22 Sep CalenduLove
By Cici / Garden of eDunn
Botanical Name: Calendula officinalis Family: Compositae Plant Part Used: Flower
CalenduLove
It’s always a perfect moment to gaze into your herb cabinet and see what dried herbs you got left over for infusions and medicine making. This is how I spent Valentines Day this year, making plant medicine oil for the whole family from a calendula plant grown in our food garden this summer in rich organic soil. Dried flowers were infused on low temperature with organic coconut oil and organic avocado oil to create an infusion for both internal and topical use. I like to use this oil blend because it is naturally rich in Vitamin A, E, D and minerals.
“Calendula is a healer plant ally that will also defend your garden.”
I absolutely love growing this healer flower. Calendula, an annual herb that has historically been used for medicinal and culinary purposes is an endless giver once it starts blooming. As a true Plant Ally, Calendula is a very resilient and adaptable plant that will attract beneficial insects with its many bright orange flowers and even help protect your food garden from invaders like aphids. It also protects the living soil with its fibrous roots and can be grown as cover crop. When it dies back it will enrich the soil with vital nutrients, so it’s really your perfect garden companion.
This particular plant was thriving in our organic garden last summer and would radiate with its vibrant color during the flowering and sun hours when I would harvest the flower heads. Calendula flowers with their deep orange color contain powerful constituents that promote topical healing (vulnerary) and internal healing with anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and antifungal properties. It also holds lymphatic properties that assist detoxification by its effect on the lymphatic tissue, which stimulates and improves the immune system. Make sure to remember this Plant Ally for your herbal medicine cabinet and if you can, grow your own. It’s an easy plant to cultivate and she will be forgiving if you make mistakes – In other words; a true healer plant.
“It’s an easy plant to cultivate and she will be forgiving if you make mistakes – In other words; a true healer plant.”
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