Earthly Garden

Found this blog today with some interesting korero from Shelly. Check out the blog here

Myrrh Milk Thistle & Tumeric

Myrrh (Commiphora spp.): There are 135 species of myrrh found in Africa and Arabia and they grow mainly in the wild throughout the countries. It is used in cooking or even in body products like perfume. You can even find myrrh as an incense form or oil form as well. It is used in salves, for stimulant and expectorant too. Can be used to treat earaches and also mild forms of hemorrhoids as well. It has been the topic of conversation lately with recent research on leukemia and helping to lower cholesterol levels as well.

• Milk Thistle (Silybum marianum): Grows as a shrub in parts of Samaria and Israel today and it grows very wild. Milk thistle is used present day to treat liver damage and helps filter the blood. If you do not suffer from liver damage, milk thistle can be taken to help with liver function and helps to remove toxins from the body as well. It has been researched as its effects to lower blood sugar and help improve insulin levels as well.

• Turmeric (Curcuma longa): Turmeric is a widely used herb in cooking in the United States and is used to treat Inflammation, flatulence, arthritis, bronchitis and is also known to be an expectorant and a diuretic as well. This herb is mentioned in the bible along side saffron and can be used to flavor anything from eats to egg dishes. Can be used to dye clothing because of the color it produces when added to hot water and allowed to steep. Produces an orange-yellow colored essential oil that can be used as a combination to other essential oils as well.

cultural designer

Read an interesting article in my research for sustainable art projects entitled “The Cultural Designer” GO and check it out.

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Tags: culturaldesigner, culture, Maori, indigenous, art, design, culture, connection,

holistic wellbeing

Have just arrived back from Manutuke and spent the day out there cutting back a beautiful harakeke (flax) bush. It was in need of a very good trim!

I have brought back a few plants to plant in the yard and also some harakeke to weave and make paper! It was a big day!

I also visited “Manutuke Herbs” which is a Homeopathic Pharmacy that provides herbal and homeopathic formulas to the farm, family and stable. The owner is Amanda, a qualified healthcare professional who uses both conventional and unconventional methods. She is knowledgable, approachable and warm and I would highly recommend going to see her!

Her remedies are very reasonably priced and she makes all her own remedies herself and wants to ensure that people who need her products get access to them. There was no cost for my consultation which took nearly an hour and I left with a remedy that cost me $17. That is awesome!

Contact details for Amanda @ Manutuke Herbs: Waingake Road Ph 06 862 8814

Ok, off to plant my harakeke plants and then prepare harakeke for boiling! Forgot the camera again to take photos which is highly unlike me! Next time…

Ma te wa!
Jo 🙂

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Tags: harakeke, flax, rongoa, health, wellbeing, holistic, hoeopathy, herbs, herbal, remedies, healing, flax paper, weaving, weave,

my magic garden begins

This is my magic garden blog.

I have planted a weed garden.

Well actually I have allowed the garden to grow by not mowing a certain part of the front lawn.

I have a very understanding partner who so knows me and has allowed this to happen, especially on the front lawn!

I was out there tonight, a full moon weeding my weed garden lol and found so many beautiful plants with flowers of all colours! Yellow, orange, pink, purple, white….

I have always loved being out in nature.

I remember the last house I lived in I grew the lawns as long as I could to appreciate the many flowers and healing plants that blossumed. Until my landlord told me to mow the lawns…

I guess we all see in different ways…

I used to roll around in my lawns and take photographs of the dandelions from below that made them look like giant sunflowers with the sun at their backs and the sky seemed so close….I will have to find those photos and post them!

I will also take photos of one half of my weed garden which is still long before I weed my weed garden.

There are so many forms of healing plants that have bloomed just by allowing the grass to grow. I am really excited at what plant I am going to discover next!

Besides the weed garden, I just planted some calendula today and trimmed back the tomatoes.

I also discovered a whole lot of other tomato plants scattered around the place that decided to blow across the front lawn and plant themselves conveniently in different places…

I’m going to cut back a flax plant tomorrow and gather some plants to plant in our back yard to help with drainage of water as well as for a source of harakeke to weave and make flax paper.

The other flowers and plants that we have planted are doing really well and the vege garden is producing yummy kai!

The silverbeet is ready!

More from my magic garden apopo!!