically a reiteration of that discussion for anyone who missed it, and for anyone who has questions/is confused about anything we talked about… I’ll make each section we talked about a separate post… so Vaginal Health, here we go…

1. UTI treatment- Many amazing plants that grow here in the Pacific northwest are great for treating urinary tract infections. Some of the signs you may have a UTI include, but are not limited to: pain/burning during urination, feeling like you have to urinate often but not much comes out when you do, your lower belly feeling tender, and cloudy urine. When you see those signs, reach for the following plants to help you:

Bearberry, aka Kinnikinnik, Arctostaphylos uva-ursi- this plant is a great urinary antiseptic, diuretic, and works to treat acid urine. Use the leaves in a tea or tincture. Uva-ursi kicks UTI’s in the butt! This plant, plus goldenrod and cranberry juice, are my go-to’s for UTI’s.

Juniper, Juniperus communis- another great urinary antiseptic, diuretic, uterine stimulant, and also good for clearing acid wastes. Use berries and leaves (although I use mostly berries), in a tea or tincture.

Shepard’s Purse, Capsella bursa-pastoris- a perfect example of common weeds being incredibly powerful medicinal plants– a nice urinary antiseptic and astringent! Use whole aerial portion of plant, in a tea or tincture.

Goldenrod, Solidago canadensis- a wonderful urinary antiseptic and anti-inflammatory. Use whole flowers and leaves, in a tea or tincture.

Motherwort, Leonurus cardiaca- a wonderful herb, and the only one listed here that is NOT a urinary antiseptic. The medicine of this plant acts, instead, as a uterine restorative and stimulant for vaginal infections. Basically it helps to restore vaginal/urinary health and makes all organs involved stronger and healthier. hooray! Use aerial portion of plant in a tea or tincture.

Cranberry Juice- a UTI miracle-worker.

2. Yeast Infection Treatment- Yeast infections are fungal infections, so we use anti-fungals  to treat them! Yeast can build up for a variety of reasons. Vaginal health is maintained by a balance between the yeast and bacteria that are present, as well a balanced pH, and overall balanced environment. If for some reason there is an increase in pH, increased moisture and heat (like when people get yeast infections from staying in work-out pants too much), an increase in sugar, or a reduction in the number of bacteria that are normally present (like when people get yeast infections after being on a round of antibiotics), the yeast and grow and grow and turn into a yeast infection! Plants to use for treatment include:

Calendula aka Pot Marigold, Calendula officinalis – Not a wild plant, but can easily be grown in your garden or greenhouse. It is  an amazing antifungal and astringent, and is incredibly healing and soothing! It’s curing abilities stretch far past yeast infections, and is used for many skin irritations/rashes, and menstrual regulation. Use the flowers in a tea, tincture, douche, or suppository.

Western Red Cedar, Thuja plicata- A very powerful antifungal. Very very powerful. Use the leaves. I would put it in a tincture. I have heard by quite a few of my herbal mentors that the volatile oils in cedar are so powerful that if you brew its tea for a minute too long, you can get an upset stomache– so I stay away from the tea, and stick to using it in a tincture, or in a very very weak and diluted douche or suppository.

Old Man’s Beard, aka Usnea- very useful for a number of fungal and bacterial infections. You can make it into a tincture or tea. This is one that I have never used in a douche or suppository, so I will not speak to that. I see no reason why that cannot work, and I will surely experiment with it one day, but as for now I cannot confirm that using it in a douche or suppository form is either safe or effective.

Herbal Douches: an herbal douche is simply a vaginal rinse! The liquid you rinse with is an herbal tea/infusion that you let cool. You can buy a douche at the drug store, OR, use my handy dandy plastic bag method! Take a sandwhich bag, put the infusion in it, prick a hole in the bottom corner of the bag, and squeeze! the liquid comes out of the little hole in a nice strong stream. Naturally, because it does not go as far into your vagina as an actual douche, the liquid can only go so far up, but i find it works just as well.

Herbal Suppositories: I use cocoa butter, and calendula oil. I measure out how much cocoa butter to use based on how many suppositories i plan on using. For each suppository i measure out about 1 to 2 square inches (i guess about a tablespoon?). And for each suppository i use about 10 drops of calendula. I  melt all of the cocoa butter into  a pan, and add the oil, swish the liquid in the pot around, then pour into a baking sheet to let it cool. I let it only harden part of the way, then i scoop it out onto some saranwrap. At this point it is not fully hard, but still ver malleable, like paste or something. I then roll it like a sushi wrap, nice and thin. let it  finish hardening and then cut into inch-long suppositories. hooray.

The Gifts of Stinging Nettle

Hey All!

I wanted to take some time to talk about the wonderful gifts of the plant Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica) , which is very abundant here in the Pacific Northwest (CA north to AK).You can find them moist, shady places, and will know them immediately by touch once you feel their mild sting (the sting is really just little hairs on the plant that contain formic acid). I never see a stinging nettle by itself, and often see them in dense stands.

How will I know I am looking at stinging nettle? If you don’t feel like getting stung, you can ID the plant by the opposite leaves, square stem,  roundish-to-lanceolate leaves with serrations along edges, and leaves that are dark green above and lighter below. It is an erect plant that I have seen grow to my height (just over 5 feet), and when it gets that tall it often tips over into an arc.  When plant matures, green seed clusters appear at point where the leaves are connected to the stem.

What parts of the nettle will I use, and when do I harvest it? When harvesting fibers to make cordage, harvest the tall, mature plant after it has gone to seed (usually in fall). When harvesting the leaves for edible and medicinal purposes, harvest leaves off of a young plant that has not yet flowered (usually in spring-mid summer)– once the nettle plant flowers, it begins to create a chemical that is difficult for the body to digest. When harvesting nettle seeds for edible and medicinal purposes, harvest them when you see them! They usually show up in the late summer.

NETTLE LEAVES ARE EDIBLE, and contain tons of vitamins and minerals. They contain vitamins A and D, iron, calcium, potassium, sodium, and more. If you are daring, you can nibble on the leaves raw, or else cook them up however you like. They are good cooked like spinach, added to a stir fry, or marinaded and dehydrated into tasty nettle chips. You can even make them into a nettle pesto, or nettle cookies! The possibilities are endless.

NETTLE IS VERY MEDICINAL, both the leaves and the seeds. USES of the leaves: Nettle is a diuretic, astringent and tonic, and is an aid to circulation. Use the leaves in either a tincture or tea for these purposes. As a DIURETIC it eliminates water retention and menstrual bloating, as well as flushes extra acidity out of the kidneys. For aiding in CIRCULATION it increases the transport and excretion of blood-nitrogen wastes; so it is good for arthritis, eczema, and psoriasis. As an ASTRINGENT AND TONIC, it tightens and strengthens tissues; so it is good for healing scrapes and cuts, and also to lessen bleeding; it is also known for tightening inflamed urethral and bladder membranes, so it is good for ailments (infections, inflammations, etc) of urinary organs. USES of the seeds: the seeds stimulate the adrenals, and so is a good coffee substitute. Dry the seeds, grind them up, and add them to hot water or tea.

the seeds

Enjoy!

-Vita

p.s. some great books that I use for information on edible and medicinal plants are Medicinal Plants of the Northwest by Michael Moore, Edible and Medicinal Plants of the West by Gregory Tilford, Discovering Wild Plants by Janice Schoefield, and Indian Herbology of North America by Alma Hutchins… of course there are many many more, but these are a good start.

Who’s Been Sleeping in My Bed???

Being the dirtbag, raft guide, wilderness kid that I am, I generally have a variety of sleeping situations set up at any given time.  When I am raft guiding in Leavenworth, on the eastside of the mountains I have a small squatters camp tucked into the side of a mountain where no one can see me.  It’s simple, just a tarp and a food cache I dug into the ground.  This past week, after guiding on the westside of the mountains for the weekend, I returned to find a few things missing from my camp. My sleeping bag and pad were both gone, the cover to my food cache had been peeled back and my drybag full of food was no longer there!

While coming to terms with the fact that my stuff had been stolen, I crawled up on the rocks to see if the screen I use for drying food was still there.  Looking out from that position I saw part of my sleeping pad drug up the side of the mountain.  Scanning farther up the hill I saw my sleeping bag pulled part way up the game trail that goes behind my camp.  I have seen deer using this trail many times since I’ve been camping here, additionally I’ve seen marmots, raccoons, squirrels, chipmunks, and deer mice, along with some coyote scat, all in the general vicinity of my camp.  I wondered who or what would have drug my stuff part way up this trail just to leave it laying in the dirt.

Upon inspection of my sleeping pad I found that it was torn to pieces and only about half of it was there.  Once I got up to my sleeping bag I saw that it only had a small hole in it, although it was obviously drug through the dirt quite a bit and covered in saliva.  As I looked farther up the hill I continued to find pieces of the pad strewn across the path.   I continued following the trail of sleeping pad along the steep rocky hillside until I could find no more.  From there I continued exploring the various game trails for about half an hour or so until I came across the remainders of my food supply.  It had been torn to shreds and all things edible had been eaten, aside from some peanut butter in a glass jar that the creature did not managed to pry open, but not for a lack of trying.  Assuming that the marks I was finding on the leftover debris were from incisors, I determined that my thief was a coyote, as the marks were only about an inch apart.  As I have seen their sign in the area before, I was comfortable with this conclusion and decided I would still sleep at my camp that night.

Taking a closer look at my pad later that evening, I started to notice a pattern amongst the holes.  I found a few really clear 5-claw impressions in the pad.  What I thought were the incisor marks of a coyote were actually the 2 leading toes of a black bear paw!  My camp had been ripped apart by a black bear!!!!  I found this to be much more concerning than a coyote.  I weighed the possibility of its return and the chances of it acting aggressively if it did.  After talking it over with Michelle…I decided to stay.  I was going to keep a knife and a pot to bang on nearby, but after spending a good part of the summer on this mountain it started to feel like home and I wasn’t willing to give it up.  At least that was how I felt until dusk set in and I heard a loud rustling in the bushes just uphill of my camp.  I frantically grabbed for my pot and knife and started stuffing my things in a bag.  After a few moments I calmed myself down, realizing it was probably just a loud Douglas squirrel bouncing through the trees.  And then my phone vibrated in my pocket.  I almost peed myself, my heart started pounding out of my chest, and I decided it was time to get the #$%^ out of there.

I spent the night at a friends.  Since then I have been back on the westside for a bit.  Tonight will be my first night back at camp with a new food storing location much farther from camp…
- Jamie

My camp

Camp – minus sleeping bag and pad

Food Cache – cover peeled back – food gone

sleeping pad

sleeping bag

sleeping bag hole

pad pieces

more pieces

food remains

pb jar w/ teeth marks

bear claws

consistent pattern

wildlife teeth marks

Tracking at 522

This is my favorite time of year in WA.  The sun is warm, the air is cool and the rivers are low.  One of the prime local tracking spots and been under construction for the last two years.  Every time I go down there they have more fences up, trespassing signs and heavy equipment blocking the mud.  It took me over an hour following the river, crawling under bushes, over boulders, through blackberry bushes, across down logs to the promise land.  I admit the thorns drew blood and almost a tear but the berries were delicious.  I finally mad it to the sand bar and was rewarded with these.

Japanese Knotweed Polygonum cuspidatum

Himalayan blackberry Rubus discolor

fish bed

Black tailed deer Odocoileus hemionus

Coyote Canis latrans

Bullfrog Rana catesbeiana

Bullfrog hop

Beaver Castor canadensis

Beaver drag

Black bear right hind Ursus americanus

Killdeer Charadris vociferus

Raccoon Procyon lotor

Otter scat Lontra canadensis

Muskrat Ondatra zibethicus

Two hours later, with a pocket full of feathers and 90 pictures, I walked into the sunset and straight through the f’ing construction site.

Michelle

Pickling Dandelion Roots

Hey All! So I’m interrupting the Alaska-Picture-Extravaganza with a little lesson in pickling dandelion roots!

Why pickle dandelion roots, of all things, you might ask? Well, for one thing, they’re free! And, what can be better than eating something you harvested and preserved yourself? They also taste delicious once pickled.

Preparing the dandelion roots for canning:

Here is a dandelion root, with the leaves removed

I soak and rinse my dandelion roots to get dirt off

then i chop the end off of the roots that the leaves were attached to (much like how people cut this end off of beets or carrots)– i do this because dirt gets caught in that part

then, to make sure they really are dirt free, i lightly scrap off any parts that seem to have dirt on them (like peeling a carrot, but not with a peeler and not as intense– just scraping a serrated knife over it)

then i chop them up so they are ready for the jars!

and boom! canned dandelion roots!

The pickling brine that I use is a pretty standard one; the following measurements are for filling two quarts of dandelion roots (i know it doesn’t seem like that much in the pot, but remember that most of your jar will be filled and packed with roots!):

3 cups white vinegar, one cup water, 2 tablespoons of pickling salt, and a 1/2 cup sugar

Put it in a saucepan, and bring it to a boil. At the same time that I am doing this, I am sterilizing my jars and lids by letting them sit in boiling water for 10-15 minutes (I start heating the pot of water long before this though, since my huge pot takes forever to boil!)

Once the jars are sterilized, and before I pack in the dandelion roots, I fill them with these spices: (sorry I’m not very exact with the measurements, I just eyeball everything. If it is your first time, I do recommend finding a recipe online with exact measurements so you get an idea of how much to put in)

a couple whole cloves of garlic, a pinch of celery seed, 6 to 8 peppercorns, a pinch of cayenne or red chile pepper flakes, a pinch of mustard seeds, and some dill (preferably fresh)

So in the spices go, then the roots (which you really got to pack in there!), then the pickling brine. Fill up the jars to about a 1/4 inch from the rim, give the rims a quick wipe down (spices stuck to the rim can cause the lid to not seal properly), and throw on the lids…

Now that all of the hard stuff is over, you’re ready to let your jars sit in boiling water for a final 20 minutes or so…. and YAY, YOU’R DONE! … (after you remove them, don’t forget to let them sit on your counter overnight to give the lids a chance to “pop”, or seal)

THEY WILL TASTE DELICIOUS!!!

–vita