Joy Oasis

If your herbs are completely dry, it is best to keep them in the airtight container as oxygen degrades herbs faster. But if you are not completely sure, then cloth or paper would allow moisture to continue evaporating.

Thank you. Very interesting. I guess I am a lucky 50 percent that Jamaican Dogwood helps. I used it in combination with other herbs for the migraines in tincture form and felt it was very useful in stopping the attack.

Thank you, Judith, for your answer. I think we dig either in the fall or next spring before stem comes up. In my zone 10 though I wouldn't wait until spring as they might start shooting the stem up earlier due to no real winter.

Do they grow very slow at first? My seem to be lagging even though they sprouted quite fast.

Very nice! I amuses me that scientists keep thinking where animal has learned this behavior. Their forget intuition part.

Carla Burke wrote:

I'm not surprised her results were so poor. To make an effective medicinal tea, the ratio recommended (by well- known, highly reputable) clinical herbalists, is 1oz by weight of dried herb, to 1qt of water, at a near-boil, steeped until it cools. Strain, pressing all the liquid out of the herb. To use, drink 1C daily, sweetened with honey, monkfruit, or stevia.

An update: now sometime later I do find feverfew effective for migraine attacks, but not as a tea, but as a tincture. It takes whole tablespoon and sometimes need to repeat it later, That is a lot of alcohol though, so I prefer to use low dose botanical tinctures such as blue iris or ghost pipe. And lots of ginger slices from the jar with honey.

Kirk Hutchison wrote:When I was little I used to suck the nectar out of bougainvillea flowers. The internet tells me that the sap is mildly toxic, but apparently the nectar is fine

Bougainvillea flowers make a beautiful magenta lemonade. Just don't heat it. Let fresh or dried flowers soak in room temperature water for a few hours. We loved it! They also were used medicinally in some cultures. Also dye Easter eggs pink.

Zone 10 in Los Angeles, rhubarb grows well here. It does have red stems, but not sure of variety as I got the divided roots.

I prefer to use waterpik machine with some iodine added.

Gary Numan wrote:I've tried to plead my case over the years as to what I believe belongs in a first aid kit.  I got arguments.

A first aid kit is for *emergencies*.  Stop the bleeding.  Stop the allergic reaction.  That may be it!

Others over the years, in multiple forums, recommended things like Pepto Bismol, burn cream,  nail clippers ... stuff that belongs in a bathroom medicine cabinet.  With that and related stuff, the first aid kit would quickly become large and unwieldy, and it'll take longer to find the QuikClot.  (It's hidden under the Drownproofing pamphlet!)

A first aid kit, I've concluded, is a personal thing, and most folks want an all-encompassing kit, 100+ items.  

I guess that depends how we define first aid. Diarrhea can be deadly. Heat attack and stroke can be deadly. So remedies for those in my opinion have to be in the kit. Plus having bad pain is an emergency in my opinion too.