Yes to Life: Top 10 medicinal herbs to grow in your own garden

This week’s blog has been written by Tony Be, Natural Health Coach of The Ozone Spa in Torquay. He shares the top 10 medicinal herbs to grow in your garden, with the help of Fiona Shakeela Burns of Cancerucan…

A good friend of mine Fiona Shakeela Burns who is a qualified herbalist has recently been sharing with me some of her herbal knowledge, and oh my goodness what I have learnt is something I believe everyone should know about, and I am so grateful she has shared this with me.

Fiona has her own herb garden in Bristol and I asked her what do you consider to be the top 10 herbs to grow in your own garden? And this blog goes into those top 10 medicinal herbs. Some of these herbs can help clear a stubborn cold in days, soothes inflammation, ease anxiety help you sleep and much more, plus if you grow these yourself or collect them on a walk in nature they are FREE, or a gift. Plus, they come with hardly any side effects if any.

Yet please check with your doctor if you are on current medication to see if there are any contraindication with mixing pharmaceutical medicine with natural medicine.

Elecampane

The root is used to make medicine. Elecampane is used for lung diseases including asthma, bronchitis, and whooping cough. It is also used to prevent coughing, especially coughing caused by tuberculosis; and it helps loosen phlegm, so it can be coughed up more easily. This can also be used to help clear a cold.

Plantain

Plantain grows like a weed all over the place, I don’t like calling it a weed because it is so incredible. The leaves can also be made into a tea or tincture, and this is said to help with indigestion, heartburn, and ulcers when taking internally. Externally, Plantain has been used for a remedy for rashes and cuts.

Valerian

Valerian Root can help improves Sleep. Reduce Anxiety. Helps you deal with stress. Helpful for Controlling Hyperactivity and ADHD and decreases Menopausal Symptoms.

Based on the available research, take 300 to 600 milligrams (mg) of valerian root 30 minutes to two hours before bedtime. This is best for insomnia or sleep trouble. To make the tea, soak 2 to 3 grams of dried herbal valerian root in 1 cup of hot water for 10 to 15 minutes

Lemon Balm

Lemon Balm grows very easily here in the UK and you can make it into a tea to help ease Stress, to calm anxiety, improve cognitive function, and to help with menstrual cramps. If you do have anxiety try a couple of large handfuls of Lemon Balm in your tea pot.

Wood Betony

Wood Betony can help strengthens the digestive tract. Wood Betony stimulates and strengthens the gut. It can be used to stimulate the appetite, as well as keep your gut healthy. The herb can treat and relieve numerous gastric disorders such as heartburn, gastritis, constipation, bloating, and poor digestion.

Roman Chamomile

By far the most potent and effect type of chamomile is Roman Chamomile. Roman chamomile has the ability to reduce inflammation, relieve depression and anxiety, soothe muscle cramps and other PMS symptoms, treat skin conditions, and boost heart health. To make add the Chamomile flowers to strain in a teapot, and enjoy.

Lavender

Most people know about Lavender to help reduce anxiety. it also helps improve brain function, heal burns and wounds, improve sleep, restores skin complexion, and helps relieve pain.

Wormwood

Artemisinin, or qinghaosu in Chinese medicine, is an extract derived from the sweet wormwood Artemisinin has been shown to decrease angiogenesis, which is the composition of new blood vessels. Artemisinin supplements have been used traditionally for joint pain and loss appetite, liver problems, menstrual and epilepsy conditions.

Wormwood is a bitter herb affecting the bitter sensing tastebuds that send signals to the brain to stimulate the entire digestive system, salivation, stomach acid production, intestinal tract movement. Anti-parasitic. Anti-inflammatory. Liver Health.

Dandelion Root

Dandelion Root is used for loss of appetite, upset stomach, intestinal gas, gallstones, joint pain, muscle aches, eczema, and bruises. Dandelion is also used to increase urine production and as a laxative to increase bowel movements. It is also used as a skin toner, blood tonic, and digestive tonic.

Calendula

Calendula flower is used to prevent muscle spasms, start menstrual periods, and reduce fever. Calendula is applied to the skin to reduce pain and swelling (inflammation) and to treat poorly healing wounds and leg ulcers.

Rosemary

Rosemary soothes inflammation, improves digestion, enhances memory and concentration, and it prevents brain aging.

St John’s Wort

St John’s Wort is a popular herbal remedy for the treatment of mild anxiety, depression and sleep problems. It is thought to work in a similar manner to standard anti-depressants, with fewer side effects.

Shopping For Seeds and Tinctures

Whether you have a garden or just room for a few windowsill pot plants, and you are inspired by this blog to start growing some or all of these incredible medicinal herbs above, I’ve put some Amazon Links here for you, so you can get the seeds or tinctures easily.