Herbal actions — it doesn’t sound nearly as exciting or sexy as botanical monographs or the latest cure-all, does it? I’m aware that a fair number of beginning and intermediate herbalists tend to gloss over this particular subject, probably in part because of the typically vague and boring explanations given in many books and classes. What you may not realize though, is that this particular subject is both the foundation of the key to being an effective and insightful herbalist. As jim mcdonald puts it in his own introduction to herbal actions and properties:

“I don’t think I could possibly overstate how important it is to understand the properties by which herbs work. This knowledge is what separates a mediocre herbalist (someone who memorizes the name of a problem and the name of the herb that is listed next to it and says use this for that) from a good herbalist (someone who says, “Ah… dry, enflamed tissues… which mucilaginous herb should I use for this?”)… learn this stuff. Years later, you’ll either be glad you did, or wish you had.”

And while herbal actions ~sounds~ pretty dry, the actual experience and reality of it is very exciting because it has everything to do with the how the plants speak to us through our bodies. In my opinion, there really isn’t anything more appealing than and fascinating than talking to plants!

If you were to check out the list of actions in nearly any herb book, you would likely find them to be an overwhelmingly long list of very short, often cryptic definitions, most of them with the prefix of anti-. There’s usually an enormous amount of overlap and no arrangement of primary and secondary categories, along with a complete lack of consideration for herbal energetics. I’ve always found this to be immensely frustrating, which is exactly why I’ve been writing so extensively on herbal energetics and actions for so long now, and why I consider it a primary part of teaching the foundations of herbalism to my students.

You won’t see much of anti- anything as a primary action in my writings, this is because it’s much easier to understand the herb through what it promotes in the body rather than what it kills or stops. In fact, I would go so far as to say that herbal medicines simply aren’t anti-oriented. Even when they happen to help eliminate bacteria internally or systemically (as opposed to topically on the skin), it’s most often through some kind of enhancement of the native immune process rather than through direct attack on the bacteria itself. This can be hard for modern antibiotic oriented minds to understand. We keep asking ourselves when the bacteria is going to get herb resistant, showing how linearly minded we’ve become and how out of touch with natural processes we tend to be. I feel that the anti- prefixes only reinforces this kind of thought process. Therefore, I attempt to focus on the ~vital~ actions that the herbs excel at and which herbal medicine utilizes so well.

We do need to understand that there are many herbs that, while normally safe and life-enhancing, can be used in a suppressive or dangerous manner in inexperienced or overly forceful hands. A large part of the herbalist’s (and herbs’) job is simply to remove obstructions in the path of the anima (vital force) so that the body can do what it does best: heal, balance and thrive. Also, herbs that work primarily on a constituent-based physiological basis (think narcotics) are often best left to acute situations in the hands of experienced herbalists. The plants I DO talk about here should not be thought of any less powerful than ones such as Opium Poppy or Henbane. To the contrary, I consider plants that act in a nourishing, vitality increasing way to be far superior to those of limited usage and potentially dangerous, although both can be useful in the proper context.

Learning the Language of the Plants

Herbs are dynamic, living beings, as are we. Both the human body and the plants have the ability and tendency to adapt as needed. For this reason, there’s a fair amount of unpredictability involved in herbalism (much to the chagrin of the scientific and mainstream medical industry), but the perceptive herbalist will learn to recognize what is most likely to happen with certain herbs and what is most likely to happen with certain people, and not get attached to the idea of one herb creating the exact same effect in every person. A rose is a rose is a rose, but in one person the Rose may help them to feel relaxed and joyful and in another person it may trigger a sensation of physical coldness or even cause them to feel jittery and spaced out. The usefulness of understanding energetics and actions, is that it helps even the less experienced herbalist to better see what will likely happen in a relationship between any given herb and person.

Energetics and actions are not lists of correspondences and memorizable terms, but rather a mode of perception through our senses. A way of listening to the language of the plants with our bodies.

Herbal actions are the general tendency of the herbs in the body. They are not set and unchangeable but rather a continually adapting relationship between human and plant. Yes, astringency will always tighten the tissues, but how much and where will vary greatly depending on which plant, what other plants it might be mixed with, where that plant grew, when it was harvested, how it was processed, and so on.… it will also depend on the constitution and condition of the individual who ingests, the climate they live in and how they ingest it. Beyond that, there is the less tangible territory of intent and the subtleties between the person and the plant. Our emotions, state of mind, modes of perception and open-heartedness all play a large part in how everything around us enters and effects us, not least the plants we evolved beside and have allied with for millennia.
Actions are our perception and description of how the herbs effect the anima that flows through us. In most cases, the plants are encouraging our body to remove obstructions to the vital force (through stimulating circulation or diaphoreses or digestion, by modulating the immune system, by feeding the nervous or endocrine systems, by relaxing the muscles or countless other ways).

Primary & Secondary Actions

Primary actions indicate that the action is the foundational tendency of the herb in the human body, often deriving directly from its energetic propensities like astringent or demulcent. Secondary actions are those specific to certain organ systems like pectoral (lungs) or hepatic (liver). There is yet another category of actions (the anti- actions, I call them) that are dependent on the remedy’s ability to kill certain organisms, suppress or stimulate a function of the human body such as anti-fungal or narcotic or sudorific — we won’t be dealing with this third class much here because these plants are often poisons of varying degrees and thus depress vital function.

The easiest and often most accurate way to discern the action of any given plant is through our senses. The sensory input an herb gives us through taste, smell, texture and color can provide us with very specific insight into what the herb will likely do in the human body and in many cases, even ~how~ it will do it. This is the way the plants speak to us (and indeed the whole world, if we’re paying attention.

Previous and future posts on specific actions indicate how determine each action through the senses. A future post will also cover basic energetics and their relationship to actions.

Our Responsibility

While the plants possess an extraordinary amount of innate intelligence, it is up to us listen and observe closely enough to know which plants are needed in what way and amount. All humans have the inborn ability to do so, and it is the calling of the herbalist to specialize in this matchmaking process. We are not just well-trained pharmacists or researchers who can recite lists and cures from books, but sensitive practitioners with one hand on the human pulse and the other in the soil.

The Elder Mother’s Pantry:

An Herbal Materia Medica for Influenza and Other Cold-Weather Ailments

As the colder weather begins to move into the northerly reaches and higher eleveations of the Western hemisphere, there’s been much talk of the dreaded H1N1 as well as other virulent strains of cold and flu. The most important action you can take this is preventative in nature, including ingesting plenty of fermented foods and bone broth, getting your Vitamin D, being sure to make time for rest and keeping a good stock of immune tonic herbs on hand.

For this post though, I’ll be speaking specifically of bioregional herbs that can be allied with in the actual treatment of already present cold or flu. I have striven to create a simple, accessible, energetics-based materia medica based in your backyard rather than an expensive herb catalog. I’ll be dividing up my selections by action, to help give you an idea of not only what specific herbs to keep on hand, but what ~type~ of herbs to be on the lookout for in your bioregion. There’s some overlap, and that’s to be expected considering how multi-faceted most herbs are, and it means you’ll have less herbs to find and gather that way.

Keep in mind I’m not talking about all herbs available in commerce, I’m specifically speaking of SW bioregional herbs. However, I have primarily chosen weedy species common to most of N. America and even much of Europe. In fact, many of these herbs are so ubiquitous as to be nearly forgettable upon sight, but there are several here you can’t buy from any large herb manufacturer, so if you want them you’ll need to gather your own or buy from a small independent wildcrafter or grower who can cater to you weird taste in plants.

Demulcent Herbs

Demulcents are incredibly useful in cases where there is copious mucus, but instead of flowing freely, it cakes up into a hard crust inside the resp. tract causing congestion and feelings of constriction and can’t be expectorated regardless of how much effort is put into the task, often resulting in feelings of heat, oppression and exhaustion. They are also invaluable in situations in which there is little to no mucus but systemic dryness, resulting in withered and/or inflamed tissues. Feelings of heat, and a particular kind of “dustyness” in the lungs along with tongue with no tongue coating, are common symptoms of this.

• Mallow (Malva and allied spp.). – Mallow is cooling and very moistening. It soothes a raw, abraded throat with amazing speed, even as a tincture (yes, I know that’s not supposed to work, but it does) and especially as a mucilaginous tea or gooey pastille. Taken as a tea or as a powder added to food, it excels at moistening dry, inflamed resp. tract tissue. Not only does it greatly reduce the discomfort and pain of such a situation, it all contributes enough moisture to allow dry, hardened mucus to loosen and then helps to efficiently expectorate it out of the body. I have seen many seemingly intractable, spasmodic coughs accompanied by feelings of heat and dryness almost immediately cured by a simple spoonful of mallow honey, a cup of slippery tea or a small bowl of mallow root gruel. It also works great preventatively if you’re prone to this sort of affliction and can help keep any infection from settling into the lungs. If you don’t like that much goo on a regular basis, using the leaves and flowers of the plant provides a good dose of mucilage but isn’t quite as intense as the roots.
• Elm (Ulmus pumila and allied spp.) – Elm is also very moistening but more neutral in temperature, making it more appropriate for dry, oppressive coughs accompanied by a sense of cold. In addition, it shares Mallow’s gentle expectorating abilities, although if the person is very cold or has overall tissue depression, a warming, stimulating diaphoretic like Ginger or a Hot Pepper (Chile Piquen or Cayenne will work)  may be needed to get the mucus moving enough to be fully expectorated. It can be prepared exactly as Mallow, the dried bark can be cut in strips and made into infusion/tea, powdered and turned into pastilles or infused into a good honey.

Immune Tonic or Modulating Herbs

• Elderberry (Sambucus spp.) – Yes, yes, you’ve all heard me go on and on about Elderberry. You’re probably nearly sick of it by now, but I can’t possibly leave it out of this post, now can I? First, Elderberry is a fabulous immunomodulator, that means it doesn’t just stimulate the immune system into overdrive, it actually assists the body in adjusting to whatever level of immunity is needed. It has also been shown to be anti-viral in some cases, effectively disarming the virus and then flushing it out of the system before it can continue replicating itself in your body. I prefer to use it to prevent the actual onset of a virus, but it is also quite wonderful for lessening the severity and decreasing the length of the illness, once you actually contract it. I like to make my Elder Mother Elixir with both berries and flowers, but good berry tincture, honey, tea or homemade wine all work well. Elder’s applicability is very broad, useful in nearly every case of viral illness, and its copious bioflavonoids only add to that. Some people warn against its use in the treatment of H1N1, but in the dozen or so cases I have advised in, Elder seems to be of great benefit, even in people with autoimmune disease, where you might think the chance of cytokine storm would be larger. Also, I have yet to see any cytokine storm with H1N1 and have not heard from other practitioners that it is a common occurrence with this strain of flu. I won’t dictate how to treat H1N1 one way or the other, but I do know I would certainly be very likely to use it if my own family was dealing with this flu.
• Vit D – Well yeah, Vit D isn’t an herb but I can’t stress it’s importance in the prevention and treatment of flu and cold enough. Most suggested doses on the bottle are very low, 5,000-7,000 IU/day of D3 seems to work very well. Keep in mind that MOST people in North America are at least moderately Vit D deficient, including babies and children.

Lymphatic Herbs

Lymphatics are essential components of any herbal medicine chest, especially those aimed at treating the viral onslaught that is Winter in many places. These herbs are usually alteratives, with a specific emphasis on the lymphatic system. They increase and initiate movement of the lymph and specifically called with there is immune depression, swollen or painful glands or a history of lymphatic stagnation.

• Alder (Alnus spp.) – Alder is my all-purpose lymphatic of choice in nearly any situation. Cooling and drying, it has a profound affinity with liver, skin and lymph. It is most specific in cases where there are swollen, sensitive glands, especially at the onset of a virus but equally applicable if the glands and immune depression persists even after the virus itself is gone, resulting in a chronic sore throat, feelings of fatigue, lethargy and sometimes unexpected or intermittent flushes of heat or fever. If there is any sign of secondary infection during illness, it is doubly indicated, and is incredibly useful in almost any bacterial involvement in any part of the body (more about this in the heat clearing herbs section). Although, I’ve worked with a large number of well known lymphatics in my practice, it is Alder that has proved most consistent and dependable up to this point. I prefer a tincture of the freshly dried bark, cones and catkins.
• Redroot (Ceanothus spp.) – The wintergreen scented, scarlet red root of this aptly named herb is an excellent and classic remedy (revived with much thanks due to Michael Moore) for nearly any sort of glandular ailment. More warming in nature than Alder, it tends to be more suited for many chronic disorders or where Alder’s heat-clearing skills are not needed. I tend to think of Alder for acute conditions (even if longstanding) that involve heat, whereas Redroot is better for chronic, boggy or cool situations. It is xcellent for longstanding sore throats (especially with Sage), lymphatic stagnation as well as any spleen enlargement or non-fibrous cysts, inflamed tonsils and similar maladies. Decoction or tincture are both quite useful.
• Mullein (Verbascum spp.) – This fuzzy leafed weed is one of the most multi-purpose herbs I know, and to top most known generalists, it excels at everything it does. Specific to our purposes as a cold/flu herb, Mullein is a wonderful yet gentle lymphatic, especially useful in cases where the glands seem especially nodular and hard. The plant can be taken internally as well as a leaf (smushed up to get rid of those irritating hairs, thank you) poultice placed externally over area. Root, leaf and flower will all work but I prefer flower for acute, painful situations and the root for the most chronic with leaf usually working best for glandular stasis specifically related to respiratory distress or infection. It is especially effective for hot, dry conditions but is very broadly active. If there is notable coldness in the individual, then stick to the leaves or roots.

Diaphoretic Herbs

These are herbs that can increase diaphoresis by increasing peripheral circulation. The real key here though, is not in the sweating (although that can be very useful) but in the improved circulation that allows the body to properly modulate temperature and humidity. This may sound less than exciting in words, but really, it’s extremely vital to the treatment of almost any virus, especially if there is fever or signs of restricted circulation. Fever itself is a healthy response by the anima (the vital force) and the body can often eliminate unwanted viral activity simply by raising it’s own temperature. The problem comes when the circulation is impeded by overly constricted or overly lax tissues that prevent the body from properly responding and adapting to the raised temperature, potentially resulting in prolonged and unnecessary fever or in a low-grade but ineffective fever. Diaphoretics need to be taken as hot teas or infusion, and the person needs to be kept warm and bundled up so that the circulation can focus on its healing work rather than just working as a thermostat. Note that diaphoretics, while often initially seeming to increase fluids in the body by moistening the skin, are actually drying in nature.

Relaxant Diaphoretic Herbs - These are called for in situations where there is great tension causing circulatory constriction. The person will often be tense, with little to no sweating, and a hard, hot fever that won’t let go. There is often obvious inflammation as can be seen through a crimson red tongue, a flushed face and a feeling of being very oppressed, irritated and restless.

• Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa)- A very consistent and powerful relaxant diaphoretic, indicated by flushed, red skin with racing heartbeat, feelings of oppression in the chest and a high, dry fever. It’s action is longstanding and very thorough but being of a fairly permanent nature (vs diffusive, read my terms of the trade posts if you don’t know what I”m talking about) and can take a while to kick in to an effective degree. For this reason, if I need quick action, I will combine Butterfly Weed with a more diffusive herbs, depending on the person, Beebalm or Ginger or Rosemary could all work well to speed action and deliver it more fully to all parts of the body.
• Elderflower (Sambucus spp.) – One of the most accessible and easy to use relaxant diaphoretics in North America. Especially valuable in in the treatment childhood fevers, including those with febrile seizures. Susun Weed has discussed Elderflower’s ability to “reset” the fever mechanism when it is no longer functioning properly, and the body is habitually holding onto fevers rather than the fever following the healthy pattern of rising and then breaking. Even the tincture will work well for this, especially if there is fear that even the hot tea will raise the temperature of the child’s body temperature. However, in most cases, the tea is most appropriate and will also aid in bodyaches and sinus congestion as well as assist in modulating the immune system and help to prevent infection in the mucus membranes. Similar to Butterfly Weed, it is most called for where there is tension, lack of circulation due to tissue constriction, a red tongue and red, hot to the touch skin.
• Vervain (Verbena and Glandularia spp.) – This bitter herb is one of the most broadly useful cold/flu remedies I know of. It sure doesn’t taste good, but  it does excel at treating constriction throughout the tissues, especially in the typically acute conditions of cold and flu. It predictably relaxes tension to allow for increased peripheral circulation while simultaneously acting as a wonderful calming nervine to promote much needed rest and relaxation. It does double duty where there’s an upset belly or any liver tension happening. It is indicated where there is plenty of surface heat, possibly accompanied by deep chills, and bone-deep aches. This discomfort tends to trigger a kind of restless irritability that manifests as very grouchy people who refuse to rest and can’t settle in to being sick long enough to recover. Vervain will help with all this and probably put them to sleep too. Very appropriate for many sick children, mothers, take note! However, very large doses will cause nausea and potential vomiting, so stick to standard tea doses.

Stimulant Diaphoretic Herbs - These are called for when the tissues are too lax to allow for proper circulation. There is often significant coldness, a feeling of weakness or lethargy, a pale tongue, and a cold, even clammy quality to the skin. There may be a lowgrade fever happening but it is usually non-productive and intermittent. Dampness and overall congestions may also be present. Be careful with these when it’s cold out, because while they can initially make you feel very warm indeed, they actually lower body temperature through opening their ventilations of the body (which is part of why they work well for fevers, eh?) and are traditionally used in hot weather in hot climates to cool the body down, not warm it up. So, even if you feel all full of warm, tingly goodness, guard your body heat well. In addition to my two examples (both of which are common in gardens in the SW), many kitchen spices and tea herbs are stimulating diaphoretics. Most are generally warming, but some like Sassafras, are much more cooling in nature and those should be used where there are signs of both tissue laxity and heat.

• Hot Peppers (Capsicum spp.) – Specifically helpful in cases where weakness or longterm debility is preventing the body from completing the fever cycle. The fever usually stays low and dry, and there are feelings of exhaustion and being slowly drained by the process. There is also typically impaired digestion, achy joints and an overall sense of structural weakness, especially in the muscles. There may be inflammation but it will be of the low-grade, consumptive sort. I don’t recommend its use in excess or active inflammation, especially that related to excitement or constriction, as it can sometimes exacerbate these conditions.
• Mustard (Brassica spp.) – Traditionally, the ground seeds are used but the fresh or tinctured greens made into a hot, strong tea can also serve as a very useful stimulant diaphoretic. This herb is felt strongly in the respiratory and digestive tracts, creating a feeling of central heat and moving outwards in a feeling very much like a mild hot flash. It has similar indications to Capsicum but is more broadly applicable and can be used in cases where there may be some active inflammation, but still, the most common indications are cold, lax tissues without productive fever.

Mixed Relaxant/Stimulant Diaphoretic Herbs – As the name indicates, these are herbs with noticeably mixed stimulating and relaxing properties. This is true of most diaphoretics to some degree, but is more notable and usable in some. The most adaptable of these herbs tend also be variable in temperature, working as warm or cool as needed. These are called for when there is a clear mix of tissue states involved, which can happen because of a blockage in the body, that causes the tissues to behave in a fragmented way, because the virus has a certain constitutional effect that contrasts with the individual’s native temperament or various reasons. Many mint family plants fall under this heading.

• Beebalm (Monarda spp.) – This herb is generally experienced as relaxing, especially to the nervous system and muscles, but it’s diffusive nature contributes in revealing that it also has stimulating properties. It is useful in almost any diaphoretic blend, and I much prefer it Mint in most situations. It relaxes any constriction that prohibits free movement of the circulation while also strengthening the heartbeat and speeding the effects other other herbs through the body. It’s significant volatile oil content contributes to its strength as an infection allaying remedy, especially those that settle in the respiratory tract, multiplying its usefulness in the treatment of influenza. In addition, it soothes muscular spasms, allows for deepened breath and will comfort an upset belly of nearly any sort and is useful in relieving nausea. It is widely applicable and can be used where there are signs of either heat or cold, laxity or excitement. I consider the most specific indication for its use to be the presence of “stuckness”, whether resulting in active inflammation or in cold dampness. The flowers are the most strongly diaphoretic part of the plant, but the leaves are also very useful.
• Yarrow (Achillea spp.) – Bitter and aromatic, Yarrow is a well known herb and deserves its reputation as a heal-all in most cases. Like Beebalm, it excels at removing barriers to free circulation in the body, although its skills tends to be more focused, and work best where there is heat running rampant through the blood but a cool, blue-toned feel and look to the skin (M. Wood), which will usually be dry. The tongue tends towards red to carmine, and may be dry without coating or have slick trails of moisture across it. These are specific indications but Yarrow does very well at addressing general fever symptoms of almost any kind and I wouldn’t hesitate to add it to almost any diaphoretic blend. It’s also wonderful preventing infections and can be used as a gargle or spray (B. Hall) at the first signs of viral onset.

Heat-Clearing and Anti-Infective Herbs

This class of herbs are useful where there are signs of acute heat and possible secondary infection, especially in the respiratory tract. These are usually cooling and drying, and work quickly to lessen inflammation, ease discomfort and restore equilibrium to the body’s bacterial population.

• Honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.) – A classic part of many Traditional Chinese Medicine cold/flu formulas along with Forsythia. Cool and dry, this sweet-smelling herb is wonderful for bringing down hot, high fevers in children or adults, especially if the fever is unnaturally aggravated due to secondary infection. Perfect for any kind of hot, damn infection in the lungs. Honeysuckle is also relaxing and very calming, and will help restless children settle down long enough for them to recover. I often make an elixir or honey with the flower specifically for children with sore, hot, raw throats, and heat and pain that extends down into the chest, especially if they have a tendency to hot, tense bronchitis.
• Usnea (Usnea spp.) – This gorgeous green lichen is cooling and drying, and has a special affinity for dealing with all sorts of respiratory infections, even boggy, seemingly intractable pneumonia (although, I’d recommend combining with something more aromatic and diffusive in cold, swampy cases) or chronic bronchitis. If it is chronic though, be sure to combine it with a lymphatic herb for quicker results.
• Alder (Alnus spp,) – Spoken of in the lymphatics section in more detail, Alder excels at clearing heat and infection from anywhere in the body. From acute ear infections to bronchitis, I have seen it clear severe, antibiotic-resistant respiratory infections in less than 48 hours. I have recently begun adding dried Alder bark to my Elder Mother Elixir because of its strong lymphatic and heat-clearing actions (not to mention it actually adds really nice flavor to the Elixir and deepens the color, contributing a very aesthetically pleasing deep red to the mix).

Expectorant Herbs

These remedies help move move mucus when it is stuck, overly copious or dried out. Mucus is actually a very beneficial substance, and a vital part of our immune response to bacterial or viral proliferation. As such, it’s not necessarily a good idea to pop those allergy pills and dry it all up before it has a chance to properly do its job. Suppressing fever or mucus has the inevitable result of reducing the efficiency and effect of our immune systems. Use expectorants to move mucus rather than prematurely drying it up. Expectorants come in two primary flavors, relaxant and stimulant, just like the diaphoretics, depending on whether you need to relax constriction to move the mucus or to compensate for laxity or depression in the tissues. They can, like any other type of herb, be either moistening or drying, warming or cooling.

Relaxant Expectorant Herbs – These herbs help relax constriction and tension in the chest and nervous system enough for the mucus to move. If there is also significant dryness, moistening herbs should be used, if there’s too much moisture, drying herbs should be selected. It is quite common for this kind of constriction or tension to cause spasms, even to the point of making expectoration impossible because the constriction is so extensive that coughing only results in gagging rather than anything productive. In such cases, it is often useful to combine a relaxant expectorant such as Chokecherry with a strong relaxant such as Lobelia to allow the lungs enough freedom to properly remove the buildup of mucus. Lonstanding or chronic buildup will usually either result in dried, up crusty walls of mucus or a gurgly swamp, both are breeding grounds for infections. The former should be addressed with moistening expectorants such as Mallow or Elm, the latter with drying, usually aromatic expectorants such as Cottonwood or Pine. Many, if not most, aromatic, diffusive herbs are by their very nature expectorant, so the choices are very broad.

• Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana spp.) – The famous cough syrup herb is actually a much broader tonic herb of wide applicability by the herbalist, but does indeed succeed admirably at fulfilling its reputation as a cough remedy. Chokecherry is variable in temperature and may be either cool or warm, it is drying and has a pronounced relaxant action. It’s one of my favorite and first herbs for treating HOT, tight coughs where the mucus is dried up and crusty, often with a green or yellow tinge to it. There is usually significant tension and constriction, resulting in an inability to breathe deeply. Oftentimes, we will see red, flushed skin that is almost cherry red (M. Wood) in color and hot to the touch. There may well be dryness, and in this case, Chokecherry should be combined with Mallow or something similar. The individual will have a general hyperimmune response, probably some history of allergic reactions and a tendency to acute infections with active inflammation.
• Mallow (Malva and allied spp.) – This gentle, gooey herbs can provide seeming miracles for those who tend towards the dry and hot. While the plant never actually comes in contact with the lungs, its moistening reflex action provides soothing, slippery relief to bronchial and lung tissue when eaten or taken as a tea, and to some degree, even from a tincture of the roots. It is clearly indicated where there is systemic dryness and heat, with hardened, condensed mucus that refuses to budge. If the person has less heat, it can be helpful to use a warming diffusive such as Ginger to get things moving more quickly.

Stimulating Expectorant Herbs - These are called for where there are boggy, lax or depressed tissues. This is especially common where a condition has become chronic or the individual has suffered for asthma or related lung weakness for much of their life. In these cases, there will often be coldness, even there is also a tendency to infection and low-grade inflammation. These situations can become dangerous, as a boggy lung ecosystem can easily turn into pneumonia or become a very welcoming habitat for virulent bacteria. In these cases, I will often recommend the use of an appropriate mucus membrane tonic for a period of time to help restore tone and flexibility to the tissue, which will lessen the chances for future infections or issues.

• Cottonwood (resinous Populus spp.) – Sticky, aromatic and spicy, this common tree bears amber resin coated buds in later winter to early spring. These buds make an excellent medicine for boggy, copious mucus that just won’t go away. Instead, it sits in the lungs and seems to procreate, and you can often actually hear the bog growing when the person breathes. These people are usually cold, with signs of excessive dampness clear in overly lax skin and water-logged membranes. The tongue will often be pale unless there’s underlying infection, often with a thick white coating (yellow if there’s infection). The tincture, chewed resin (it will stick to your teeth and burn your tongue by the way) or even tea, will efficiently dry out and MOVE the wetlands trying to take over the respiratory system.
• Horehound (Marrubium vulgare) – An incredibly bitter, stinky little invasive alien and persistent weed that has completely invaded the Southwest. Despite all this, I really like Horehound. A powerful and dependable expectorant, it is especially useful where is a great sense of heaviness upon attempting to breath, as if your lungs were straining under a great puddle of stagnant water. There is sometimes slowed heartbeat and weakened pulse accompanied by general deficiency, a pale tongue and a look of listless weariness about the person. It is also of great use in the treatment child-onset asthma.

The foundation for experiencing and understanding herbal energetics and human constitutions is to learn to speak with the natural world (including plants and the human body) through our senses (which is what they’re there for, after all). Thus, one of the most important practices of the aspiring or practicing herbalist is to thoroughly awaken, engage and refine the senses.

Of the Earth: Original Speech and the Senses

“Our senses are meant to perceive the world. They developed with and from the world, not in isolation. Using them is the act that opens the door that is in Nature.”
-Stephen Buhner

“All we have to believe with is our senses, the tools we use to perceive the world: our sight, our touch, our memory. If they lie to us, then nothing can be trusted. And even if we do not believe, then still we cannot travel in any other way than the road our senses show us; and we must walk that road to the end.”
-Neil Gaiman

Original speech was never words. The language of primal being and the living earth speaks in a soft brush of fur against our bare skin, flows on wild melodies for our ears to hear, blossoms into a rich sweetness on our tongues, fades into a thousand shades of green in the forest canopy, envelopes us in the heady musk of an orchid. Words are shorthand, symbols for the real world. – Don’t mistake me, words have beauty and power, but only so far as they evoke the sensory web in which we live. Abstractions, concepts without root in the flesh and blood of earthly existence are but stillborn shadows of the inspirited organism that is our planet. The healer cannot afford to play pretend with big words and heady ideas, our work is in the achingly physical planes of skin, root, bone, leaf, heart, petiole, uterus, stamen, belly. This is our territory, our haven, our speech and most of all, our home.

As humans, we are intended to reside in our bodies and in our connections to the land, each other, the all. Our senses are not meant to be just half of the equation, with the other half cerebral hyperbole and mental loops. Our senses and our honed awareness of them are the entirety of being. Indeed, if we do not live wholly in our bodies, we do not wholly live. Our minds exist, not outside of the senses, but as a processing center for sensation, so that we might further refine and hone our awareness, our capacity to feel and our ability to respond to those feelings.

Our ancestors, as indigenous peoples of planet earth and full participants in the natural world, knew well how to listen to the land. They heard and understood the language of river, otter, rock, dragonfly and flower. In the age of industrial civilization we speak of these people and those days as if they were long gone. As if, in fact, it all might have been a myth, a fanciful fairy story to begin with. After all, old women do love to embellish stories by the fire, and men are well known for their exaggerated tales, so perhaps life has always been this burdensome and boring and we humans have always been this cut off from the magic and mystery. Perhaps we never did speak to plants, and we really are as crazy as our neighbors (who catch us whispering compliments to Dandelions) suppose we are. This insistent and insidious whisper of doubt stems from our fear and our imagined separation from the natural world, including ourselves. And despite the many stories to the contrary, it is not magic and the realm of Faery that have faded from our world, but we humans who have closed ourselves into the vast corridors of our minds and turned our backs on the innate enchantment to which we are each born.

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3 Steps to ReLearning Original Language

1. Surrender to the Senses
The first step is to forget words, and the best and most natural way to do this is to give ourselves over to our senses. Step away from your computer, wander out of the house into the forest or garden or into your lover’s arms. Immerse yourself in the experience as if it was the first time you’d ever smelled dew-wet grass at dawn, or kissed the inside of your husband’s wrist, where the pulse pounds beneath your lips. Give yourself up to it as if it were the final time. As if this whisper of indian summer wind lilting through the elms that line your road is the last sound you’ll ever hear.

Now, start with five minutes each day, spend that entire time without words in your head. But don’t space out or float away from your body, stay firmly rooted in the here and now, ground yourself in your senses. If you can’t manage it any other way, choose five minutes of eating. Eat very slowly, don’t analyze the food. Notice it, savor it, and if it’s not worth savoring, get something else to eat. Give yourself over to instinctual experience of touch, taste, scent, sound and sight.

Integrate this into your daily life, even when it’s painful or unpleasant. If you burn your finger on the stove or your toes are cramped by your too small shoes, pay attention and respond rather than blocking or numbing it. Feel it, explore it, live inside it until you recognize the feeling’s fingerprint upon your senses.

If this is hard, persist. If it’s easy, delight in it. Don’t trivialize or rush the process. Don’t imagine for a moment you already know how to do this, no matter your age, your experience, your education. This is important, this is the primary way in which the natural world speaks to us, and it is the only way in which to learn the most vital aspects of a healer’s practice.

Don’t worry about translating every sensation into meaning, that comes later, and will only inhibit the process at this point. For now, simply cultivate a mammalian awareness and child-like presence. Notice. Embrace. Savor.

2. Inhabit your body.

One might think that surrendering to sensation would be identical to inhabiting the body, but I have seen and experienced the phenomenon of entering the body or immersing the self in sensation just long enough to experience incredible pleasure or crushing pain, but otherwise habitually abandoning the body to its automatic processes with little notice on our part.

To inhabit the body is to consciously and completely attend to breath, play, pain, dream, bliss. It is to stretch and wriggle into every crevice and corridor, filling our skin with our selves. It is to finally realize that our skin IS our selves. We are not merely souls trapped in flesh, but rather animated, inspirited matter in the form dancing, crying, loving humans.

Many of us may wish our bodies were younger, more toned, smaller, lithe or less scarred – and yet, our bodies are both home and, hopefully, an expression of our own character, a lined map of the lives we have lived. The more fully we inhabit our bodies, the more our bodies will reflect our authentic selves, from the sparkle of the eye to the gesture of eager hands to the balance and confidence with which we move. There is no other body for our beings, just as there is no other planet for our people. We are here and nowhere else. The journey to loving and valuing our body, perceived flaws and all, may be long and arduous indeed, but we begin with accepting that it is who we are and by inhabiting it as completely as is possible.

Consciousness resides in the entirety of the body. Practice centering your awareness somewhere besides you head. Let your index finger or left calf or your belly become the primary conduit for consciousness for a little while. Every day, send you awareness to different parts of your body and allow them to wake up, to feel and sense fully. When you’ve learned to expand yourself into all parts of your body, try holding your consciousness within the whole body at the same time. Understand that the idea that your awareness is only in your head is culturally indoctrinated lie, because in fact, we humans and all animals, lived inside the entirety of our bodies not just one extremity.

3. Engage the Present

Once we’re finally at home in our bodies, we often find ourselves living more intensely from moment to moment, deeply aware of the soft sweep of our clothing against our skin, of the morning light on our faces, of the bitter yet rich bite of the day’s first cup of coffee, of the pulse of breath as it flows from and to us. This brings us into the present, into each second of the day. There’s no more numbed out hours where we forget we’re anything but lumps of tissue in front of the TV or thumbs pounding away at video game controllers or clever brains solving complex networking problems from a cubicle.

In the vital, precious present moment, we immerse ourselves into our original wild nature, and feel the pull of the forest from outside our doors. We remember how to hear the plants speaking to us, the earth calling our names, all through the connecting threads of our senses and the presence that allows us to hear and understand.

Utilizing your heightened sensory awareness, notice whenever you start to pull yourself from the present. Even (or especially) when the stress of marital strife, sick kids or a bad job triggers the desire to escape into fantasy or convenient distraction, bring yourself back. For many, the simplest way to to maintain presence is to engage in a sensorily rich and informative practice, such as gardening, dancing or gathering medicinal plants or cooking. Such activities require the respect of remaining in the moment and noticing each nuance.

Whenever your mind threatens to overflow with an endless train of words or barrage of useless images, bring yourself back to the now. Go outside and below the nearest tree or with whatever bit of wildness you can find. Don’t banish the words, just let them fade away in the face of the immediacy of tactile experience. Press your fingers to rough bark, or lay your face against smooth green leaves, or immerse your body in moving water. Give yourself back to the embrace of the moment, to the original speech that flows between us and the earth.

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To remember, to open the senses fully, to bring ourselves back into fellowship with place  can take time, practice and great intent. For most of us, it means emerging from many years and generations of isolation and sensory deprivation. As difficult and confusing as this process of re-awakening can be, it’s also incredibly rewarding and pleasurable as we re-learn the almost lost language of our ancestors, of our more than human kin and the earth itself. For we who are healers and shamans, as the medicine people of an increasingly industrial age, this is the work of a lifetime. The more we can give ourselves back to sensory immersion in the natural world, the easier it will be to hear the plants and animals, the land itself, speaking to us. Likewise, we will better know what herbs are best in specific situations, what each person most needs to be whole and healed, and where our individual place in the great mystery lies. When we return to our senses, we awaken to the knowledge that the whole world is singing, that there is meaning and magic in every moment and thread of life, and that we are a part of it all. We remember that all of life speaks the same intense, sensory language, and then we too, begin listening and speaking within the wild dialogue of taste and touch, song, scent and sight.

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All Pics (c)2009 Kiva Rose Hardin except Loba by Woodstove (c) 2009 Jesse Wolf Hardin

Herbal energetics and human constitutions are predicated upon specific underlying concepts, including the spectrums of hot/cold, dry/moist, relaxation/stimulation and deficiency/excess. Herbal and dietary therapeutics will vary a great deal depending where the individual currently resides within these spectrums.

Deficiency and excess are a primary energetic spectrum and are defined in relation to the flow and concentration of the anima, or vital force, in the body. All symptoms are variable depending upon the individual, and it’s usually most helpful to look for patterns rather that isolated symptoms which can sometime appear contradictory and thus confusing.

A long period of excess type illnesses can result in eventual deficiency due to the restriction and blockage of the anima, a condition that can drain and burn up vital force. Thus, it is very important to address excess conditions carefully and quickly and assist the body in restoring native equilibrium. Deficiency conditions can in severe cases result in long-term systemic weakness, fragility and sometimes death. When observing an individual to ascertain the level of deficiency and excess, remember to note whether the current state of being is long-term or recent, because some acute illnesses can initially impersonate an excess constitutional condition.

Keep in mind that deficiency and excess are only one aspect of several primary energetic spectrums that should all be looked at in relation to each other. If neither excess or deficiency is apparent in the individual, move on to another energetic spectrum. Subtle constitutional imbalances may be more noticeable if you come back to deficiency and excess at the end of your assessment.

Deficiency occurs when the vital force has been used up or drained by illness, inappropriate lifestyle practices, substance abuse or other misuse of the energetic stores of the body. Deficiency of vital force in the body can result in fragility, weakness, chronic disease, sensations of coldness and hypoimmunity, a lack of tongue coating, lack of desire to move or participate in normal activities, and a general sense of the life force receding from the person.

Excess conditions often occur where a blockage of the vital force causes a buildup or misdirection of the energy. This can result in feelings of heat, pressure and oppression in the chest or gut, restlessness, irritation, aggressive behavior, hyperimmunity, systemic inflammation and a general sense of frustrated or bound up energy.

Possible Signs of Excess Conditions

• Flushed
• Discomfort worse with pressure
• Discomfort worse with heat
• Desires cold substances
• Aggressive manner
• Strong or bounding pulse
• Thick tongue coat
• Restless, agitated

Possible Signs of Deficiency Conditions

• Pale or pale with malar flush
• Discomfort better with pressure
• Discomfort better with heat
• Desires warm substances
• Weak or faint, erratic pulse
• Little or no tongue coat, cracked or raw looking tongue surface
• Tired, inactive, lethargic

The *Core Nature of Plants

by Kiva Rose

Our relationship to the plants is an ancient one, and we humans are well designed to engage the magic and medicine of the living earth we are a part of. All we need is right here – the vast and verdant world of the plants that speak to us, the extraordinary capacities of our senses with which we listen and the complex cognitive processes that let us learn on a whole body level.

As herbalists, a good portion of our work is in becoming intimate with the living plants that are the vital medicine of our craft. Rather than seeing a plant’s properties as disparate lists of constituent-based properties, we’re usually best off looking for the essential, core nature of each plant. This is not ever only one thing, and just as we cannot accurately define another human being by a single characteristic, it is equally fruitless to attempt to peg a plant as an “anti-inflammatory” or even an “immune stimulant”. No plant is only either of those things, despite how they are marketed on glossy pages and Walmart shelves. When we choose to ignore the other aspects of a plant, we fail to recognize the herb for what it is and thus severely limit ourselves as practitioners and the plant as a potential medicine.

I have yet to work with any plant that has only one use or one defining characteristic. Some plants, especially that are strong with a nearly drug-like action, such as the overt anti-cholinergic effects of some members of the Nightshade family, can easily seem so at first glance. However, upon closer examination and direct experience with the herb we will notice how far-reaching and complex these actions can be in the human body.

Every herb is a living, intelligent, ever-adapting tapestry of response, behavior patterns, unique abilities, and individual quirks that result in a specific personality. This is why a Verbena acts very differently (in our bodies an in the plant community) than say, an Artemisia. Make no mistake, each plant is an individual, even within the larger headings of their botanical families and medicinal properties. Learning to see an herb’s individual nature can help us to understand how it may act as a medicine in any given circumstance and how it may be most applicable without necessarily knowing its exact properties or actions. This is the single best way to learn, on an organoleptic level, the properties and actions of an herb.

Let me be clear that although the core nature I am referring to is reflected in most (if not all) other aspects of the plant, I am specifically referring to it here in relation to the herb as a medicine for humans. Just as when we are speaking of a plant being warming in herbal energetics, we are not saying the plant itself is warm (careful, don’t touch that plant, it’s hot!), we are saying that it has a warming effect on our bodies. Thus, we must constantly keep in mind that we are dealing with a terminology of relationship, and a perspective born of connection rather than isolation or categorization.

The core nature of an herb is made up of its botanical family, habitat, place in an ecology, growth habit, taste (as in acrid and spicy) and other sensory impact (scent, appearance, etc.), energetic tendencies (as in hot, dry and diffusive), vitalist actions (as in circulatory stimulant and diaphoretic), as well as its expression of the uniting anima (or vital force) that animates and enlivens the herb.

Interpretive elements, such as the doctrine of signatures and intuitive impressions are also of use here, especially when they are taken within the context of the whole rather than isolated as the single defining characteristic. Like mainstream medicine, we could attempt to break the nature of the plant down into biochemical components, but the end result would come up just as lacking as if we had tried to understand the whole plant based only on the doctrine of signatures or a homeopathic proving. This is not to belittle the relevance of understanding constituents since they can, especially when keeping the context of the entire plant in mind, provide us with unique insights into the behavior and makeup of herbs. My point is only that, as practicing herbalists, it is in our own (and our clients’) best interest to retain a view of the bigger picture, of the whole of the plant.

Equally important is the realization that plants are not humans, and that it is both unwise and unhelpful for us to pretend that they act, speak and feel as we do. However, plants are complex, sentient, responsive organisms that deserve our respect and attention as we ally with them in the healing process. When I speak of a plant’s nature, I am not referring to some etheric, intangible spirit. The core nature of the plant can be (and is) experienced by the senses and cognitive processes of our body. What we often imagine to be some sort of extra-sensory perception is usually a type of cognition or sensory input that we are unfamiliar with or unpracticed in its use. The capacity and sensitivity of our senses is far more acute and far-ranging that most of us either expect or experience. This is in part because of how underused they are now that many of us live without the pressing need for tracking, hunting, food gathering, hiding/running from predators and other awareness enhancing and once common activities. Additionally, for those of us in urban areas (or who spend much time in front of the television), the massive overstimulation we receive can cause us to shut down a significant percentage of our sensory capabilities in order to cope.

The physiology of perception and sensation does vary from person to person, but any healthy child can learn to recognize the basic properties of most medicinal plants through careful observation, organoleptic experience and practiced awareness. And anyone at all can practice and grow their existing sensory abilities, leading to a greater level of acuity and understanding.

The distinction between sensory perception and so called extra-sensory perception is important, because when we realize that energetics (and thus, the very language of plants) is transferred through our senses, we are then able to fine tune and deepen our physical awareness. This allows us to become ever closer and more aware of what the plants, and the natural world as a whole, is imparting to us in every moment.

Six Simple Steps: How to Immerse Yourself in an Herb

There is no one set way for all people to understand the all plants, but there are certainly some common and accessible avenues that frequently work for most people and most plants. I have arranged my suggestions in the order in which they seem to naturally occur for the majority of people. Don’t get stuck in any one place in the process, keep moving as feels appropriate and realize that you may have to repeat all the steps several times over before you have a feel for the plant or the process. Also realize, that in this miraculously dynamic and complex world that we are a part of, that we all have different strengths and predilections. Rather than remaining solely dependent on these, work to develop all parts of your perceptual abilities.

It can be useful to initially go through these steps with the herb as a living plant still growing in its environs and then go back, repeating the process with a (or several) form(s) of the medicinal plant preparation. This can be especially important if the plant is very new to you.

A few tips:

• Attempt to leg go of your expectations and assumptions while remaining grounded in reality.
• Forget what you think (or imagine) you know but do utilize available tools and skills.
• Approach the plants with wonder. And common sense.
• Above all, pay attention. Then pay attention some more.

Observation

Principle: To intently pay attention to and gather information on the many different factors and characteristics that make up a plant, both in its living state and as a prepared medicine or food.

Try to do this without making assumptions or judgements about why or how at this point. Gather information, especially the botanical name of the plant, what plant family it belongs to, what the plant looks like, feels like, smells like, and (if non-toxic) what it tastes like. Examine its growth habit, what flora and fauna it tends to grow in community with and preferred habitat. Spend enough time with the plant that you can observe how it acts under stress, in ideal conditions, how it interacts with its surroundings and how it changes through the seasons. Observe other plants in the same botanical family if available. Much understanding can be gained about the personality and traits of most herbs by getting to know their close relatives.

Have I mentioned how important it is to pay attention? It is!

Pitfall: Don’t limit your ways of gathering information. You will find your learning curve significantly less steep if you take the time to learn at least the basics of botany. Seeing the patterns that exist in plants and noticing the similarities within plant families can be extraordinarily helpful to your practice as an herbalist. It will also save you a whole lot of time when trying to identify new allies. If you rebel at the very thought of learning a seemingly scientific approach, keep in mind that nearly all traditional peoples had/have their own systems of plant identification, classification and terminology. And thus, botany, which is not book smarts but rather an intimate, detailed knowledge based on the observation of the natural world.  It’s certainly not the only way of understanding plants, but it’s an incredibly valuable one for any herbalist who wishes to have a personal relationship with the herbs. Likewise, a basic grasp of the anatomy and physiology of the human body will tell you much about how plants work and about our relationship with them. I do not limit my definition of this to the Western biomedical model of physiology, but also include Traditional Chinese Medicine’s organ systems and other similar well-developed models. What is most important here is the exploration, observation and study of life (and here, specifically of the plants and of our bodies) that increases our knowledge of the work we do and the lives we live.

Sensory Experience

Get closer than just observation, immerse yourself in the plant.

Work with all applicable senses (which means if it’s poisonous, don’t eat it, but find other ways of working with it on a sensory level), to whatever extent is appropriate. For any relatively non-toxic medicinal plant, this will mean tasting, smelling, touching and seeing it over and over again. This is a sensory immersion, so even if the plant doesn’t taste (or smell) pleasant to you, part of the process is becoming intimately familiar with every nuance of sensory input the plant can provide. It is for this very reason that I recently ate several whole Elecampane roots over the period of a couple days. I certainly didn’t find it to be a very enjoyable experience, but it taught me an enormous amount about how the plant works and thoroughly familiarized me with the exact texture, taste, scent and sight of it. This isn’t practical with every plant, but an attempt for some approximation should be made.

As with people, we get a much better sense for the overall personality of the plant by investing ourselves in both quality and quantity of time. Herbal one night stands can be productive in that they may result in the desired end (healing of whatever discomfort), but they rarely reveal the plant’s deeper nature.

Pitfall: Avoid depending completely, or even primarily, on one sense to inform your experience. Most people have a dominant sense for experiencing the world and a dominant cognitive process for understanding the world. Don’t let your natural proclivities (and strengths) become a weakness, seek out depth through diversity.

Emotional Response

Principle: Notice and engage your emotional feelings and reactions to the plant.

This can be as simple as recognizing the fact that you have strong feelings of like or dislike for the plant in question, and both ends of the spectrum are worth exploring, both for what they teach us about the plant as well as about ourselves. Emotional and nervous system response to ingesting a medicinal herb are important to note, especially I the experience is repeated.

Emotional response is valuable for the very reason that scientific inquiry often discounts it, because it is essentially unquantifiable, uncontrollable and to a large degree, even unnameable. It is wild by its very nature. In this way, our emotions allow us to access unique information and experiences not otherwise available to us. Permitting ourselves to feel deeply in relation to the plants (and people) we work with can teach us about ourselves and the herbs at a depth only achievable through emotion and attachment.

Pitfall: Keep in mind that in order for emotional response to result in knowledge and wisdom rather than simplistic reaction or self indulgence it is best balanced by a developed sense of self and finely honed discernment.

Secondly, refrain from assuming that because you have a negative emotional response to (or negative experience with) a plant that it is somehow evil, malign, has ill intent or is otherwise “bad”. Such value judgements rarely have any basis in reality when applied to anything besides humans. As mentioned before, projecting human emotions on non-hominids is just that, a projection, and will severely limit your ability to get to know any member of the more than human world.

Cognition

Principle: Engage you observations, sensations, thoughts and emotional responses to the plant on a whole body level, allowing the cognitive process to aid in your overall understanding of the herb and its effects.

Cognition is gathering, processing and incorporating information through experience, the senses, emotions, thought and other perceptual avenues. It includes within it all the steps previously spoken of but is a more complex phenomenon in that it is not simply taking in sensation (or feeling emotion) but is also its synthesis, deconstruction and transformation into a useful and usable knowledge.

There are many different levels and types of cognition, all of them holding some value and applicability. They range from careful analysis of collected data to dream-initiated understandings to combining information in new ways to reveal previously obscured patterns. Intuition and other preconscious processes are also included under this heading and can provide invaluable insights into plants (and people) when taken in context with other understandings.

I have chosen not to isolate conscious thought from cognition as a whole because of our culture’s already overriding tendency to do just that. When working with the plants (as well as other people and the natural world as a whole) it is often most effective to incorporate thought as an integrated aspect of cognition rather than that voice in our heads that never shut up. It is possible and usually preferable to understand with our whole bodies rather than our isolated parts, as useful and informative (if overused) an exercise as dissection is. I have thus placed my emphasis on the aspects of perception most neglected by Western culture and most in need of reincorporation. Cognition allows us to see and feel in new ways, to explore and learn and perhaps best of all, to understand and act upon our experiences and feelings.

Pitfall:  All perceptual organs (from skin to brain to heart) are best understood within the context of the whole body/whole person rather than isolated or given a hierarchal (and artificial) designation. Thoughts can provide profound understanding of a plant, as can intuition, sensation, dreams and emotions. All are necessary for a maximally balanced and accurate relationship. All are gifts and all meant to work together as a united organism in connection with the greater whole of the natural world.

Integration

Principle: Purposefully putting together the previous steps until a pattern or picture begins to emerge.

This may happen all at once, or more likely, occur over a period of time. Sometimes it will be a profound ah-hah type of moment, but more often it will be a slow process of realization and comprehension. The more diverse your means of inquiry and the more depth to your experiences with the plant, the better chance of really understanding the plant you have. It’s really not so different from getting to know people, although our means of communication with other humans is more standardized, while many of us are just beginning to (re)learn to speak with the more than human world.

For many people, the best way to integrate information and understandings is by expressing them in some way, either through talking aloud about the plant to someone else, by writing about it or whatever other way the individual might find helpful. Generally, this helps tie up cognitive loose ends and begin the process of integration. Ingesting or otherwise using the herb is also an essential part of this process, since only by doing and experimenting do we truly experience and not just think/feel about the plant. When you learn something in your body, organoleptically, it makes everything you know about the plant much less likely to be forgotten because it’s been absorbed and integrated on a broader level.

Pitfall: Don’t obsess. The process of integration may not happen immediately, or even after years, depending on your and the plant. You may go through these same basic steps over and over with the same plant for a decade before you feel like you have any true grasp of the personality/nature of the herb. With some herbs you may never get anything beyond a rudimentary look at certain herbs. And that’s ok, because we’re not here to become intimate with every single person or plant on the planet, or even our own backyard. Be persistent and discerning in your quest to connect to the plants, and you’ll likely find the ones best suited to you and your practice over time.

Application

Principle: Apply your understanding to your work/relationship with the plant.

In truth, we’ve been applying our knowledge and understandings all along, but this is the part where the focus really shifts to consciously incorporating what we’ve learned in a significant way to our everyday lives. Application, or consistent utilization/work with the plant helps us to gain confidence in the relationship and cements the other steps as we confirm, adjust, reconfirm and readjust our understandings and knowledge. I strongly suggest working with the plant primarily on its own for a long period before adding it to formulations. Experiencing and working with the herb on its own in other people will give you much needed information that might otherwise be lost in the mix.

Pitfalls: This is what many of us want to do first, to jump in with both feet at our initial impression or first intriguing bit of information, and very often end up frustrated that the process of understanding every intimate detail of the plant isn’t automatic and effortless. Have patience and take the time to move through the process, just as you would with any meaningful friendship or other relationship.

On the other hand, some people get stuck right here, too nervous or insecure about their knowledge or abilities to go the final step and really work with the plant on a regular basis. Just remember that we’re all practicing, and nobody has it all figured it out. So listen carefully, learn well and proceed with common sense and you’ll likely be fine.

*I believe I owe the term “core nature” to jim mcdonald, from a conversation several years ago having to do with the patterns and personalities of individual herbs.