Green Tidbits | The Medicine Woman's Roots

Grandmother Medicine: The Legacy of Juliette de Bairacli Levy

Juliette de Bairacli Levy’s contribution to modern herbalism has been enormous and her work has inspired and informed countless herbalists, not least Rosemary Gladstar and Susun Weed. In a time period when herbalism was being shunned as old fashioned and ineffective in the United States, Juliette was reviving and introducing important healing knowledge from all over the world, including Turkey, North Africa, Israel, Germany and Greece. Her time learning from and living with the Romani (Gypsy) is especially notable. I so wish I’d been able to meet Juliette in person before she passed away to personally thank her for sharing her experiences, knowledge and wisdom. Often called the grandmother of American herbalism, Juliette’s contribution to our...

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Clinical Training Opportunity in Nicaragua

For those of you interested in gaining real life experience and intensive training in herbal medicine in a clinical setting that is overseen/taught by several great practitioners and teachers, this is truly an amazing opportunity. The faculty includes Paul Bergner and Tania Neubauer of the North American Institute of Medical Herbalism. The training will take place on the island of Ometepe in Nicaragua this coming July. And amazingly enough, no clinical experience or previous knowledge of Spanish is necessary! Here’s a few highlights from the site: “Participants in this course will work in a primary care setting under the supervision of licensed naturopathic physicians and will observe all phases of the clinical visit – interview, physical exam,...

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Spring in the Country of Lichen and Spines: Fragments of Home

Spring in the Country of Lichen & Spines: Fragments of Home by Kiva Rose ~~~~ Warm temperatures have arrived early in my corner of the Gila, with the Golden Smoke blooming sooner this year than I’ve ever previously seen. This follows a cold (-35F is plenty cold for me, thank you) and dry Winter. Now our seasonal winds blow the sand up in spiraling circles until it dances like the shifting forms of whirling dervishes against New Mexico’s lapis colored sky. The skeletal limbs of shattered Russian Thistles caught up in these little whirlwinds give sharp edges to the dancers. ~~~~ The Canyon trees bend in the same wild winds and yet last year’s withered purple Juniper berries cling to their branches as they’re tossed about in the breeze. They retain their...

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Kiva and Nettles in March New Mexico Magazine

A one page article by Wendy Sue Gist in the March issue of New Mexico Magazine includes a little about wild foraging, dandelions, and Kiva Rose’s tips for picking nettles… as well as a listing for the 2011 Traditions in Western Herbalism Conference: New Mexico Magazine Article Those of you placing orders with Mountain Rose Herbs in Oregon, can expect to find a card announcing our upcoming conference among your upcoming shipments. Mountain Rose is one of the most ethical providers of quality medicinal and culinary herbs, and we’ve been recommending since long before the signed on as the first and one of the most devoted of TWHC sponsors. If you haven’t checked them out before, go to the: Mountain Rose Herbs Website The March issue of...

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Signs of Life: The Persistance of Green Medicine

Yes, it is January here in the mountains of New Mexico. Yes, it does get to less than -10F out there some nights. And why yes, that is a lovely new vivid green leaf from a picture I took just yesterday. Specifically, it is the leaf of a Wax Currant (Ribes cereum) growing down by the river among the Canyon Walnuts and Grape vines. While it will still be quite some time before they flower and fruit, they are well known for their persistence in leafing out even during some of our coldest weather. I greatly appreciate this tenacity, especially as we get to the part of Winter where I feel an increasing longing for green growing plants. ~~~~ Another persistent plant that manages to grow throughout the Winter, and sometimes even flower, is one of our native vervains....

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December Update

Thank you to everyone who has encouraged us to take a break, after nonstop deadlines around the 2011 TWH Conference organizing and the production of the first ever Plant Healer Magazine. There are still lots of tasks to be done this month on both projects, as well as tons of emails needing answering… but that said, we’ve still been treating the last few days as a bit of a break, and are feeling more relaxed and rewarded right now. 7Song, our valued herbalist ally and friend has been visiting and checking out what he can see of Anima Sanctuary’s plant life in Winter. And for the past week we’ve had almost Summer-like weather, the “Indian Summer” Wolf had predicted. While the nights have been getting down below freezing, the afternoons are...