watch the butterfly take flight

nourishing herbal infusions and juices, spring field notes

blueberries on their way

Violets are popping like confetti in the grass among a sea of bright golden dandelions. The weather has been erratic with so much rain. Spring storms as if it were summer.

The orchard needed its first mowing. Snapdragon starts are nearly ready to go outside, along with cabbage, broccolini, and brussels sprouts. There was a light frost on the creeping thyme hillside this morning. Will it be the last until after the Autumn Equinox?

I tread carefully through the forest to not crush the tiny wildflowers. Trilliums and Mayapple are emerging along the edges of the trails. The robins are awake and the color on the trees would be best described as fluorescent green. Everything I remember is returning.

Walks around the gardens are flowering and soft. In perfect synchronicity, I watch the bees and butterflies find the daffodils, then the blooming azaleas, and soon… lilacs.

let me spread my wings
as you breathe
the wind of every thought
passing and collecting 
in the basket of the mind 
emptying
with a flair of magenta in the heart
as I watch the butterfly take flight

dandelion drying for a glycerite

I gather dandelions to make a glycerite. Many of them have already turned to airy, white seedheads which they (thankfully) spread prolifically.

dandelions

Dandelion leaves are considered a nourishing herb, which I’ll be talking about at the Spring Apothecary event at Forest & Flowers Retreat this weekend: Nettles, Oat straw, Chickweed, Burdock, Dandelion, and Violet.

Nourishing herbs contain many vitamins and minerals, they’re restorative to tissues and organs, cleanse the blood and fluids of the body, and are lower in compounds that can be toxic in high doses so daily infusions are a treat.

For when you are recovering, feel depleted, or when your digestive system isn't absorbing nutrients well (e.g. chronic illness, inflammation, or after/during infections), nourishing herbs are great allies.

It’s time for making dandelion green juice (also violet and chickweed), and nourishing herbal infusions. I make a quart batch and drink some daily — it stores for a few days in the fridge.

nourishing herb infusion

Simply add 1-2 tbsp fresh or dried root to 1 quart water. Simmer for 20 minutes on very low, then strain and drink, or steep overnight 6-8 hours in a quart of hot water.

For leaves or flowers, add plant material (generally about a handful) to a quart jar and pour boiling water over top. Steep 6-8 hours and strain.

herbal juice

Blend 1-2 handfuls of fresh dandelion greens, chickweed, or violet flowers with 2-3 quarts water in a blender. Strain and drink.

complementary colors for pollinators, yellow and purple

flower, veg, and herb seedlings moving outdoors soon

snapdragons ready to plant out this week

purple dead nettle, Lamium purpureum

peonies popping & lavender that survived winter

azalea blooms fading quickly after the pollinators have made their rounds

quietly emerging with spring

trillium patch

white trillium

What are you noticing where you are? Which plants are catching your attention? What sounds do you hear? Is the light landing differently through your windows?

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