Dig for victory

So we’re living through a moment in history that no-one could have predicted. And anyone with a productive garden is most likely thanking their lucky stars that they have such a thing. We’re flat out right now getting as much in the ground as we can, in the hope of being able to feed people on the estate here on Anglesey, if the supply chain runs dry.

Meanwhile: the botanicals. Bless them and may they flourish. We are loving the extra immune-boosting support they’re giving us all right now. And because they’re no-sugar, alcohol free and super-yum, the whole family is tucking in and feeling the positive effects. We have just bottled up a new batch of our original four Potions - Love, Flow, Power and Bliss - and have also just started the Spring harvest, gathering our first big crop of rosemary and thyme.

Last week, I turned some marshmallow and echinacea roots into a supercharged upper-respiratory tract tincture. We also made some anti-viral house-cleaning spray with white vinegar, cloves, bay, eucalyptus and mint. Today, I was messing around with a burdock/ginger/turmeric/cayenne fire cider recipe, right after I’d finished bottling up our kombucha and kefir water. And while I was cutting sea kale and sorrel this afternoon, and pulling up some garlic, I noticed the cleavers - mega-lymphatic booster that we use in Flow - winding their way through the peppermint bed.

Glancing through what’s coming up, I’m thinking that so many of the botanicals we grow here have been loved for millennia for their anti-viral properties - dandelion, holy basil, fennel, lemon verbena, peppermint, rosemary, echinacea, elder, liquorice, ginger, turmeric, astragalus, and more - and I’m hoping that in these troubled times, we’ll turn again to our herbal allies. Even if it’s just a sprig of fresh thyme with boiling water poured on - it will be your best support right now. So wild-forage them or swig them as medicinal tinctures or Positive Potions - but learn to trust them again, during this global ‘time out’ moment. Herbs are medicine and magic - and they work.