FORAGING BLOG
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I was brought up with homegrown food and medicine. In the 1950s and 1960s, when I was very young, most people had back gardens full of vegetables and fruit trees. In the 1970s, I supplemented my family’s diet with wild edible plant foraging. I studied large Culpeper books back then and began making healing herbal products from plants, much to my family’s amusement. I made creams, shampoos, ointments, and tinctures. Along with growing and harvesting garden vegetables, I made jams, wines—lots of wine—and baked all our own bread and fruit pies.
With three young boys and bills to pay, we had very little money to spare on food, so foraging was the natural thing to do. I was very motivated and enjoyed every moment. It wasn’t a hardship; being passionate about herbs and growing our own food is a very rewarding pleasure.
My sister told me just the other day that she remembers the shampoo I made. It included stinging nettles, which are mineral-rich, and I later learned that stinging nettles promote hair growth. Well, we all had fabulous hair and fast hair growth!
Also, in the early 1970s, there was an inspirational and highly amusing popular TV series called "The Good Life" with Richard Briers and Felicity Kendal. We watched the show every week.
I completed a diploma in herbalism in 2003, as my interest has never left me. I can’t believe that was nineteen years ago! Then I went on to do a Master Herbalist Rainforest course, and from this knowledge, I was able to formulate skincare products that include beneficial rainforest plants. The big bonus here is that the villagers foraging the plants are increasing the abundance of growth in the ecosystem. Their sales are helping the local village people to live a more prosperous life. It’s a win-win situation all around.
With three young boys and bills to pay, we had very little money to spare on food, so foraging was the natural thing to do. I was very motivated and enjoyed every moment. It wasn’t a hardship; being passionate about herbs and growing our own food is a very rewarding pleasure.
My sister told me just the other day that she remembers the shampoo I made. It included stinging nettles, which are mineral-rich, and I later learned that stinging nettles promote hair growth. Well, we all had fabulous hair and fast hair growth!
Also, in the early 1970s, there was an inspirational and highly amusing popular TV series called "The Good Life" with Richard Briers and Felicity Kendal. We watched the show every week.
I completed a diploma in herbalism in 2003, as my interest has never left me. I can’t believe that was nineteen years ago! Then I went on to do a Master Herbalist Rainforest course, and from this knowledge, I was able to formulate skincare products that include beneficial rainforest plants. The big bonus here is that the villagers foraging the plants are increasing the abundance of growth in the ecosystem. Their sales are helping the local village people to live a more prosperous life. It’s a win-win situation all around.