[Antoine]

Thank you Katerina for this great discussion!

Just last week while meandering in the forest, I was doing a mental count of the medicinal plants in the vicinity, to know what is potentially on hand as well as for the curiosity to try and understand what the land reflects of the people living here. I came to the early conclusion that we have an abundance of plants that relate to the water element in a way or another. Could it be that we need some remedies to balance/cleanse the body from the rich diet of the area? Local specialties are duck, black truffle, porcini, walnut, chestnut, goat’s cheese, and all sorts of fatty specialties that come with those ingredients, plus the usual French diet – wheat, dairy, potatoes and ALL the ways to prepare those in combination.
Seasons are quite different from one to the other here in Southwestern France, and the temperatures vary greatly. Lots of rainfall but unfortunately not well spread across the seasons… Winters are increasingly dry and milder than when I was a kid – still getting around -7°C but only for a few nights now, when we used to get around -10°C at night for a few weeks back then. Significant snowfalls happen every 5-10 years. Spring has always been very wet and still is. Summer is always hot but is getting wetter now, almost turning tropical at least early on, then it usually turns really hot and dry come July-August (we often get 38-41°C for weeks on end during the day) and most plants die at that time. Autumn is always lovely with milder temperatures but beautiful sunny days (especially until November) and the occasional rainfall to bring the mushrooms out.

Within walking distance of home I have seen, in the surrounding forests:
– Oak (one of the two main trees here)
– Chestnut (the other main tree found around)
– Pines, unsure what kind
– Hawthorn (which are often quite small, and I haven’t seen any of them bloom so far…)

These are the main trees found in the local forests. Then we have the smaller loved ones:
– Blackberry (by the thousands)
– Dead Purple Nettle
– Nettles (abundant)
– Juniper
– Teasel (rare)
– Burdock (rare)
– Violets (scent-free ones, and a few scented ones that come later)
– Turkey Tail
– Primrose (Primula veris)
– Lungwort
– Bugleweed
– Ivy (so much of it)

And in the surrounding fields or close to houses:
– Chickweed
– Cleavers
– Dandelion (lots and lots)
– Yarrow
– Mullein
– Self-heal
– Plantain (everywhere)
– Red Clover
– Mugwort
– Poppy
– Ground Ivy
– Common Fumitory

There is definitely a focus on the purple colour, followed by white and yellow. I wouldn’t be surprised if the land was trying to raise the consciousness by trying to open the crown chakra… 🤣
It is only my second spring here. Growing from seed (plus a couple of trees) in the garden (or seedlings) at the moment we have:
– Sage
– Lemon Balm
– Calendula
– Wormwood
– Chicory
– Tagetes (lucida)
– Oregano
– Basil
– Coriander
– Raspberry
– Vitex
– Linden
– Peppermint
– Garlic
– Chamomile
– Borage
– Fennel
– California Poppy

… And a bunch of other plants I have tried without success so far:
– Angelica
– Ashwagandha
– Echinacea
– Holy Basil
– Hops
– Hyssop
– Licorice
– Lobelia
– Marshmallow
– Motherwort
– Rosemary
– Skullcap
– St John’s Wort (this one has been frustrating to say the least, there’s a wild species that grows abundantly but isn’t Perforatum, and we have an ornamental one that isn’t suited for medicine either… the seed one doesn’t seem like it wants to be around just yet!)
– Valerian

Exciting times! Just listing those makes me realise how abundant plant medicine is at my doorstep, although I’m always looking forward to growing more. 🙏

[Antoine]

Today I’d like to share a book following a conversation in another post. It’s the second time I refer this book in the Teahouse so it’s probably good to share it here.

It has nothing to do with herbalism, however it it a fantastic reference for psycho-emotional work and its relation to disease. Introducing Jacques Martel’s “Encyclopedia of Ailments and Diseases”, which I thought was only in French and I just found out it’s available in English, so all of you folks can have a peak if interested!

While maybe not 100% accurate (which would be difficult as diagnosing disease from emotional or psychological viewpoint isn’t widely popular in scientific circles, making research in the field fairly limited), it is quite relevant in many of its analyses and will go a long way for those who are interested in the psycho-emotional aspect of healing. I have been introduced to it during a holistic healing course I’ve undertaken two years ago and it’s been with me since.

The book is alphabetically organised in chapters for each ailment/body part/symptom, be it emotional or physical (you’ll find phobia as much as herpes, pregnancy as much as fear, gallblader as much as pyrexia…). Each section might be divided in several subsections if applicable (for example, the Bone section is divided into Aches, Cancer, Acromegaly, Difformity, Dislocation, Fracture, Osteomyelitis, and Osteoporosis), giving a quick definition of the subject, then going into detail and relating it to the emotional or psychological pattern at play. Each subsection (or section) ends on some advice about what to do and address in the psycho-emotional realm.

I am unsure about the English version but I believe the author is French Canadian so surely it would be a fine translation. A must have if you are interested in the invisible side of disease and the psychological/emotional side of your clients! Absolutely complementary to the work we are doing here as far as I am concerned.

Happy reading!

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[Antoine]

Thank you Katerina! I’ve been looking for a concise, holistic and wide-reaching book on Women’s health, it is such a vast field of its own and I am not sure where to start. Some practitioners specialise in this area which makes me not really confident in addressing those issues as of yet, knowing how much work can be put into such specialty (plus I’m still building my foundations..!). In your opinion, how does this book compare with others in the same field? If there was to be only one, would this one be it? I’m thinking of Aviva Romm’s material and a whole bunch of other great books out there… It’s a bit daunting and I’d like to find what would be a bible on the subject, to get a good grasp of it all on top of good litterature.

[Antoine]

That’s fairly understandable – reading at your list I can tell our environments are significantly different! Which makes it all the more interesting 🙂 I have no medicinal experience with Fumitory so far. They are only tiny at the moment, nothing like the drawings from your pictures (I could totally read that page 👌). This plant seems to be well-known here and has been traditionally used for a very long time; I’ve seen it in most herbal shops if not all, in one form or another. It has a cool herbal action: “amphocholeretic” (I just like the name of it), modulating either an excess or deficiency of bile secretion. It is advised to not use it in case of gallstones at it may push those stones down the ducts and block them.

Cool book by the way! I like that it’s a translation from French authors, I didn’t know they were known beyond this country. François Couplan is a beloved figure in the herbal world here and a big advocate for foraging, using forgotten plants as food and medicine and living more simple, natural & mindful lifestyles. He’s actually worked with starred chefs over the last few decades to incorporate wild plants (culinary and medicinal) in their dishes and restaurants. In a country where herbalism is technically forbidden, we owe him a lot as far as re-popularising and using wild plants goes, as well as sharing about their properties with a greater audience.

[Antoine]

I’ve never heard of that wine before but felt compelled to look it up. Must have been an actually good tonic back then! The brand went into oblivion and was brought back to life about 10 years ago with a new recipe that tried to copy the original (no one knows what it tasted like anymore) and a “decocainized” coca liquor added to it, which indicates that it wouldn’t get anywhere near the original potency. Beyond the taste, I’m not sure it would have any medicinal value today 😐

[Antoine]

Totally looks like my jam! I see there’s a second edition now. Not cheap but I might be able to find it on eBay. Thank you!

[Antoine]

The cheapest I saw on eBay was 30 euros, adding to that 15eur shipping fees and the good old 20% added on anything coming from non-EU countries from our government – now it’s getting a bit much for a 2nd hand book… Other eBay options are twice the base price and all shipping from the US too. Amazon (fr) has no new copy, cheapest starting at 166eur haha. Kindle might be the way to go but I’m still struggling to get into ebooks..! I’ve got so much reading already waiting anyway. It’s bookmarked to see if cheaper ones show up at some point. Thank you for checking Chad 👌

[Antoine]

Looks interesting, thanks for the recommendation. Seems to be quite hard to find and pricey these days though, from here anyway… From the few pictures you shared, it reminds me a bit of Barbara Brennan’s “Hands of Light” book, which may be a bit more oriented towards energy healing but has lots of content on chakras and the aura too. Will keep an eye out for it.

[Antoine]

Thanks again. I figured there can’t really be a “one-size-fits-all” book in this area of herbalism, just as it’s really difficult to pinpoint one in any other field… They are all complementary and it’s great that way – makes it more interesting, and we do need everyone’s vision to understand anything holistically!

That said I appreciate you sharing further references on this very topic. I am looking into trusted herbalists’ recommandations so I can see what books tend to show up more than others – my way of skimming through without having to invest in all of them. Not that I wouldn’t want to but books about herbalism are totally a rabbit hole I can see myself getting trapped into… and they’re not cheap as they add up 😅