Self-Reliance in Health Course Lesson 7: Liver and Urinary Tract is ready to access.

Silybum marianum
Family: Asteraceae/Compositae (members include daisy, dandelion and calendula)
Parts used: seeds (other parts can be used as a survival food)

Other names include Our Lady's thistle, blessed milk thistle, wild artichoke and Saint Mary's thistle. For more than 2,000 years milk thistle seeds have been used to support and heal the liver and connecting conditions. "Silymarin (found in milk thistle seeds) benefits the liver in several ways. It binds tightly to the receptors on liver cell membranes that allow toxins in, thus locking them out." The New Healing Herbs

Milk thistle can be cultivated in your yard by planting seeds in the fall or you can find it growing wild in disturbed areas, waysides and mountain trails. 

• Seeds can be harvested in the fall when the blossom head dries and seeds are visible. Cut the tops and use your method of choice to dry the for a couple of weeks before removing the seeds by placing in a bag and shaking or rubbing them out with your fingers. 
• Leaves can be harvested for survival food by stripping off the spiny green part, leaving the midrib, rub off wooly hairs then eat raw or cook.
• Stalk should be harvested in the spring while tender. Hold upside down and cut off green parts, exposing the inner stalk which can be eaten raw or cooked.
• Flowers should be harvested before opening. Cook them first then squeeze out the core and eat like an artichoke.
• Roots can be dug and harvested anytime for survival food.

Rumex crispus
Family: Polygonaceae (Buckwheat)
​Parts used: root (most medicinal), leaf, and seeds can be used for survival food but not medicinal.

Also known as curled or curly dock, narrow dock, sour dock, and garden patience.  Yellow dock combines really well with other herbs for supporting different body systems and aids the body in absorbing their properties and nutrients.

Found in disturbed areas, grassland, river banks, dry soil, mud, waysides, roadsides and as a yard weed. 

• Root: harvest anytime after the seed heads have matures and the tops begin to die until early spring before new growth starts. 
• Leaf: can be harvested as needed for poultices or food.
• Seeds: harvest as a survival food when they turn brown. 

Use with caution while pregnant and nursing due to the detoxing effects. Leaves contain a good amount of oxalic acid so should be steamed or cooked for eating.

Edible Wild Food - Yellow Dock
Herbs to Know in the Wild
A Handbook of Native American Herbs
​Backyard Medicine
​Practical Herbalism
School of Natural Healing

A couple years ago I had a friend that had been suffering with multiple urinary tract infections and the antibiotics she kept being given were making matters worse for her. She asked in desperation what she could do to get rid of this very uncomfortable infection.  I found a great formula from Rosemary Gladstar in her Medicinal Herbs for Beginners and made a few of my own adjustments to it. I also suggested she drink plenty of fluids, including plain cranberry juice. Generally this needs to be purchased from a health food store because the grocery store versions are filled with sugar and other concentrate juices which can aggravate the problem. After incorporating plain cranberry juice, avoiding sugar and taking this formula as suggested below, my friend was finally able to get rid of her infection.  Since she was prone to getting UTI's, she always kept some of this formula on hand for any future occurrences. 

2 parts uva ursi
1 part echinacea
1 part Oregon grape root
1 part marshmallow
1/2 part horsetail

Make into herbal capsules, tincture or tea.  Rosemary Gladstar recommends 2 capsules, 1/2-1 teaspoon tincture or 8 oz. of tea every 3-4 hours until symptoms subside.

This is what Rosemary has to say about her formula:

Most of the liquid in our body must be filtered and pumped through the urinary tract. With the standard American diet and all the toxins around us, this can be quite the challenge for our liver and kidneys. In addition to diet and removing as many toxins from your environment as possible, this formula can be used for sluggish kidneys, to increase urine flow and decrease water retention and to strengthen and support the urinary tract.

2 parts dandelion leaf
1 part marshmallow root
1 part raspberry leaf
1 part crushed fennel
1/2 part oak bark
1/2 part uva ursi (not for those who are pregnant)

Mix the herbs together and use as a tea, tincture or capsules. 

If you would like to strengthen and support your kidneys but don't want to mix up your own herbal formula, Dr. Christopher's Herb Shop has a kidney formula that comes in capsules, glycerite tincture or the pack of premixed herbs. Just note that this formula is a different one than Dr. Christopher's.

Lesson 6: Digestive System and related ailments, is now ready to access.

Foeniculum vulgare
Family: Umbelliferae, includes carrot, parsley, dill, angelica, etc.
Parts: Seed (other parts can be used for food but only the seed is medicinal)

From the time of the Pharaohs in Egypt, fennel has been a favorite herb as a digestive aid, support and help. It has a licorice type taste and can naturally sweeten any herbal tea. ​If you aren't a big fan of licorice flavor, dill seed could be used with similar properties.

You can find fennel in your local nursery or plant from seed. Fennel doesn't get along well with vegetable gardens so plant in a different area. It is drought tolerant and grows in any type of soil and condition. It will continue to self seed if some seeds are left on the plant in the fall.

• Seeds: When the seed heads turn brown with grey stripes they are ready to harvest by snipping of the umbel and shaking or rubbing the seeds off.  If they have any moisture left in them, leave out in the sun for a couple of days or dehydrate before storing. 
• Leaves: Can be harvested as food anytime.
• Bulb: The bulb can be harvested as vegetable late summer early fall. It can be chopped and added to foods or dried.

High doses of fennel can stimulate the uterus which makes it great for menstruation but not so great if pregnant. 

Fennel benefits by Dr. Axe
The New Healing Herbs
The Herbal Kitchen
​Essential Herbal Wisdom

Dr. Christopher created this formula as natural, absorbable form of calcium for body function. We all know how important calcium is for strong bones and teeth, but did you know it is also needed for the nerves, veins and artery walls?  Pregnant mothers need extra calcium for growing another person, children for developing strong and even straight teeth, the elderly for bone strength.  Dr. Christopher even used this formula for relieving cramps and "charlie horses'. 

Eating nutrient rich foods will also help the body get and keep the calcium it needs. Sugar, processed food and alcohol will leach calcium from the body.

I prefer to take my herbs by drinking a tea or making a glycerite and that means I need them to be palatable, so I added some peppermint to Dr. Christopher's original formula.  This is my version.

6 parts horsetail
3 parts oatstraw
4 parts comfrey (or nettles)
1 part lobelia
​2 parts peppermint

Mix all the herbs together and use to make a tea, tincture or capsules. You can also purchase this formula in bulk or ready made herbal products from Dr. Christopher's Herb Shop.

Lesson 5: The Immune System/Viruses and Bacteria is ready to access.

Verbascum thapsus (blattaria)
Family: Scrophulariaceae
Parts Used: leaves, flowers, roots

Also known as moth mullein, white mullein, woolen blanket herb, flannel flower, cow's lungwort, and velvet leaf.  There are around 300 different species throughout the world but the known species of the United States is thapsus.

A biennial found in disturbed areas and poor soils. The first year is a basal rosette of soft, green leaves, not the common stalk with flowers that may be more familiar. The second year the stalk is formed with yellow flowers on spikes. Make sure to only harvest away from roadways and areas where there may be toxins.

• Root: Best harvested the first year while in the rosette stage either in spring or fall. Dig up the entire plant since the leaves can be dried and used as well.  Chop root before drying.
• Leaves: Handpick leaves anytime, although the best time would be late spring, early summer.
• Flowers: Handpick while in full bloom or cut the upper 3-6" of stalk to dry.

Seeds are toxic so do not consume. The fine hairs can be irritating so strain well when making a tea, tincture or oil.